Third Way (United States)

Third Way grew out of the nonprofit group Americans for Gun Safety (AGS), which was formed in 2000 with the objective of resetting the gun control movement and advancing gun safety laws, using moderate ideas that appealed to both sides of the debate.[7]

AGS' primary political project was closing the gun show loophole, through which people could purchase guns at gun shows without needing a background check, by passing the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act. It helped pass two 2000 state-level ballot initiatives in Colorado and Oregon to close the gun show loophole there and attempted to pass federal legislation carried by Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Joe Lieberman (D-CT), which failed to become law. AGS was folded into Third Way in 2005 in the wake of the 2004 presidential election as a policy, messaging, and strategy idea center and think tank. Third Way was co-founded by Jonathan Cowan, Matt Bennett,[8] Jim Kessler,[9] and Nancy Hale.[10]

Third Way's work covers seven policy areas: climate and energy, economy, education, healthcare, national security, politics, and social policy.

In the climate policy area, Third Way advocates for nuclear energy and other clean energy alternatives. In the economic policy, Third Way advocates for infrastructure development and tax reform. In education, Third Way focuses on addressing what they see as issues in both K-12 and higher education. Protecting and improving the Affordable Care Act is Third Way's aim regarding healthcare. Third Way also seeks to develop electoral strategies for the broader left and advocates for socially liberal policies such as abortion rights, same-sex marriage, and the legalisation of Marijuana.[11]

In 2010, Third Way sponsored a report written by William Galston of the Brookings Institution and Elaine Kamarck[12] of Harvard Kennedy School titled "Change You Can Believe In Needs a Government You Can Trust".[13] The report analysed Americans' trust in government and reported it was in serious decline, possibly presenting significant challenges to the Obama administration's agenda. Third Way's other economic work has included rural reinvestment efforts, a plan to make opportunity more widely available to American middle class and defending the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

As an example of Third Way's rural reinvestment program, Third Way developed the policies framed in Spurring Weatherization Investments in Rural America, which was introduced by Representative Jim Clyburn (D-South Carolina) and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) as the Rural Energy Savings Program.[14] Third Way argued for members of opposing parties to sit together at the President's annual address in 2011 and 2012.[15]

Third Way has recently worked on a campaign to evaluate the Democratic Party connection with voters after the 2016 presidential election.[16] The report found a drop-off in support among voters of color, concluding they are persuasion voters needing a compelling economic narrative, and that Republican efforts to brand Democrats as “radicals” worked—including with minority voters.[17] Along those lines, Third Way hosted consultations and meetings with politicians and strategists from around the country to develop a Democratic strategy for winning 2018 and 2020 elections.[18] As of 2017, Third Way's economic program is undertaking a campaign to highlight the scarcity of opportunity as a root cause of income inequality.[18]

In March 2018, Third Way released a report outlining a new cause for the Democratic Party and several policy ideas that the organisation says "redefines government's role in expanding the opportunity to earn".[19] The Washington Post's coverage of the report considered it "an opening bid in the 2020 'ideas primary'".[20] Other parts of Third Way's work are also related to politics, including their study of the battleground states and districts that determined congressional majorities in 2018.[21]

In addition, their public opinion research and focus groups revealed that persuadable voters who backed Barack Obama and then Donald Trump saw Trump as focused on creating jobs and Democrats as "working for someone else".[22] In its report on the findings, Third Way called for the Democratic Party to focus on becoming the Jobs Party to voters.

In its 2020 election postmortem, authored alongside The Collective PAC and Latino Victory Fund,Third Way called for the Democratic Party to focus on becoming the Jobs Party to voters.

In what the New York Times called “perhaps the most thorough soul-searching done by either party this year”, Third Way’s report rang the alarm bells for Democrats that the party’s core economic and diverse message was falling flat next to Republican misinformation prior to 2022.[23]

Not long after in 2021, Third Way, in partnership with the National Urban League, launched the Alliance for Entrepreneurial Equity. The initiative is dedicated to leveling the playing field for people of color and women entrepreneurs, and pushing for federal action to that effect.[24]

The Alliance has released reports that highlight the gaps in wealth creation for minorities. In Fortune Magazine, the President of the National Urban League, Marc Morial, and the President of Third Way, Jon Cowan, released a joint op-ed highlighting discrepancies like “If Black-owned businesses were proportionate to the population, there would be 738,000 more Black-owned businesses, seven million more jobs at Black-owned businesses, and $733 billion more in sales and revenue from Black-owned businesses. If Hispanic-owned businesses were proportionate to population, there would be 885,000 more Hispanic-owned businesses, 7.5 million more jobs at Hispanic-owned businesses, and $1.2 trillion more in sales and revenue from Hispanic-owned businesses.”[25]

In the University of Pennsylvania's "2019 Global Go To Think Tanks Report", the Third Way was ranked 19th for Best New Idea or Paradigm Developed by a Think Tank, 49th among Think Tanks with the Most Significant Impact on Public Policy, 60th among Top Think Tanks in the United States, 82nd for Best Advocacy Campaign, and 93rd among Social Policy Think Tanks worldwide.[26]

Third Way has worked on the following policy issues:

1. The economic benefits of green energy. Since 2010, Third Way has lobbied for the creation of an alternative clean energy and climate agenda. Part of this effort has included highlighting and advocating the work of advanced nuclear technology start-ups.[27] In 2017, the organization partnered with the Department of Energy's Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) to connect advanced nuclear developers with federal laboratories.[28]
2. Marriage equality. Third Way launched the Commitment Campaign in 2011 with the aim of finding common ground between the LGBT and organized religion that culminated in reframing the marriage equality debate to focus on "love and commitment" instead of "rights and benefits".[29] The group also worked on the repeal of "Don't ask, don't tell" and the Defense of Marriage Act.
3. Trade agreements. Third Way advocated for new trade accords with Colombia, South Korea, and Panama, and advocated for the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
4. Gun safety. Third Way has continued to work on similar issues to those addressed by Americans for Gun Safety, which include universal background checks.[30]

• Official website