China’s breathtaking achievement of eliminating extreme poverty, defined by living on less than $3 a day, for nearly one billion people between 1990 and 2019 is a monumental feat that has redefined global development benchmarks. This centrally planned effort set a new and challenging standard for all emerging economies.
The success highlights a sharp failure of wealth distribution in the US, where over four million Americans now languish in the direst poverty—a tripling in 35 years. The US has the productive capacity but the political structure to ensure prosperity remains concentrated at the top.
The income data illustrates the severity: the bottom 10% of Americans receive a minuscule 1.8% of national income, a share less than that of similar groups in many developing countries. This points to systematic policy choices favoring the wealthy over equitable distribution.