Apr 30, 2018, 11:14 AM ETConference Presentation, Statement

Remarks by Senator Marco Rubio

The American economic model is defined by its capacity for entrepreneurship, characterized by individuals leaving established employment to pursue high-risk ventures, often failing multiple times before succeeding.
Current policy focuses on removing artificial impediments to this dynamism, specifically targeting unnecessary regulations and tax structures that distort market entry.
The speaker identifies a practice where large corporations utilize government law and lobbying to create barriers to entry, effectively stifling competition from smaller entrants.
Government objectives include creating an environment where safety nets exist to allow risk-taking without the threat of starvation, distinct from permanent dependency.

The global economy has transitioned millions from deep poverty into consumers, representing a net global gain, though this transformation has left specific populations behind.
A significant portion of the workforce faces displacement due to industry obsolescence caused by globalization, automation, and the decline of traditional manufacturing sectors.
Relocating displaced workers to new job markets is complicated by the loss of long-standing community support networks, including multi-generational family ties and local social infrastructure.
The fundamental economic challenge is identified as cushioning these transitions while respecting that certain industries and jobs may never return.

There is a critical misalignment between current educational outputs and 21st-century labor market demands, with a persistent over-emphasis on four-year degrees rather than vocational training.
The United States faces a growing skills shortage where unemployment rates and job openings are often nearly identical due to a lack of relevant skills in the available workforce.
Specific shortages exist for trades such as welding and electrical work, highlighting a deficit in vocational education compared to philosophical or liberal arts training.
The speaker advocates for stronger synergy between local business demands and educational institutions to ensure schools equip students with skills needed for local strategic industries.
Disproportionate difficulty exists for workers aged 45 and older who lose jobs due to industry collapse or automation, as few programs exist to facilitate their mid-life career transitions.

Innovation is described as primarily emerging from the "ground up," where employees identify unmet needs and create niche solutions before major corporations detect them.
Local communities are credited with filling economic gaps left by the old economy through grassroots innovation, which is cited as the primary driver of new economic growth.
Programs supporting small businesses are deemed critical for providing not just capital, but the necessary tools to transform ideas into commercial realities.
The speaker predicts that the 21st century will become the freest and most prosperous era in U.S. history, contingent on the absence of legislative interference and the preservation of these entrepreneurial conditions.
New industries and jobs are being designed in real-time to solve currently unknown problems, requiring a flexible system that only the small business sector can provide.

The path to a "new American century" relies on the government creating favorable conditions and then removing itself from the equation to allow private success to flourish.
Anti-poverty programs must evolve to include tools for skill acquisition, enabling those displaced by economic shifts to become employable in new sectors.
The speaker anticipates the emergence of new jobs and approaches that currently lack names, driven by the flexibility of the entrepreneurial sector.
Future prosperity is framed as a collaborative effort where the government's role is to support the ecosystem, while the private sector executes the creation of value.