RURAL AMERICA

Rural America

Reversing the Hollowing Out

The Crisis

Political alienation: "Forgotten" by coastal elites, resentment drives politics

Why It's Happening

Economic Shifts

Resource extraction: Boom-bust cycles, environmental devastation

Structural Disadvantages

Housing: Stock deteriorating, no investment in new construction

Self-Reinforcing Spiral

No broadband → Can't remote work → Brain drain continues

Current Approaches That Fail

Tax incentives: Opportunity Zones captured by developers, benefits don't reach rural

Nostalgia politics: "Bring back coal" doesn't bring back coal

AIP Solution: Rural Revival

Universal Healthcare Saves Rural Hospitals

Problem: Rural hospitals close because patients can't pay—uninsured, underinsured

Recruitment: Doctors more willing to go rural if payment guaranteed

Stability Accounts Provide Capital

Retirement in place: $1.89M allows comfortable rural retirement

Development Fund Infrastructure

Processing facilities: Development investment in rural value-add facilities

No Income Tax Benefit

Consumption tax: Lower consumption = lower taxes (rural spends less than urban)

Projected Outcomes

Political healing: Less resentment as prosperity returns

Political Framing

For Rural Voters

"You're not forgotten. Universal healthcare keeps your hospital open. No income tax means you keep your paycheck. Stability Accounts give your grandkids a future here—or choice to return."

For Urban Voters

"Healthy rural America benefits everyone—food security, national stability, less migration pressure on cities."

Discussion Questions

Is universal healthcare enough to save rural hospitals, or are other factors at play?

How do we address rural cultural concerns alongside economic?

What about rural areas dependent on fossil fuels?

Does this require explicit rural development programs beyond general AIP?

How does agricultural policy interact with AIP framework?

Note: Rural America is politically critical and genuinely suffering. AIP's universal programs (healthcare, accounts, no income tax) disproportionately benefit rural without being explicitly rural programs—potentially more durable than targeted interventions. Validators invited to assess rural-specific impacts.