Third Time's the Charm?
Plus: House Speaker Elon Musk, the value of the debt ceiling, and D.C.'s shut down specials.
Debt Ceiling
The Congressional Budget Office's Alternative Scenarios Forecast a Dire Economic Picture
Why aren't politicians on both sides more worried than they seem to be?
Is Another Government Shutdown Coming?
Next week, Congress will have to choose between a rushed omnibus bill or a long-term continuing resolution that comes with a possible 1 percent spending cut.
Spending Other People's Money
Plus: Separating child poverty facts from fiction, EU will ban payments for sperm and blood, and more...
Don't Let the Government-Shutdown Charade Distract You From the Debt Crisis
America’s biggest fiscal challenge lies in the unchecked growth of federal health care and old-age entitlement programs.
Is a Government Shutdown Better Than More Reckless Borrowing?
Short-term solutions and governing from crisis to crisis isn't working.
Politicians Continue To Make a Mockery of 'Emergency Spending'
Legislators abuse the emergency label to push through spending that would otherwise violate budget constraints.
The U.S. Credit Rating Just Dropped. It's Time for Radical Budget Reform.
The lack of oversight and the general absence of a long-term vision is creating inefficiency, waste, and red ink as far as the eye can see.
Is the Budget Process Broken, or Is Congress Just Refusing To Do Its Job?
Since Congress designed and implemented the last budget process in 1974, only on four occasions have all of the appropriations bills for discretionary spending been passed on time.
U.S. Credit Rating Downgrade Is a Sign of Government Dysfunction
The national debt has ballooned from $14 trillion to $32 trillion in a little over a decade.
The Next President Needs To Cut Spending
At a minimum, the national debt should be smaller than the size of the economy. A committed president just might be able to deliver.
Did Trump Break a Law That Shouldn't Exist?
Plus: A rundown of recent nonsensical proposals for constitutional amendments
The Debt Ceiling Deal Does Not Go Nearly Far Enough
Projections of huge savings are making the rounds. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Permitting Reforms in Debt Ceiling Bill Will Accomplish Little
The Fiscal Responsibility Act falls well short of solving America's permitting crisis.
CBO: Debt Ceiling Deal Means 78,000 More Able-Bodied, Childless Adults Could Get Food Stamps
New work requirements will target those over age 50, but the debt ceiling deal also loosens existing work requirements for those under age 50.
Debt Ceiling Deal Will End The Student Loan Repayment Pause
If the debt ceiling bill passes, the Education Department will be barred from extending the student loan repayment pause yet again.
Social Security and Medicare Are Ticking Time Bombs
Even taking all the money from every billionaire wouldn't cover our coming bankruptcy.
Conservatives Rage Against Debt Ceiling Bill: 'Not One Republican Should Vote for This'
But a lot of Republicans probably will.
Banging Our Heads on the Debt Ceiling
Plus: A listener question cross-examines prior Reason Roundtable discussions surrounding immigration, economic growth, and birthrates.
Debt Ceiling Bill 'Locks in the Inflated Spending Levels of Recent Years'
Plus: Artificial intelligence and jobs, how government caused a lifeguard shortage, and more...
Why the Debt Limit Is (Still, Really) Constitutional
Biden still wants to explore the 14th Amendment—but it isn't a presidential authority, and the debt limit doesn't create a constitutional "trilemma."
Debt Ceiling Deal Curtails GOP-Backed Budget Cuts, Spending Caps
The deal will freeze non-military discretionary spending this year and allow a 1 percent increase in 2024.
Why The Statutory Debt-Limit Gimmicks Don't Work
They are all looking for elephants in mouseholes, and even the "premium bonds" theory has its flaws.
What Exactly Is a "Default"?
The term gets thrown around loosely to refer to different concepts, but with very different implications.
Taxing the Rich Will Have No Meaningful Effect on Our Sky-High National Debt
The U.S. tax system is extremely progressive, even compared to European countries—whose governments rely on taxing the middle class.
Why Do We Have a Debt Limit?
Critics of the limit are right that it wasn't intended as an ex post check on spending, but its history makes constitutional objections difficult to fathom.
Josh Hawley Wants the Debt Ceiling Deal To Include a Massive Tax Hike on Americans
Hawley might call them "tariffs on China," but that's obvious nonsense: Tariffs are paid by Americans.
Worried About the Debt Fight? Make the Hard Spending Decisions That Politicians Won't!
The debt ceiling isn’t the issue; excessive federal spending is the real problem.
Neither the Constitution Nor Common Sense Supports the Argument the Debt Ceiling Is Unconstitutional
Professor Prakash dispatches the arguments for unilateral Presidential authority to disregard the debt ceiling.
There Is No Party of Immigration in American Politics
Plus: A listener question concerning the key to a libertarian future—should we reshape current systems or rely upon technological exits like bitcoin and encryption?
The Eternal Recurrence of Debt Ceiling Debates
The current debate is a replay of debates we have had before (and will likely have again).
The Debt Ceiling Fight Is a Reminder of America's Dire Fiscal Future
The longer we wait to address our debt, the more painful it will be.
Biden, Yellen Won't Rule Out Declaring Debt Ceiling Unconstitutional
Plus: Kansas voting restrictions struck down, the legacy of the "vast wasteland" speech, and more…
The Clock Is Ticking: U.S. Could Default on Debt Payments by June 1
It's time for President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to strike a deal that will avoid a default and cut spending.
Joe Biden Wants 4 More Years 'To Finish the Job.' What Job?
Plus: A listener question scrutinizing current attitudes toward executive power
Don't Believe the Media Fearmongering About Spending Cuts
In 2019, discretionary spending was $1.338 trillion—or some $320 billion less than what Republicans want that side of the budget to be.
Ethanol Subsidies Could Trip Up Debt Ceiling Negotiations
Plus: Home equity theft at the Supreme Court, New York shows how not to legalize marijuana, and more...
The House GOP Debt Ceiling Plan Would Restore Spending Caps. Good.
The most important part of the Limit, Grow, Save Act is the limits.
These Members of Congress Have a Revolutionary Idea: Write and Pass a Budget the Old-Fashioned Way
A return to so-called normal order wouldn't fix all of Washington's many problems, but it would be a step in the right direction.
Kevin McCarthy, Joe Biden, and the Deeply Unserious Debate Over the Debt Ceiling
An impasse created by years of politicized, myopic decision making in Washington is pushing the federal government ever closer to a dangerous cliff.
Congress Hasn't Passed a Budget on Time in 27 Years
Congress' end-of-year rush to fund the federal government has become the norm.
The Fight Over the Debt Ceiling Is Just Beginning
Legislators will increasingly argue over how to spend a diminishing discretionary budget while overall spending simultaneously explodes.
Republicans and Democrats Face Impasse Over Cutting Spending Versus Raising Taxes
Plus: Court denies motion to suppress January 6 geofence warrant, Texas may ban some immigrants from buying property, and more...
Are We Making Any Progress on Police Brutality?
Plus: The editors consider the ongoing debt ceiling drama and answer a listener question about ending the war on drugs.
If Republicans Want To Cut Spending, They Should Start With the Pentagon
Sen. Rand Paul says Republicans "have to give up the sacred cow" of military spending in order to make a deal that will address the debt ceiling and balance the budget.
Social Security Is on the Brink of Collapse. The GOP Won't Touch It.
In 1950, there were more than 16 workers for every beneficiary. In 2035, that ratio will be only 2.3 workers per retiree.
The GOP's Current Plan To Cut Spending Is a Political Failure
Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are still the chief drivers of our future debt. But Republicans aren't touching them.
To Win the Speakership, Kevin McCarthy Had To Promise To Cut Spending. Good.
While some Republicans may have had misguided motivations, a few disrupted McCarthy's campaign in order to enact fiscal restraint. Their colleagues were fine with business as usual.
