There are numerous reasons that may explain why the U.S. economy has performed well during the past twenty‐five years. One likely reason is that local economic development practices have enhanced American competitiveness. The first section develops a game theoretic model that show how local economic practices can result in either negative or positive sum outcomes for the nation as a whole. The second section describes how local economic development practices towards practices that are likely to result in better aggregate economic performance. The strong performance of the U.S. economy roughly coincides with the more efficient practices. The final section examines further practices that may make local economic stimulus more efficient.