In a fiery speech in Texas, Director Kratsios says America has “borrowed from the future,” slams Biden’s science agenda, and calls for a technological revolution to beat China.
In a bold and sweeping address at the Endless Frontiers Retreat, White House Science and Technology Director Michael Kratsios laid out the Trump administration’s vision to “reignite the American Century,” delivering a series of striking remarks on U.S. innovation, foreign threats, and domestic stagnation.
Calling for a national revival of science and industry, Kratsios warned that “America has become complacent,” and accused previous leaders of surrendering the country’s technological edge. “We’ve chosen to borrow from the future again and again,” he said. “Our choice as a civilization is technology or debt. And we have chosen debt.”
Kratsios blasted the Biden administration’s approach to technology and national security, accusing it of cowardice. “The Biden administration failed on its own terms, led by a spirit of fear rather than promise,” he charged, calling its regulatory legacy “the chief barrier” to innovation in energy, transportation, and aerospace.
The Director also warned of growing foreign threats, singling out China as “both a geopolitical rival and technological competitor” that has benefited from “decades of feckless American leaders.” He called for the tightening of export controls, restriction of Chinese access to U.S. supply chains, and an “America-first attitude” toward technological dominance.
“We want peace between our countries,” Kratsios said. “And that peace depends on keeping America’s bleeding-edge technology out of our competitor’s hands.”
Echoing themes of Cold War resolve and frontier spirit, he evoked the triumphs of the 20th century—from nuclear energy to the moon landing—and compared them to today’s stalled progress. “Despite spending almost twice as much on healthcare as peer nations, we have the lowest life expectancy,” he noted. “Apollo 17’s steps on the moon remain mankind’s last. Our passenger planes are slower than they used to be.”
To reverse this trajectory, Kratsios called for sweeping deregulation, reallocation of public research funds, and aggressive government adoption of U.S.-built technologies. “The Golden Age of American innovation is on our horizon—if we choose it,” he said.
In closing, he urged citizens to reject apathy and bureaucracy. “There is no substitute for victory,” Kratsios said. “The choice to build is ours.”
