In 2012, then-President Barack Obama gave a speech in which he referenced government investments in infrastructure. It was the kind of stump speech that might have gotten a day of coverage and then slipped from the collective consciousness, but for one simple line: âIf you've got a business, you didn't build that.â A debate ensued as to whether business or government is the architect of American prosperity.
The phrase âyou didnât build thatâ became a rallying cry in the fight between those who want to invest in government and those who advocate corporate tax reductions. Lost in the noise were questions about the responsibility of the private and public sectors to help each other thrive.