At NAIOP’s I.CON East conference last week in New Jersey, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo delivered a candid assessment of the U.S. economy: strong at its core but held back by what she called “self-inflicted wounds.” Despite global leadership in innovation and artificial intelligence, and a resilient tech sector, she warned that uncertainty, policy inconsistency, and trade disruptions are clouding near-term growth.