Dear Friends,

Our number one priority must be to keep America the world's number one economy and create good paying jobs for the middle class. We have to come together around a pro-growth economic agenda. The most important competition is not between Democrats and Republicans, but with China, India, Brazil, and Korea.

In the next few months, we will meet in Silicon Valley and across the country with business leaders, workers, scientists, teachers and students to develop policies for strengthening American competitiveness.

We will ask for your ideas about how to provide the best incentives for job creation. This means exploring a sensible repatriation tax policy and establishing limited duration, tax-free manufacturing zones for companies that are building factories. It means pushing for open markets overseas and demanding that other countries protect intellectual property. It means making long term investments in infrastructure at home including in the smart grid and in the mobility internet. And it means welcoming immigrants who can build companies or help us make technology breakthroughs.

We will ask for your ideas about how to overcome the skills gap. Currently, there are over two million jobs that cannot be filled because we have not invested in our own workforce. We must prioritize the American worker and provide vocational and technical education so that individuals have the skills to operate advanced machines or program computers. Our culture must inspire young people once again to pursue careers in manufacturing and engineering.

We will ask entrepreneurs in the trenches about what is working in our national mission to achieve energy independence. The country should experiment broadly in clean energy production and research. This includes supporting solar, wind, advanced bio fuels, the integral fast reactor, and fusion. We also need to champion energy efficiency and sustainability to make the most of our resources.

America has always risen to challenges. In the 1950s, the skeptics, led by Nobel Laureate Paul Samuelson, doubted whether our economy could keep up with the Soviet Union's economy. But America prevailed. In the 1980s, the skeptics, led by faculty at the Harvard Business School, doubted whether we could compete with Japan and Germany. Again, America prevailed. The lesson is simple: do not bet against America.

What makes us unique is our ability to value diverse perspectives and find common ground. We know that no one individual or one party has a monopoly on the truth. We know that every person, every voice matters. It is time for us to live up to this great legacy and do our part to move this country forward.

Sincerely,

Ro Khanna