The present paper emphasizes the role of demand, income distribution, endogenous productivity

reactions, and other structural changes in the slowdown of the growth rate of output and

productivity that has been observed in the United States over the last four decades. In particular, it

is explained that weak net export demand, fiscal conservatism, and the increase in income

inequality have put downward pressure on demand. Up until the crisis, this pressure was partially

compensated for through debt-financed expenditure on behalf of the private sector, especially

middle- and lower-income households. This debt overhang is now another obstacle in the way of

demand recovery. In turn, as emphasized by the Kaldor-Verdoorn law and the induced technical

change approach, the decrease in demand and the stagnation of wages can lead to an endogenous

slowdown in productivity growth. Moreover, it is argued that the increasingly oligopolistic and

financialized structure of the US economy also contributes to the slowdown. Finally, the paper

argues that there is nothing secular about the current stagnation; addressing the aforementioned

factors can allow for growth to resume, as has happened in the past.