In the aftermath of the 2010 Citizens United decision, it's become commonplace to note the growing political dominance of a small segment of the economic elite. But what exactly are those members of the elite doing with their newfound influence? The One Percent Solution provides an answer to this question for the first time. Gordon Lafer's book is a comprehensive account of legislation promoted by the nation's biggest corporate lobbies across all fifty state legislatures and encompassing a wide range of labor and economic policies. In an era of growing economic insecurity, it turns out that one of the main reasons life is becoming harder for American workers is a relentless-and concerted-offensive by the country's best-funded and most powerful political forces: corporate lobbies empowered by the Supreme Court to influence legislative outcomes with an endless supply of cash. These actors have successfully championed hundreds of new laws that lower wages, eliminate paid sick leave, undo the right to sue over job discrimination, and cut essential public services.
Lafer shows how corporate strategies have been shaped by twenty-first-century conditions-including globalization, economic decline, and the populism reflected in both the Trump and Sanders campaigns of 2016. Perhaps most important, Lafer shows that the corporate legislative agenda has come to endanger the scope of democracy itself. For anyone who wants to know what to expect from corporate-backed Republican leadership in Washington, D.C., there is no better guide than this record of what the same set of actors has been doing in the state legislatures under its control.
Industry Reviews
"Gordon Lafer's The One Percent Solution leaves no stone unturned in exposing how corporations' conscious political strategy has made life harder for American workers by promoting bad ideas such as 'right to work' and a flat-lined minimum wage. I commend Lafer for shining a light on the manipulations of corporate special interests. Workers simply cannot wait any longer. Now more than ever, every American should read this book."-U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro "In The One Percent Solution, Gordon Lafer exposes the vast conspiracy between corporate special interests and their allies in government to rig the rules of our economy and democracy to favor the wealthy few. Anyone who is committed to turning the tide back in favor of working people must first understand what we are up against-and that means reading this book."-Richard L. Trumka, President, AFL-CIO "For anyone who doubts that corporations are just as coordinated as they ever have been, or that the most critical issues on their agenda are eliminating unions, reducing the minimum wage, and limiting government social benefits, then this highly original and comprehensive examination of their shared legislative priorities and successes in all fifty states is now the one best book you can read."-G. William Domhoff, Distinguished Professor Emeritus and Research Professor, University of California, Santa Cruz, author of Who Rules America? "The One Percent Solution is a must-read for all who want to ensure the revival and survival of American democracy."-Margaret Levi, Sara Miller McCune Director, Center for Advanced Study of the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS), Stanford University "Gordon Lafer's One Percent Solution is must reading for anyone who wants to understand inequality in the twenty-first century. He puts names and faces to the powerful corporations who have used their political influence to shape America's economy. Lafer takes us into corporate boardrooms to show us a shockingly ambitious agenda to remake the American economy. Kudos to Lafer for writing a book that breaks new ground, is interesting to read, and will be of great interest to general readers, political junkies, and college students alike."-Peter Dreier, E.P. Clapp Distinguished Professor of Politics, Occidental College "The One Percent Solutionis essential reading for anyone hoping to turn back the right-wing tide."-Dean Baker, Economist and Director, Center for Economic and Policy Research. "The One Percent Solution makes an important contribution to our understanding of one of the most effective antiunion movements in American history. Gordon Lafer uses a comprehensive dataset to trace the story of how ALEC, the Koch brothers, the Chamber of Commerce, and the National Association of Manufacturers targeted the fifty state legislatures with the goal of weakening unions and labor standards for nonunion workers across multiple policy arenas including state spending, 'Right to Work,' education, and labor standards."-Janice Fine, School of Management and Labor Relations, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, author of Worker Centers "In an age of divided government and Congressional gridlock, Gordon Lafer shows that a handful of the nation's most conservative business lobbying organizations were still able to get some of the public policies that they want-by focusing their efforts on state legislatures. This book reveals the outlines of a coordinated lobbying campaign that could have the effect of increasing economic and political inequality in America."-Isaac William Martin, University of California, San Diego, author of Rich People's Movements: Grassroots Campaigns to Untax the One Percent
