There is a vigorous debate underway, globally, because the United States has faced no real growth in the past five years. The same is true for Europe and most of the world excluding China and India.
Why hasn't the United States seen the kind of growth that we experienced for the previous 60 years?
I suggest several reasons. Based on my personal experience.
One of the driving forces of economic growth is productivity. I personally helped the leading edge of the great hippie generation to generate more small businesses and new businesses than had ever been generated in America before. I think this productivity combined with the consumption practices of the baby boom generation (a whole new world of food), including their home building and home selling practices explains much of the growth from 1982 to 2004.
There is no young rebellious population today and there is no population boom
The second reason I propose is that we have had a steady expansion of government regulations over the past 20 years since Reagan. And an explosion of regulations since 2008. Very little can damage the impressive power of productivity in the open market of commerce. The exception is when business resources are diverted from productivity and creating new markets to paying for government regulation. We have expanded regulations of every sort from FDA, to OSHA, to environmental issues of every form. We have a mini world of union based business controls driven by malice and pure commercial evil.
I am not pessimistic about our future growth. I simply expect it to be lower than in the past unless we have a revolution in eliminating government regulation, in thwarting union zombie mentality and if we develop a warm love for pro-commerce policies.