Build Back Better: The Reemergence of American Manufacturing - Is Easier Said Than Done Learning from Building the Defense Industrial Base

Abstract

The reemergence of American manufacturing is easier said than done. On March 11, 2021, the three-part Build Back Better (BBB) agenda to rescue, recover, and rebuild the country became law. The agenda included the injection of billions of dollars in funding to small businesses that would have a domino effect by strengthening the American manufacturing supply chains, sparking innovation, and creating economic stability. On November 19, 2021, the House of Representatives (H.R.5376, 2021) voted 220–213 for the Build Back Better Act (BBBA), which remains stalled in the Senate (Build Back Better Act, 2021-2022). On November 15, 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) was signed into law, and it benefits Small Businesses and Manufacturing (Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act). These acts are transformational change measures for guiding and streamlining to achieve economic growth and sustainment of domestic sources in America. At the onset, the “delivery of performance [will be] at the speed of relevance” (Mattis, 2018, p. 10). This paper analyzes past and current whole-of-government measures to determine the state of the Defense Industrial Base (DIB) for the reemergence of American manufacturing.