The U.S. Government's Bad Credit Means Higher Costs for Us All
Federal officials ignore repeated warnings, and we all pay the price.
National Debt
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.
Under Multiple Budget Scenarios, the Government's Numbers Still Don't Add Up
Balanced federal budgets aren’t even considered as a possibility.
Biden's Latest Student Loan Scheme Has a Bigger Price Tag Than Originally Projected
The administration’s SAVE plan for student loan forgiveness is estimated to cost $475 billion.
Federal Judge to Biden Administration: Stop Telling Social Media Sites To Limit Free Speech
Plus: Teaching A.I. about the Fourth of July, and more...
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.
CBO Projects Huge Deficits, $116 Trillion in New Borrowing Over the Next 30 Years
A new Congressional Budget Office report warns of "significant economic and financial consequences" caused by the federal government's reckless borrowing.
The Fed Won't Save Us From the Inflation Iceberg
Plus: Was Gerald Ford right to pardon Richard Nixon?
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.
The Two Faces of Ron DeSantis
Sometimes he calls for freedom, and sometimes he preaches something darker.
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…
Vivek Ramaswamy Is Wrong About the National Debt
We can't grow our way out of its ruinous economic impact. The only way forward is to cut spending.
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.
The Biden Administration Reduced the Debt-to-GDP Ratio in the Worst Possible Way
The main driver behind the reduction is inflation—inflation that politicians created with their irresponsible spending.
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.
To Balance the Budget, Republicans Must Cut Military Spending, Trim Entitlements, or Raise Taxes
If Republicans refuse to gore their three sacred cows, a new CBO report shows that balancing the budget is literally impossible.
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.
Biden's New Budget Would Hike Taxes and Wage Class Warfare
The higher taxes on small businesses and entrepreneurs could slow growth. Less opportunity means more tribalism and division.
Joe Manchin Is Once Again Telling Republicans and Democrats What They Don't Want To Hear
But it's exactly what they need to start talking about.
Remy: Learn To Fly (Foo Fighters Parody)
Asian adversaries aerially admire American angst and apathy.
Paul Krugman Says Social Security Is Sustainable. It's Really Not.
Krugman sees benefit cuts as "a choice" but believes that implementing a massive tax increase on American employers and workers would be "of course" no big deal.