The 2010s were an economic disaster

As 2019 comes to a close, American policymakers must face a harsh truth: The last decade was an economic disaster. If the 2020s are going to be any better, our leaders will have to learn from their mistakes — or simply be replaced.

For all the talk of recovery, this decade began with the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression. Unemployment spiked to 10 percent, and it took most of the last ten years for it to come back down. As nice as a 3.5 percent unemployment rate is,...