Bipartisan 'Bucket of Garbage' Budget Bill Contains $50 Billion in Special Interest Tax Breaks
On their own, some of those tax breaks might be defensible. Dumping them into a must-pass budget bill is not.
Budget
Even in Impeachment-Crazed D.C., It's Always a Good Time To Borrow and Spend!
Donald Trump, Democrats, and Republicans agree on trillion-dollar deficits for as far as the eye can see.
Congress' Continuing Resolution Is an Opportunity for Reform
Budget negotiations offer lawmakers the opportunity to ditch tax carve-outs and cut spending.
Trump's Nearly $1 Trillion Deficit Is Worse Than a Broken Promise
The president doesn't understand the difference between a budget deficit and a trade deficit.
Betsy DeVos Threatens To Cut Funding for Duke-UNC Middle East Studies. Why Stop There?
The Department of Education alleges the universities' research is discriminatory against certain religions.
The Pentagon Budget Battle Is a Distraction
An ever-growing military budget is yet another illustration of the GOP's abandonment of small-government principles. And Democrats aren't any better.
Is Your Hometown Balancing Its Budget by Fining Everybody It Can? Here's How To Find Out.
Governing puts together a database of cities and towns addicted to money from fines and forfeitures.
Democrats Debate To Determine Who Will Spend Us Into Oblivion
The idea that "deficits don't matter" has been growing among Trump-supporting Republicans. Democrats are preparing to take full advantage.
There's No Such Thing as 'Free Money' or Meaningless Deficits
As debt soars, federal payments to service the debt will crowd out the government's core spending responsibilities.
The Senate Will Vote on a $2.7 Trillion Budget Deal That Adds to the National Debt. The Democrats' Debates Ignored It.
CNN doesn't think Americans deserve to hear potential presidents asked about the national debt.
Stossel: Free Stuff 2020
Presidential candidates promise expensive new programs. We added up the cost.
The Terrible Thing That Trump and Elijah Cummings Agree On
While the president was launching yet another culture war, the combatants were agreeing to blow the federal budget sky high.
The House Just Passed a Budget Deal That Will Add $1.7 Trillion to the National Debt
Members of Congress are well aware of the looming threat of the $22 trillion (and growing) national debt, but seem incapable of doing anything except making it worse.
Once Again, Uncle Sam Shirks Fiscal Responsibility in Budget Deal
Trump's 2018 commitment that he would never sign a massive spending deal ever again was fake news.
Can the Freedom Caucus Convince Trump to Derail This Awful Budget Deal? If Not, Fiscal Conservatism Is Truly Dead.
The House Freedom Caucus could reverse its trend towards irrelevancy by successfully swaying Trump to turn against the new budget deal.
Possible Budget Deal Will Add $2 Trillion to the National Debt
If President Donald Trump signs the deal into law, he will have authorized a 22 percent increase in federal discretionary spending during his first term in office.
Amash: Republicans Defending Trump Are 'Hurting Themselves and They're Hurting the Country'
A new book gives insight into Amash's breakup with the Republican Party, which was well underway before Amash said Trump should face impeachment proceedings.
How To Get Better at Budgets
In a few countries, legislators have enacted policies that actually constrain spending. The U.S. has a lot to learn.
Deficit Politics May Have Gone Away, but Debt and Deficits Are Worse Than Ever
The federal budget situation used to be an emergency. What happened?
How Oakland Cops Gamed the System To Earn $30 Million in Overtime Pay
A new audit reveals how poor oversight and structural problems allowed one Oakland cop to earn $2.5 million in overtime pay in five years.
House Freedom Caucus Too Busy Scolding Justin Amash To Care About Today's Bipartisan Budget Apocalypse
What's the point of a "limited government" bloc that doesn't limit government?
Remy: Old Town Road (Lil Nas X & Billy Ray Cyrus Parody)
Making infrastructure funds fun again!
Trump's New Budget Uses More Realistic Assumptions Than His Predecessors' Did
Trump's budget projects 10 straight years of 3 percent growth. If this forecast fails to materialize, it will make the budget deficits worse than projected.
Trump's Budget Effectively Guarantees Trillion-Dollar Deficits Until 2030
Once you get past the rosy economic expectations, it's clear that Trump's budget is not a serious effort at fiscal restraint.
Politics Trump Policy Once Again in Budget Debate
The trouble with President Trump's new budget.
Trump Wants to Tax Your Juul
The White House's budget proposal would subject E-cigarettes and vaping products to a new "user fee," but it's really just a tax.
Trump's Budget Shortchanges the Prison Reform Bill He Signed
The FIRST STEP Act called for $75 million for reentry programs. It's not listed in the White House's summary.
Trump's $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan Is Back
The administration's new $1 trillion infrastructure plan is light on both details and free market reforms.
Trump's Budget Would Add $7.9 Trillion to the National Debt Over the Next Decade
And the real outcome is likely to be worse, since the budget relies on overly rosy assumptions about future economic growth.
The Socialists Are Coming! Or Are They?: Podcast
Democratic mega-proposals, GOP budgetary fictions, prostitution decriminalization surprises, and Zardoz moments galore
White House Budget Calls for Domestic Spending Cuts, Military Spending Hikes, $8 Billion for Border Wall, Extension of Tax Cuts
The budget will take 15 years to balance and envisions trillion-dollar deficits through 2022, even with rosy economic assumptions.
White House's New Budget Gimmick: Include Immigration Enforcement Spending in the Uncapped Budget for Foreign Wars
Incredibly, the White House is trying to pitch this chicanery as an exercise in fiscal responsibility. Congress shouldn't buy it.
Spending Bill Ignores Promised Funding for Major Criminal Justice Reform Passed Last Year
The FIRST STEP Act was supposed to get $75 million to fund reentry programs and job training. That's missing from the budget bill being voted on Thursday.
CBO: Budget Deficit Numbers Are Better Than Expected, but We're Still Screwed
Unless we make some big changes, things won't get much better.
Time for Senate Republicans to Poke the Bear
The legislative branch is failing its basic constitutional duties, out of cowardly fear of a blustery president.
Thanks to Rising Debt, Republican Tax Policy Is Now Anti-Growth
In the long term, deficit-financed tax cuts would be a drag on the economy.
Congress Just Passed a $150 Billion Spending Package Without Any Consideration for Looming Trillion-Dollar Deficit
Just days after the latest CBO projections showed the deficit getting worse, Congress signs off on another bi-partisan spending increase.
Trump Remembers Budget Deficit, Announces Federal Pay Freeze
The federal government has run up a deficit of $684 billion this year. The CBO predicts that number will exceed $1 trillion in 2019.
The Senate Just Gave the Pentagon an $82 Billion Boost. That's More Money Than Russia's Entire Military Budget.
Democrats will oppose anything Trump wants, unless it's more money for the Pentagon.
Trump's Budget Only Reduces the Deficit If You Accept Some Very Unlikely Assumptions
The really scary thing is that even the CBO's more accurate assessment is also based on unlikely assumptions.
Rejecting Rand Paul's Budget, Republicans Commit to Fiscal Irresponsibility
Even the suggestion that defense spending could be cut is enough to scare most Republicans away from a facing fiscal reality.
Rand Paul's Plan to Balance the Budget by 2023 Will Get a Senate Vote This Week
Do Republicans have the guts to impose strict spending caps?
Republicans Have Finally Been Revealed as the Party of Fiscal Ruin
As Paul Ryan exits, a new CBO report confirms the extent of the GOP's damage to the nation's budget.
Trillion-Dollar Deficits Are Back and Here to Stay
The Congressional Budget Office is about to release a report. Spoiler alert: It won't be pretty.
The Spending Bill Brings Us Closer to National Bankruptcy
Thanks to Congress and President Trump, budget deficits will only mushroom.
A One-Page Provision About Minor League Baseball Shows How Broken Congress' Legislative Process Is
Congress kneecapped minor league ballplayers' lawsuit with last week's omnibus bill. Even if that was the right thing to do, the way it was done is wrong.
