Budget

Trump Blasts ‘Ridiculous’ Spending Bill: Is a Shutdown Back on the Table?

By Michael Rainey

President Trump on Thursday blasted the spending bill passed by the Senate earlier this week for its lack of funding for his border wall with Mexico. The bill is a key part of the congressional...
Spending Bills Leave Conservatives Frustrated

By The Fiscal Times Staff

Lawmakers have been passing spending bills with unusual speed and little fanfare lately, most recently the $854 billion package covering the Departments of Defense, Health and Human Services, Labor...
Senate Approves Spending Bill, Reducing Chances of a Shutdown

By Yuval Rosenberg

In a 93-7 vote, the Senate on Tuesday passed a package of spending bills that would boost fiscal 2019 funding for the Defense Department and provide full-year funding for the departments of Education...
‘Beware Trillion-Dollar Deficits,’ Barron’s Says

By Yuval Rosenberg

In the latest Barron’s cover story, Jack Hough warns of the long-term risks of rising U.S. public debt. While noting that there’s little chance of hitting debt-related turbulence anytime soon and...
The Air Force Wants More Planes – and a Lot More Money

By Michael Rainey

The Air Force is 71 years old today, and its birthday wish list is a doozy. Saying that growing threats from China and Russia call for a substantial increase in U.S. air power, Air Force Secretary...

Kudlow: ‘I Don’t Buy’ That Tax Cuts Boosted Deficit

By Yuval Rosenberg

Larry Kudlow is at it again. Speaking at the Economic Club of New York, the top economic adviser to President Trump said that, while the administration is looking to cut federal spending — including...
Are Deficit Hawks Dead or Just Playing Possum?

By Yuval Rosenberg

“The deficits hawks are dead,” declared Paul Kane, The Washington Post’s senior congressional correspondent and columnist, in a piece over the weekend. It’s easy to see why Kane says that, and there’...
Social Security Pulled 27 Million People Out of Poverty in 2017

By Michael Rainey

Since 2011, the U.S. Census Bureau has produced a more sophisticated measure of poverty that, among other things, includes the income effects of government assistance programs such as Social Security...
Arkansas Drops Thousands from Medicaid

By Michael Rainey

More than 4,000 people will lose their Medicaid coverage in Arkansas for failing to meet the state’s new work requirements. Earlier this year, the Trump administration approved the new work rules,...
Why Democrats Want to Bring Back Earmarks

By Michael Rainey

Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) wants to restore earmarks as part of Democrats’ effort to “ fix government ” should the party win control of the House in November. The use of earmarks — funds for...

Deficit Soaring in 2018

By The Fiscal Times Staff

The federal deficit was 32 percent larger in the first 11 months of fiscal year 2018 than it was during the same time period in 2017, the Congressional Budget Office announced Monday. The deficit...
The Cost of War Since 9/11

By Michael Rainey

The wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria have cost the U.S. more than $1.5 trillion, according to Department of Defense data reported by CNCB Monday. The Pentagon report covers war-related operational...
Tax Cuts 2.0: What’s in the GOP Plan and Why It Matters

By Yuval Rosenberg

With an eye toward November’s midterm elections, House Republicans on Monday unveiled legislation to make permanent the individual tax cuts and pass-through business deductions that were set to...
Pentagon Investing Billions in Next-Generation AI

By Michael Rainey

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, known as DARPA, plans to spend more than $2 billion over the next five years to develop artificial intelligence technologies for military use. DARPA...
Obama: 'Suddenly Deficits Do Not Matter'

By Yuval Rosenberg

Former President Barack Obama stepped back into the political fray on Friday, delivering a blistering rebuke of President Trump and the Republican Party while signaling how he plans to campaign on...