Nick Hanauer and Jason Furman Debate: Is Capitalism Broken?

Is Capitalism Broken? As politicians aligned with the Democratic Socialist movement win key primary victories across the country, that’s the question under debate at the next Open to Debate livestream, August 20 at 2:30 PM ET.

Arguing YES will be entrepreneur and venture capitalist Nick Hanauer, who managed, founded, or financed over 30 companies, selling one (Aquantive Inc) to Microsoft for $6.4 billion and another (Juno Therapeutics) to Celgene in 2019 for $9 billion, while at the same time advocating for raising taxes on the wealthy and a $15 minimum wage. Arguing NO will be economist Jason Furman, President Obama’s chief economist who served as Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers and played a major role in most of the major economic policies of the Obama Administration. John Donvan, the most experienced debate moderator in America, will moderate.

Media can email raypadgett@shorefire.com for information on how to tune in live or watch it afterward. The debate is on the record.

DEBATER BIOS

Jason Furman: Former Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers; Professor at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government

Jason Furman is the Aetna Professor of the Practice of Economic Policy jointly at Harvard Kennedy School and the Department of Economics at Harvard University. He is also a nonresident senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. Previously he served as a top economic adviser to President Obama, including serving as the 28th Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, acting as President Obama’s chief economist and a cabinet member. During this time, Furman played a major role in most of the major economic policies of the Obama Administration. Furman also served under President Clinton. Furman engages in public policy through research, writing, and teaching, focusing on U.S. and international macroeconomics, fiscal policy, labor markets, and competition policy. He is a member of numerous organizations, including the Council on Foreign Relations, the Group of Thirty, and the Economic Strategy Group. He also serves as a Trustee of the Russell Sage Foundation and the advisory boards for the Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, the Bund Summit, the Hamilton Project, and the Washington Center for Equitable Growth. In addition to articles in scholarly journals and periodicals, Furman is a regular contributor to the Wall Street Journal and Project Syndicate and the editor of two books on economic policy.

Nick Hanauer: Entrepreneur and Venture Capitalist

Bio: Nick Hanauer is a successful entrepreneur, investor, and manager with over 30 years of experience across a broad range of industries including manufacturing, retail, e-commerce, digital media and advertising, software, aerospace, health care, and finance. He is a co-founder and partner of Second Avenue Partners, a Seattle-based venture capital firm that provides management, strategy, and capital for early-stage companies.

Hanauer’s experience and perspective have led to an unusual record of serial successes. He has managed, founded, or financed over 30 companies, creating aggregate market value of tens of billions of dollars. Some of his notable successes include Amazon.com, Aquantive Inc. (purchased by Microsoft in 2007 for $6.4 billion), Insitu Group (purchased by Boeing in 2008 for $400 million), Juno Therapeutics (acquired by Celgene in 2019 for $9 billion), and Market Leader (purchased by Trulia in 2013 for $350 million). He has helped found or manage a portfolio of companies across a diverse array of industries, including Marchex, Newsvine, Qliance, Seattle Bank, and Pacific Coast Feather Company.

At the same time, Hanauer, a self-described “proud and unapologetic capitalist,” was one of the first advocates for a $15 minimum wage. He is now one of the world’s most provocative thinkers about our society’s growing inequality and the dire consequences that increasing inequality creates for our democracies. His political organizations include Civic Ventures, Civic Action, the League of Education Voters, and the Alliance for Gun Responsibility.

Hanauer’s opinion pieces have been featured in dozens of publications, and he is a frequent commentator on politics and economics in the media. He has given three TED talks, been featured in several feature documentaries, and made a variety of television appearances. His opinion pieces have been featured in the New York Times, TIME Magazine, Bloomberg Businessweek, The Atlantic, and Democracy Journal, among other publications. He is the author of three books: “The True Patriot” and “Gardens of Democracy” with Eric Liu and “Corporate Bullshit” with Donald Cohen and Joan Walsh.

Hanauer and his wife Leslie are signatories of the Giving Pledge and co-manage the Nick and Leslie Hanauer Foundation. He has received a variety of honors and awards, including Harvard/MIT’s Humanist of the Year award, Ernst and Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year award, and an honorary PhD from Chapman University.

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