America Let Its Middle-Class Jobs Slip Away
Back in 1992, billionaire businessman Ross Perot made headlines during his presidential campaign with a blunt warning: if the U.S. signed on to NAFTA, we’d hear a “giant sucking sound” as American jobs headed south to Mexico. At the time, a lot of folks laughed it off. Perot’s delivery was quirky, and the political establishment brushed him aside as a wealthy outsider with a knack for drama. But three decades later, it turns out Perot wasn’t crazy—he was ahead of his time.
The “giant sucking sound” wasn’t just colorful language; it became a harsh reality for millions of American workers. Factories closed. Towns dried up. Union jobs that once paid enough to support a family on a single income began disappearing at a stunning pace. Middle-class workers—especially those in manufacturing, textiles, and steel—watched their way of life evaporate.
So how did we get here, and what have we done—if anything—to stop the bleeding?
Let’s start with what Perot was talking about: the North American Free Trade Agreement. NAFTA, signed into law in 1994 by President Bill Clinton, promised economic growth and more trade between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. What it delivered, however, was a rush of American companies relocating production to places where labor was cheaper and environmental rules were looser.
And NAFTA wasn’t the only culprit. The 1990s and 2000s saw a broader push for globalization. China entered the World Trade Organization in 2001, and the result was another wave of job loss. Manufacturing jobs flooded out of America and into China’s cheap labor market. American workers, once the backbone of the industrial economy, were suddenly told they needed to “retrain” for jobs in tech, healthcare, or “the knowledge economy.”
But here’s the problem: not everyone can—or wants to—sit behind a desk. The promise of retraining didn’t pan out for most. Many middle-aged factory workers weren’t able to start over in a new field, and even when they did, the jobs paid less, offered fewer benefits, and lacked the stability of the old union gigs.
Between 2000 and 2010 alone, the U.S. lost roughly 5 million manufacturing jobs. These weren’t just numbers—they were people with mortgages, kids in school, and dreams of retirement. As these jobs disappeared, so did the infrastructure of the American middle class.
Small towns and blue-collar cities were especially hard hit. Think of places like Youngstown, Ohio; Flint, Michigan; or Scranton, Pennsylvania. These were once thriving hubs of industry, but over time they became poster children for economic decay, opioid addiction, and population loss.
The tech boom that was supposed to lift all boats instead created a stark divide. Wealth and opportunity concentrated in coastal cities and left much of middle America behind. Meanwhile, jobs in retail, fast food, and gig work replaced what used to be solid middle-income careers.
To be fair, there have been efforts to fight back. President George W. Bush and later Barack Obama offered various forms of assistance to retrain workers and support displaced communities. But these programs were often too little, too late.
Under President Trump, the issue of lost middle-class jobs came roaring back into the spotlight. He renegotiated NAFTA into what’s now called the USMCA (United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement), aiming to claw back some leverage for American workers. Trump also imposed tariffs on foreign steel and aluminum and called out companies for moving production overseas.
Whether these moves had a lasting impact is still debated. Some manufacturers did bring jobs back, but automation and globalization remain powerful forces. A factory that returns to the U.S. today might hire 200 workers—whereas 30 years ago, it would have hired 2,000.
President Biden, for his part, has tried to focus on “Made in America” policies, especially through the Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS Act, which aim to boost domestic manufacturing in clean energy and semiconductors. The hope is to revive high-paying union jobs while preparing for the future economy.
But many Americans are still waiting to see the benefits.
The American middle class has taken a beating. The jobs that used to build families, communities, and entire towns are still gone—or have returned in name only, with lower pay and less security.
The road to rebuilding the middle class isn’t just about policy—it’s about priorities. Do we value American labor enough to protect it from global competition? Are we willing to invest in skilled trades, vocational education, and the kinds of jobs that can’t be outsourced or automated?
Ross Perot warned us about the sucking sound. We didn’t listen. Maybe it’s time we start.