The rural America death spiral

Political and economic power is shifting to the cities, and 20% of the population — 46 million people — is being left behind in rural America. These communities face increasingly difficult barriers to education, wealth and health. Technological advancements such as 5G and automated vehicles won't directly make life harder for rural America, but instead will fuel inequality by making life that much easier for urban America. The rural-urban divide will continue to play a central role in politics and elections for the next several years — unless and until rural America's population declines enough that their political power dwindles. The bottom line: States, municipalities and the federal government have spent billions to draw jobs and prosperity to stagnant rural areas. But not much has changed.