Democrats Don't Have a Filibuster Problem. They Have a Joe Manchin Problem.
The problem isn’t the GOP or Senate rules. It’s that Democrats can’t agree amongst themselves.
Government Spending
Build Back Better Bill Would Lavish New Corporate Subsidies on Biofuel Industry
The $3.5 trillion bill includes a new program to subsidize the makers of "sustainable aviation fuel."
Taxing the Rich Isn't Enough to Pay for Democrats' Welfare State. They'll Need To Soak the Middle Class Too.
There simply aren't enough rich people to finance all the new spending.
The $700 Billion Gimmick at the Center of Biden's Tax Plan
Biden's plan will raise taxes on individuals earning as little as $30,000 annually by 2027, but that's just a trick to make the overall cost of the bill look lower than it really is.
America on the Dole
Biden's American Families Plan would put most working-age American households on the dole.
If the FDA Doesn't Kill the Vaping Industry, the Democrats' Tax Hike Just Might
House Democrats' proposed excise taxes could double or triple the price of some vaping products.
Biden's $3.5 Trillion Spending Plan Will Leave Americans Poorer in the Long Run
A new analysis projects that private capital, wages, and America's GDP will fall over the next three decades if Congress passes the $3.5 trillion reconciliation package. But at least government debt will grow!
Democrats Try To Hide a $3 Trillion Tax Increase From Voters
The plan would make a liar out of Biden on a level reminiscent of George H.W. Bush's betrayal of his "read my lips" tax pledge.
Everything Is Infrastructure Now
How spending got out of control and words lost their meaning.
Social Security Will Be Insolvent in 12 Years
Without policy changes, beneficiaries will receive only 78 percent of what was promised starting in 2034.
Key Medicare Fund Will Be Insolvent in Just Five Years
The health program won't be able to pay all of its bills starting in 2026, according to a new Trustees report.
The Democratic Dividing Line: Big Government…Or Even Bigger Government?
To spend a lot of money, or to spend a lot more money? That is the question.
The Pandemic Has Most Americans Paying No Federal Income Taxes
A minority of the population picking up the tab would be dangerous if the situation were to last.
The Afghanistan Lessons America Refused To Learn
A U.S. agency spent 13 years documenting our government's failure to stabilize or rebuild the country.
The Cuomo Pandemic Scandal No One Is Talking About
Setting aside the harassment claims and the nursing home debacle, the Cuomo administration’s inability to run a minimally functional rent relief program should forever end his reputation as a competent executive.
State Governments Didn't Need Coronavirus Bailouts. They Got Billions of Dollars Anyway.
As it turns out, state and local tax revenues hardly collapsed.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Is a Sham
The Senate just passed a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill—and teed up another $3.5 trillion bill in the process.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Will Add More Than $250 Billion to the Deficit. Does Anyone Care?
A CBO report that might have sunk legislation in an earlier era was greeted with a bipartisan shrug.
Government Broadband Has Been a Costly, Corrupt Failure. Congress' Infrastructure Bill Calls For More.
The bipartisan infrastructure deal that's expected to pass the Senate this week would spend $65 billion on broadband projects, including more than $40 billion for largely unnecessary municipal broadband efforts.
Infrastructure Bill Bans Vaping on Amtrak
Amtrak's funding will double under the bipartisan infrastructure bill, while Amtrak passengers will have to put up with more rules.
When Government Spending Hurts the Most Vulnerable
As inflation increases, we need a low-debt environment.
Economist John Cochrane Is Still Worried About the Debt
The U.S. national debt held by the public is currently almost $22 trillion, surpassing the country's annual GDP for the first time since World War II.
Senate Could Pass a $1.2 Trillion Infrastructure Bill This Week, Even Though There's No Agreement on How To Pay for It
Plus: Strip clubs help reduce crime rates, tariffs fail to achieve their primary political purposes, Jeff Bezos goes to space, and more.
California Lawmakers Unanimously Approve the State's First Basic Income Program
The idea of attaching fewer strings to government assistance is gaining currency.
Magical Thinking Abounds in New Budget Deal Discourse
Plus: The growing trust gap, pandemic-low unemployment numbers, and more...
Want To Close the Tax Gap? Cut Taxes.
It would require our enormous government to become less gluttonous with the people's resources.
Democrats' $3.5 Trillion Fully-Paid-for Spending Plan Probably Won't Be Fully Paid for
The spending proposal is likely to be offset by gimmicks and rosy assumptions.
Shaky Social Security Trust Fund May Run Out in 11 Years
Are you ready for 30 percent cuts in benefits to keep the program alive?
With Spectators Banned, Tokyo Olympics Look Like an Even Bigger Money Pit
More than 30 venues, some of which predate the Olympics but many of which were purpose-built at public expense, will be occupied solely by coaches, athletes, and judges.
New Treasury Data Shows That the Rollout of Emergency Rent Relief Continues to Be a Hot Mess
Congress approved $25 Billion in emergency rental assistance in December. Only 6 percent of that money has been spent so far.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Shows That Republicans Love Big Government Just as Much as Democrats
We don't have a gridlock problem. We have a spending problem.
The Bill Will Come Due on Biden's Trillions
Biden's infrastructure package is really a jackpot for public unions and big business.
Broadway Hit Hamilton Could Get Up to $50 Million Federal Bailout
It must be nice to have Washington's pile of taxpayer cash on your side.
Government Pandemic Loans Plagued by Potential $260 Billion in Fraud
The hasty work behind the PPP and other relief loans shows the limits of big government.
New $1.2 Trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Plan To Be Partially Funded By Stepped Up IRS Enforcement
President Joe Biden announced today that he'd reached an agreement on an infrastructure package with a group of 10 moderate senators.
Democrats Are Considering a $6 Trillion Infrastructure Plan That Has Little to Do With Infrastructure
For many elected Democrats, infrastructure is much more than roads, bridges, dams, and waterways.
Senate Republicans and Democrats Agree To Double Amtrak's Funding
A bill approved by the Senate’s Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation would give the money-losing rail company $19 billion over 5 years.
Federal Science Funding Won't Accomplish Anything the Private Sector Can't Do Better
A bipartisan bill aimed to help the U.S. “compete” with China would only slow down scientific progress.
Biden's Tax Plan Means 60 Percent of Taxpayers Will Pay More
And as many as 75 percent of middle income households face a tax increase under Biden's plan, even though the highest-earning households will pay the vast majority of the costs.
Study Finds Biden's American Jobs Plan Would Result in Fewer American Jobs
It’s a jobs plan that isn’t about jobs, and an infrastructure plan that isn’t about infrastructure.
The $1.9 Trillion American Recovery Act Could Have Huge Implications for State Tax Policies
Six different states are already suing over a broad prohibition on tax cuts that was slipped into March's $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill.
Biden's Infrastructure Plan Confuses Costs for Benefits
The president is doubling down on bad regulations that raise labor and material costs of federal infrastructure projects.
Many Politicians Claim That Increased Spending Sparks Economic Growth. Here's Why That's Misleading.
A new study finds that as the government expands, the private sector shrinks.
The Federal Government Has Spent $46 Billion on Emergency Rental Assistance. The Rollout Has Been a Hot Mess.
Crashing website and impenetrable government bureaucracy greet the tenants and landlords trying to access billions in federally funded rent relief.
Biden's Astronomical Budget Proposal Even Has Some Democrats Worried
The spending plan demonstrates an unwillingness to govern and a preference for pandering to special interests.
Amtrak Wants $75 Billion To Create More Money-Losing Routes
The company's 15-year "Corridor Vision" also asks Congress for the power to sue private railroads that don't prioritize its passenger trains.
Senate Republicans Released a $928 Billion Infrastructure Plan. Biden Says It Still Doesn't Spend Enough.
For the president, the spending is the point.
The White House Offers More Money, Less Detail on Its Idea for 'YIMBY Grants'
The Biden administration wants to give $5 billion to jurisdictions that deregulate their housing markets.
