The gap between the rich and poor is widening in terms of income and opportunity, said Robert Reich, former U.S. Secretary of Labor, to more than 100 people at the McCormick Tribune Center on Tuesday.

“The whole economy is struggling to get going,” Reich said, in the talk sponsored by Northwestern’s Institute for Policy Research. “We’re in a slow recovery, largely because wages are stagnant and workers are reluctant to spend money.”

In his speech, Reich stressed quality — not number — of jobs. He criticized President Bush’s tax cuts, calling them an “inefficient way of stimulating the economy” because they target the wealthy.

He said the working class and college students are in “deeper trouble” as a result.

He criticized both presidential candidates for failing to address what he called the “crisis of the working class.”

To shift focus from the economy, Republicans have been using “cultural populism,” Reich said. Republicans blame liberals for being “weak and feminine” on core issues such as terrorism, tax cuts and gay rights.

“It’s a very potent political tool,” he said, but “the Democrats truly recognize the plight of the working class and can come up with the programs to help.”

While he praised the Democratic party’s ideals, he criticized members for being unable to explain their economic policy stance.

Reich said he supports Sen. John Kerry.

“Do you want (Bush,) who is very tough and wrong, or (Kerry, who) is questionably tough and right?” he said.

The government should move beyond Kerry’s plan to roll back tax cuts, Reich said. Those who earn more than $200,000 annually should taxed at a higher rate.

“The people who can afford it should be taxed more,” he said. “As members of a common society, we owe this to each other.”

If taxes are not raised, Reich added, the costs of Medicare will overwhelm the federal budget, and deficits will spiral out of control. Reich said the government should consider increasing funding for health care, education and other social programs.

Communication freshman Aziza Walker said she was “blown away” by the lecture.

“People should take seriously the point he made about increasing education funding,” she said.

Sociology Prof. Allan Schnaiberg, said he was “refreshed” by Reich’s examination of socioeconomic divisions.

“It hasn’t been popular in the social science community or the public discourse over the past 20 years, and that’s a grave error,” Schnaiberg said.

Reach David Spett at [email protected].