Post

The Arsenal of Democracy: Made in the USA

The United States stands at the threshold of a new industrial era—one defined not by a lack of capital or innovation, but by an inability to mobilize existing assets (both physical and human). As global supply chains fragment, geopolitical tensions escalate, and industrial policy reemerges as a tool of national strategy, the imperative to reshore and retool is no longer just economic—it’s existential.

But reactivating industrial infrastructure is only one leg of the stool. What’s emerging is a tri-play economic strategy that will shape the next decade: restore integrity to the labor market by curbing the unchecked flow of low-wage immigrant labor that has depressed wages and undermined domestic employment; lift the burden on working Americans by eliminating federal taxes on tips, overtime, and wages under $150,000; and deploy targeted tariffs to reroute global production—an uncertain bet that may prove inflationary, protectionist, or brilliant, depending on the response from China and our allies. As Scott Bessent put it recently, “it’s like the brooms are carrying the buckets. There is nothing you can do – it just keeps going”—the levers of global realignment are already grinding into motion, whether we are ready or not.

In the 1970s, 1 in 5 American workers held a job in manufacturing. Today, it’s closer to 1 in 12. During the same period, China’s share of global manufacturing rose from 3% to nearly 30%, while America’s fell from 22% to just over 16%. But this decline is not solely the result of labor arbitrage or offshoring—it also reflects a cultural and institutional shift. A generation of Americans has been steered toward knowledge work, not craftsmanship. Our education systems emphasize math and computer science, while our industrial base erodes from disuse. At the same time, decades of rising consumerism have dulled the national instinct to build, replacing a culture of production with one of passive consumption. The comforts of abundance and the promises of a service economy masked the strategic costs of losing touch with how things are made—and who makes them.

This is the first in a series of writings on what it would take to reindustrialize America. Today’s focus is on the physical assets: the infrastructure, land, and facilities—many already built—that could be optimized and redeployed for strategic advantage. Assuming the physical assets are in place, the next frontier is operational: vertically integrating manufacturing to drive speed, resilience, and cost efficiency. Just as Tesla—and Toyota before them—redefined automotive supply chains by internalizing everything from batteries and software to core manufacturing processes, America must reconsider the fragmented outsourcing model that underpins much of its current industrial base. Rebuilding core competencies—materials, tooling, logistics, and final assembly—within a coordinated domestic ecosystem could compress production timelines, reduce reliance on foreign suppliers, and unlock a new era of high-throughput, strategically aligned manufacturing at scale.

We believe there is a clear and immediate opportunity to repurpose underutilized or idled industrial infrastructure across the country. Drawing on historical precedent and modern tools like the Defense Production Act, the U.S. can activate this dormant base to catalyze industrial growth in critical sectors such as shipbuilding, semiconductor packaging, clean energy, and national defense.

I. Historical Precedent: The Blueprint is in Our Past

America has done this before.

• World War II: In just five years, U.S. aircraft production skyrocketed from 6,000 units to more than 96,000 annually. The “Arsenal of Democracy” converted civilian auto plants in Detroit into tank and aircraft factories. Ford’s Willow Run plant was producing one B-24 Liberator bomber every 63 minutes by 1944.
• Cold War Era: The Defense Production Act of 1950 empowered the federal government to direct private-sector output, allocate materials, and issue loans for defense manufacturing—a framework still active today.
• COVID-19 Response: In 2020, that same law was invoked to direct automakers like GM and Ford to produce ventilators, repurposing assembly lines within weeks.

In each instance, the government did not need to build from scratch. It leveraged what already existed—and moved with urgency.

Today, the same dynamics apply. We face a fractured global supply chain, a growing backlog in naval shipyards, dependence on foreign AI chips, and a clean energy transition that demands industrial scale. Once again, America must turn inward—to what we already own.

II. America’s Industrial Skeleton: Still Standing, Still Strong

Though manufacturing has declined as a share of GDP (from 28% in 1953 to just 11% today), the infrastructure remains—if barely humming.

• Auto Plants: Over 300 auto assembly and component plants remain across the U.S., many operating below 70% capacity. Legacy facilities in Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee could be retooled to manufacture drones, electric military vehicles, or grid components.
• Aerospace Facilities: Companies like SpaceX, Boeing, and Lockheed Martin operate advanced manufacturing campuses that could support dual-use output—from launch systems to coastal defense to AI-grade electronics.
• Industrial Parks and Tool Shops: Across Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Alabama lie remnants of the 20th-century industrial boom—hundreds of facilities with power, freight access, and zoning, needing only investment and direction.

Yet this opportunity is not limited to the private sector.

The U.S. federal government owns nearly 640 million acres of land—about 28% of the country. While much of this is forest, parkland, or wilderness, tens of thousands of acres are underutilized DoD holdings near ports, rail, and grid infrastructure. These parcels could be converted for manufacturing, energy storage, or logistics.

Then there’s the symbolic: the U.S. military operates over 150 domestic golf courses, and over 190 worldwide , including dozens on domestic bases. These courses represent underutilized acreage that could house testing centers, training hubs, or modular production.

Finally, we turn to aviation. The FAA lists more than 5,000 public-use airports in the U.S., but hundreds of former airfields—decommissioned military bases or shuttered regional airports—remain abandoned or underused. These locations, already tied into infrastructure, are ripe for transformation into drone testing grounds, battery storage facilities, or regional logistics hubs.

None of this requires new land use laws or eminent domain. The assets are already owned. The bottleneck is policy, and coordination.

III. Existing Legal Frameworks: We Don’t Need to Invent New Laws

Several tools already exist to activate this strategy:

• Defense Production Act (DPA): Sections 101 and 302 enable prioritization of contracts and allocation of materials for national defense. These powers could be extended to include AI infrastructure, energy storage, or drone manufacturing.
• CHIPS Act + Inflation Reduction Act (IRA): Together, these legislative packages direct over $700 billion toward strategic sectors like semiconductors, advanced manufacturing, and energy infrastructure. However, the bulk of this funding is earmarked for new construction. A complementary track focused on reactivating and repurposing existing industrial facilities—whether for chip packaging, data infrastructure, or component assembly—could shorten deployment timelines, lower capital intensity, and ensure broader geographic distribution of industrial investment.
• Title III of the DPA: Perhaps the most underutilized lever, Title III allows the government to issue low-interest loans, acquire equipment, or fund retooling for industrial conversion. It’s what enabled GM and Ford to produce ventilators during COVID—and it could enable a hundred more conversions today.

IV. Strategic Use Cases: From Efficiency to Sovereignty

This is not just about economic revitalization—it is about industrial sovereignty. Consider just a few use cases:

• Naval Shipbuilding: The U.S. Navy faces an 8+ year backlog. Modular propulsion systems, hull components, or electronics could be built inland and assembled at coast.
• Semiconductor Packaging: America may subsidize fab construction, but 80% of chip packaging is still done in Taiwan and China. Retooling domestic plants to handle advanced packaging is an urgent national priority.
• AI Data Center Infrastructure: The U.S. will require thousands of new GPU clusters in the next decade. Existing high-voltage campuses could house localized “compute depots” assembled and maintained domestically.
• Clean Energy Components: Wind turbines, utility-scale batteries, EV fast-chargers—all require metal, manufacturing, and land. Reactivating existing plants in the Midwest and South could shorten timelines and bolster resiliency.

V. From Blueprint to Execution

1. Conduct a National Industrial Audit: Map and score underutilized public and private industrial assets by location, access to energy and water, transportation infrastructure, and estimated retooling cost. Today, no federal agency maintains a comprehensive, real-time registry of U.S. industrial capacity. The Department of Defense, GSA, and Department of Commerce each hold fragmented data on federal properties, while private sector assets are largely invisible to policymakers. Even within the federal government, land ownership is poorly integrated across agencies—meaning the U.S. may not have a clear picture of what it owns, what’s viable, or where to deploy capital. A coordinated audit, possibly led by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) or the Department of Energy’s Office of Manufacturing & Energy Supply Chains, could fill this gap and serve as the foundation for a reactivation strategy.
2. Create a Reactivation Fund: Launch a $25 billion DPA initiative focused on retrofitting 50–100 existing plants for strategic output.
3. Form Regional Consortia: Align OEMs, national labs, utilities, and defense primes to coordinate reactivation plans.
4. Streamline Zoning and Permitting: Use federal override authority on industrial projects deemed nationally strategic.
5. Deploy Workforce Capital: Partner with community colleges, unions, and veteran retraining pipelines to deliver the talent needed to operate tomorrow’s infrastructure.

Global economic realignment is underway. China may be forced to redirect capacity. Europe is caught between energy policy and deindustrialization. The United States, meanwhile, sits on a dormant industrial inheritance—an endowment that rivals its Cold War peak. The only thing missing is intent.

We don’t need to reinvent industrial America. We need to turn the lights back on.

Back to Posts