From Safety Net to Power Base: Reclaiming Economic Power for Working People (with Jamie Keene)

In this episode of Pitchfork Economics, Nick Hanauer and Paul introduce Jamie Keene, a Stratification Economics Fellow at the Roosevelt Institute and former Biden White House policy advisor, to discuss her groundbreaking report, 'From Safety Net to Power Base: Reimagining Not Restoring the U.S. Anti-Poverty System.' Keene argues that decades of neoliberal policy have rendered the current social safety net not just ineffective but actively counterproductive, often subsidizing the very corporations that create economic precarity. She critiques the safety net’s reliance on unregulated private markets, its fragmented and passive design, and its failure to address power imbalances. Instead of incremental fixes, Keene calls for a radical reimagining: transforming the safety net into a 'power base' through public options in healthcare, childcare, housing, and financial services, sectoral bargaining, and proactive economic planning. The conversation underscores that poverty is not merely a lack of income but a lack of power to say no—especially in insecure jobs and exploitative markets. The hosts emphasize that this isn’t just about policy reform but about rebuilding democracy by restoring countervailing power to working people, echoing the New Deal’s integrated vision of government as a force for economic fairness and stability. The episode ends on a note of cautious hope, highlighting a growing progressive consensus that systemic change—not tinkering—is now necessary.