Andrew Yang: We need to rewrite the rules of the American economy

California entrepreneur Andrew Yang says he never intended to run for President.  But with less than two weeks remaining until the Iowa Caucuses, polls have Yang in sixth place in Iowa, while several prominent U.S. Senators have quit the race.

At a Wednesday afternoon campaign event at Impact Coffee in Decorah, Yang displayed why he has been gaining supporters, speaking not about legislative goals, but talking about how changes in the American economy led to the election of Donald Trump four years ago and to continued problems today.

"We are scapegoating immigrants for problems immigrants have nothing to do with," he said.  He says the loss of four million manufacturing jobs has come about because the digital revolution is changing the economy.  Many of those losing their jobs were in swing states such as Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan and Wisconsin--states which Donald Trump carried in 2016.

Yang told the audience of around 200 people that further changes are ahead for the economy, with automation and digital advancements threatening 2.5 million call center employees and 3.5 million truck drivers.

That comes at a time when corporations like Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Google are paying little to no federal taxes, he said.  He wants to "measure our economy based on how well we are doing, not on how well corporations are doing."

He says statistics show the stock market and the U.S. GDP are doing well--but "anything associated with a good life is going off a cliff."

"President Trump is not the cause of all of our problems," Yang told the audience, while urging them to support what he called "the opposite of Donald Trump--an Asian man who likes math."