Nation of Innovators
Summary of the written testimony of Microsoft chairman Bill Gates before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on March 7, 2007.
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| Bill Gates, Chairman, Microsoft Corp. |
When it comes to innovation, the United States has much to be proud of. In many fields, achievements borne of American ingenuity and inventiveness have fueled unprecedented prosperity and improved the lives of people everywhere.
Today, however, looking at the nation’s competitiveness as an innovator, I feel not only pride, but also deep anxiety. Too often, we as a society are sacrificing the long-term good of our country for short-term gain. In too many areas, we are content to live off the investments that previous generations made for us — in education, health care, basic scientific research — but we are unwilling to invest equal energy and resources in building on this legacy and ensuring that America’s future is as bright and prosperous as its present.
Our nation simply cannot continue along this course. We must invest now to secure our economic and technological leadership for the future. In my view, we will lose this leadership unless we take three important steps.
First, we must ensure that America’s students and workers have the skills to compete in a digital economy. We must provide them with the necessary educational opportunities and resources. Our top priorities should be to reverse our dismal high school graduation rates — with a target of doubling the number of young people who graduate from high school ready for college, career, and life — and to place a major emphasis on encouraging careers in math and science. Both the public and private sectors have a responsibility to ensure that workers have access to training programs that help them upgrade the skills they need in today’s digital economy.
Second, we need to attract and retain the brightest, most talented people from around the world. This will not happen until we reform our immigration policies for highly skilled workers. America should be doing all it can to attract the world’s best and brightest, who can help us create more jobs and prosperity. Instead, we are shutting them out and discouraging those already here from staying.
Third, we need to provide a foundation for innovation by investing in ideas and capturing their value. The public sector in particular needs to continue to increase investments in research and development, especially in basic science, to complement private sector R&D and to address new challenges. The R&D tax credit needs to be made permanent. We also need to ensure that the patent system continues to provide the legal framework that rewards innovation.
Frankly, we have not been the careful stewards of our own “innovation account” that our children and grandchildren have a right to expect us to be. It is time to get back in shape and revisit our game plan. I recognize that this will take strong political will and courageous leadership. But if we succeed, I firmly believe our efforts will pay rich dividends for our nation’s next generation.
