Why the 'Current Policy' Baseline Is a Massive Gimmick That Effectively Kills the Filibuster
Republicans are creating a budgetary loophole that will allow Democrats to pass Medicare for All and pretend it costs almost nothing.
Congress
Senate's Tax Bill Will Add $270 Billion to the Deficit Next Year, Despite Gimmicks
The House-passed version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act was fiscally irresponsible. The Senate has made the bill worse.
Big, Beautiful Bill Finds Its Opponents
Plus: The anti-socialist moment, muscle-building drugs counteract Ozempic, arsony gunman in Idaho, and more...
New Orleans City Council Considers Ordinance To Adopt Real-Time Facial Recognition Technology
America is slipping steadily down the slippery slope to a surveillance state.
Criminal Justice Reformers Should Welcome Pam Bondi's Gun Rights Restoration Initiative
Democratic critics of the new program overlook the injustice of permanently disarming Americans who pose no threat to public safety.
Ro Khanna: Congress Must Take Back Its War Powers
Rep. Ro Khanna (D–Calif.) discusses the War Powers Resolution he co-sponsored with Rep. Thomas Massie (R–Ky.), the Israel-Iran conflict, and why the antiestablishment left and right must work together.
Why Do Republicans Support the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit?
Publicly funded homes in some cities are costing taxpayers more than $1 million per unit, but Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” would increase funding for these inefficient projects.
Senate Parliamentarian Rejects Dangerous Provision of "Big Beautiful Bill" that Undermines Judicial Protection for Constitutional Rights
The parliamentarian ruled it cannot be enacted as part of a reconciliation bill not subject to the filibuster.
The Attack on Iran Is Unlawful
Trump's attack on Iran plainly violates the War Powers Act. Limits on executive power are most important when they are inconvenient.
The 9th Circuit Rejects Trump's Audacious Claim That He Can Use the National Guard However He Likes
Although the appeals court said the president probably complied with the law he invoked to justify his California deployment, it emphasized that such decisions are subject to judicial review.
ICE Insists That Congress Needs Its Permission To Conduct Oversight
But that's not what the law says.
We're 8 Years Away From an Automatic 23 Percent Cut in Social Security Payouts
Social Security’s board of trustees expects the program to be insolvent in eight years.
The 'Big Beautiful Bill' Will Require Even More Borrowing Than Previously Thought
After accounting for the dynamic effects of the Trump-backed tax bill, the CBO concludes it will add $2.8 trillion to the deficit over 10 years.
Whether or Not Trump Invokes It, the Insurrection Act Is Antiquated and Dangerously Broad
On its face, the law gives the president sweeping authority to deploy the military in response to domestic disorder.
Extending the Trump Tax Cuts Is a Good Idea. But It Won't Deliver 'Big, Beautiful' Economic Growth.
The budget legislation is full of other expensive provisions that will add trillions to our sky-high national debt.
Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' Would Boost Subsidies for Rich Farmers
Subsidies inherently skew the market, and farm subsidies are no different.
Marsha Blackburn Wants Secret Police
Sen. Blackburn introduced a bill this week that would make it a crime to publish the name of a federal law enforcement officer.
The 'Big Beautiful Bill' Will Add $2.4 Trillion to the Deficit
That total will rise to about $3 trillion once the interest costs of more borrowing are included.
Belated Republican Objections to the One Big Beautiful Bill Glide Over Its Blatant Fiscal Irresponsibility
House members who discovered objectionable elements only after voting for the package nevertheless underline the unseemly haste of the legislative process.
It's Rand Paul and Elon Musk vs. Donald Trump Over the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Paul said he refuses to support "maintaining Biden spending levels," and Musk said the Trump-backed tax bill is "a disgusting abomination."
Elizabeth Warren and Jim Banks Attack Nvidia for Expanding Its Chinese Facility
Complying with export regulations should build trust between Nvidia and Congress, not erode it.
Congress Must Vote on Tariffs
For both practical and constitutional reasons, this is the obvious way out of the chaos Trump's tariffs have created.
Elon Musk Is Right. The 'Big Beautiful Bill' Is a Bad Deal.
Musk's opinion about the bill matters, since he is one of the few people in conservative politics who can get away with defying Trump.
The Pentagon Is Getting $150 Billion From the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Giving the Defense Department even more taxpayer money is a recipe for waste, not security.
How Does the National Debt Affect You? A Budget Expert Explains.
Higher debt means lower wages, higher interest rates, and fewer opportunities, says Romina Boccia of the Cato Institute.
Congress Is Giving Energy Lobbyists a 3-Year Window to Keep Up to $2 Trillion in Subsidies
The "one big, beautiful bill" keeps the corporate welfare that Republicans claim to hate.
America's Credit Is Falling—and the Government Is Still Digging Deeper Into Debt
The lesson from the Moody's credit downgrade is that the U.S. cannot borrow its way to prosperity.
The GOP Tax Bill Will Add $2.3 Trillion to the Deficit, CBO Says
That total could double if temporary provisions in the bill become permanent, as is likely to happen.
The GOP Budget Is Big, Bloated, B.S.
Plus: A listener asks if the economic inequality data is bad.
Not Even the Moody's Downgrade Can Make Republicans Take the National Debt Seriously
Friday's announcement by Moody's and the House Budget Committee vote could have been a turning point.
What Happens to Your Kids if We Abolish the Department of Education?
The Department of Education doesn’t handle teaching, set curricula, or pay teacher salaries.
Republican Reconciliation Package Will Lead to $3 Trillion Annual Deficits
A new analysis from the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates that the national debt will equal nearly 130 percent of GDP by 2034.
Since Immigration Is an 'Invasion,' a Top Trump Adviser Says, the President Might Suspend Habeas Corpus
Stephen Miller's understanding of the Constitution is dubious for several reasons.
Republicans Want To Redefine Obscenity
A new bill would ban sharing visual content that might "arouse" or "titillate."
Billionaire Cliff Asness: Can Technology Outrun 'Stupider and Stupider' Government?
Co-founder of AQR Capital Management, Cliff Asness, discusses the decline of market efficiency, the dangers of populist economics, and his libertarian outlook on capitalism.
Trump's New Budget Is Another Blueprint for Big Spending
We don't need more of the same. We need evidence of a serious turnaround.
Elon Musk Discovers That Serious Spending Cuts Are 'Really Difficult'
As he shifts his focus away from DOGE, he acknowledges the need for hard choices and congressional action.
Can the President Refuse To Spend Money Authorized by Congress?
Impoundment, line-item vetoes, and the tricky problem of cutting spending through the executive branch
Senate Republicans Voted Overwhelmingly To Continue Trump's Trade War
Sen. Rand Paul's attempt to end the non-existent economic emergency failed to pass the Senate on Wednesday night.
The Tariffs Imposed by President Trump Are Unconstitutional
Presidential power must stem from the Constitution or a statute, and the tariffs imposed by President Trump are unauthorized by statute, making them both unlawful and unconstitutional.
The TAKE IT DOWN Act's Good Intentions Don't Make Up for Its Bad Policy
Congress just approved a new online censorship scheme under the auspices of thwarting revenge porn and AI-generated "nonconsensual intimate visual depictions."
Can America Get Out of the Gerontocracy Trap?
If voters so overwhelmingly prefer younger candidates, why are they underrepresented in politics?
Are Public Broadcasters About To Lose Their Subsidies?
Republicans often call for cutting off the funds but have never actually done the deed. Here's why this time might—might—be different.
Feds Borrowed $1.3 Trillion in the First 6 Months of This Fiscal Year
That's the highest total outside of the COVID-19 pandemic, and now Congress wants to borrow even more.
Rand Paul on China, Free Speech, and Banning TikTok
"I said now that they're banning it, I want to join, just because they're telling me I can't," the Kentucky senator tells Reason.
