Why America Can’t Build Anymore—and How Abundance Says We Fix It

It’s Tuesday, May 20th, and if the potholes on your street or the price of your rent have you wondering why everything feels broken—today’s read has answers.

We’re diving into Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson, a book that asks: If we’ve got the tools, tech, and talent… why can’t we build anything anymore?

Spoiler: It’s not just politics. It’s process. It’s paralysis. It’s the endless loop of well-meaning regulation + zero momentum = America’s crisis of stagnation. Klein and Thompson want to revive the belief that progress is possible—and they make a compelling case that abundance isn’t a fantasy. It’s a political choice. And one we urgently need to make.

📚 Abundance debuted as a #1 New York Times Bestseller, lighting up think tanks and comment sections alike.

🧠 It’s been called the “grown-up version of ‘move fast and break things’”—but with more zoning law insight and less billionaire cosplay.

📰 Morning Brew even named it one of the “Top 5 Books CEOs Can’t Stop Quoting” (because suddenly… we all care about housing permits).

🎙️ Whether you’re urbanist-curious or just tired of hearing “we can’t do that here,” this book flips the script on what’s actually possible.

In today’s WHTTR episode, we unpack:

• 🏘️ Housing Headaches: Why your rent is high, your city is stuck, and your apartment approval takes 14 months.

• ⚡ Regulatory Gridlock: How green energy gets strangled by the red tape meant to protect it.

• 🚧 Weirdly American Stagnation: Why other countries build faster—and what we can learn.

• 🧭 An Agenda of Yes: How to shift from scarcity politics to “hell yes, let’s do this” optimism.

If you’ve ever felt like our ambitions are shrinking while our problems expand, Abundance just might be the blueprint you didn’t know you needed.

Ezra Klein is a columnist for The New York Times and host of The Ezra Klein Show.
Derek Thompson is a senior writer at The Atlantic and host of the podcast Plain English.

Together, they bring deep policy smarts, economic analysis, and just enough hope to keep us from doomscrolling.

✨ Fun Fact ✨

This collab began as a podcast conversation that turned into a friendship—and eventually, a 300-page call to action for America’s future.

🎙️Listen to whttr on

📚 Purchase Abundance on Amazon

🎧 Listen to the audiobook on Audible

Bureaucracy is cute—until you realize it’s the villain in your infrastructure love story.

_{Stay Connected}

Love what you’re reading? Help us keep the good stuff going:

📲 Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Threads, and Bluesky @whttr_podcast
💌 Forward this newsletter to someone who wants to build (or just really hates waiting for a permit)
🔗 Tag us in your stories or bookshelf shots—we see you, shelfies.

Because stories like this deserve to be shared—and built upon.

✌️Until next time, Whttries…
📖 Who has time to read? We do—and sometimes, we highlight every law like it’s gospel.

Keep your hard hats on and your optimism high. There’s a lot to rebuild—and it starts with what we read.

Until then:
📖 Who has time to read? We do—and we’re laying the foundation for a better future, one book at a time.

The WHTTR Team

Disclaimer: Some links contain affiliate links, meaning whttr will earn a small commission when you purchase through our link at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.