The U.S. Government's Bad Credit Means Higher Costs for Us All
Federal officials ignore repeated warnings, and we all pay the price.
Fiscal policy
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.
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.
Economic Freedom Is Declining in the U.S.
We once ranked No. 4 in the world, according to the Heritage Foundation. Now we're 25th.
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.
Conservatives Pushing 'Common Good Capitalism' Sound a Lot Like Progressives
The ideology champions the same tired policies that big government types predictably propose whenever they see something they don't like.
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.
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.
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.
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.
The Federal Reserve Was Supposed To Ease Economic Instability. Instead, It's Made It Worse.
A responsible political class would significantly reform the organization. Instead, they will likely continue to give it more power.
Republicans' and Democrats' Refusal To Reform Social Security and Medicare Is Political Malpractice
In 10 years, the programs' funds will be insolvent. Over the next 30 years, they will run a $116 trillion shortfall.
America Needs a Better Kind of Capitalism
Big corporations and entire industries constantly use their connections in Congress to get favors, no matter which party is in power.
The Fight Over the Debt Ceiling Is Just Beginning
Legislators will increasingly argue over how to spend a diminishing discretionary budget while overall spending simultaneously explodes.
Democrats Say They Support Green Energy. Why Do Their Policies Say Otherwise?
If you look closely, you'll find a lot of contradictions.
COVID Stimulus Spending Played 'Sizable Role' in Inflation
Fiscal stimulus during the pandemic contributed to an increase in inflation of about 2.6 percentage points.
Social Security Is on the Brink of Collapse. The GOP Won't Touch It.
In 1950, there were more than 16 workers for every beneficiary. In 2035, that ratio will be only 2.3 workers per retiree.
The GOP's Current Plan To Cut Spending Is a Political Failure
Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are still the chief drivers of our future debt. But Republicans aren't touching them.
Fixing Congress' Broken Appropriations Process Is Worth This Mess
This week's Republican revolt against Kevin McCarthy is actually a rank-and-file revolt against the top-down process that both parties have used to control the House in recent years.
Ignoring the Anti-McCarthy Faction's Avowed Goals, The New York Times Sees Only 'Chaos and Confusion'
The paper attributes the fight over the election of the next House speaker to "anti-establishment fervor" and a lust for "personal power."
Congress and the Federal Reserve Could Be Setting Us Up for Economic Disaster
If lawmakers keep spending like they are, and if the Fed backs down from taming inflation, then the government may create a perfect storm.
The Failure To Enact Marijuana Banking and Crack Sentencing Reforms Is a Window on Congressional Dysfunction
Although both bills have broad bipartisan support, they never got a vote in the Senate and were excluded from the omnibus spending bill.
$70 Million for Salmon, $3 Million for Bee-Friendly Highways, and More Absurdities in the Omnibus Spending Bill
Plus: An attempt to criminalize porn, D.C. hopes making tourism more expensive will boost tourism, and more…
Poll: Republican Voters Were Mad About Inflation, Not Trans People
It's still the economy, stupid.
Republicans Need an Actual Plan To Grow the Economy
The biggest beneficiaries of economic growth are poor people. But the deepest case for economic growth is a moral one.
Here's Why Biden Is Wrong About the Deficit
His administration has expanded deficits by $400 billion more than expected, even before we count recent spending.
Matt Welch Talks Taxes on The Reason Rundown With Peter Suderman
The latest episode of The Reason Rundown features The Reason Roundtable host and Editor at Large Matt Welch.
Matt Welch: Dems Want To Spend Your Money To Take More of Your Money
Editor at Large Matt Welch gives a reality check on the new IRS measures inside the Inflation Reduction Act.
Fixing Our Economic Woes Is as Easy as Looking to the Past
The economy is spinning, but we’ve proven there are viable ways to slow it down to more bearable levels.
How High Will California's Taxes Go Before There's No One Left To Tax?
The new taxes lawmakers are proposing to fund a universal health care system will likely drive even more Californians out of the state.
Price Controls Are the Worst Possible Solution to Inflation
Addressing a distortion of the market with another distortion of the market will only make the problem worse.
Beware People Trying to Dismiss Jack Dorsey's Inflation Analysis as Disinformation
A good way to know you’re living through high inflation is when you’re discouraged from talking about it.
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.
Joe Biden's Fragile Global Minimum Tax Cartel
The Biden administration is expending a lot of time and energy to make the country more uncompetitive than ever.
Biden's $1.5 Trillion Budget Request Would Fund All Nails Needed for the Coffin of Fiscal Restraint
The White House is proposing an 8.4 percent boost in discretionary spending, which comes on top of Biden's $1.9 trillion pandemic relief bill, and his proposed $2.3 trillion American Jobs Plan.
Congress Uses COVID-19 As a Cover for an Epidemic of Fiscal Recklessness
Legislators view the disease as a license to spend like there’s no tomorrow.
Joe Biden Wants His Stimulus To Help 'People Who are Hurting,' Like Families Making $120,000 a Year
Biden's recovery plan is a poorly targeted effort that would make the economy worse off in the long run.
After the Stimulus Binge, Brace for a Crash
Skyrocketing debt, higher borrowing costs, and a hobbled economy are predicted in the latest Congressional Budget Office report.
Want To Boost Economic Growth? Tell Government To Spend Less
Research suggests reducing spending will boost consumption in the short- and long-run.
America's Long-Term Debt Crisis Is Now a Short-Term Problem
Even in a healthy economy, rising debt and deficits posed challenges. The current crisis has magnified those problems.
Budget Deficit Now Expected To Near $4 Trillion This Year
And more coronavirus stimulus spending could send that number soaring higher.
Tyler Cowen Thinks Coronavirus Could Be This Generation's World War II
The Mercatus economist on why the private sector could provide the best response to the coronavirus, why the government should go big anyway, and how the current crisis could help America reinvent itself.
Mark Sanford Still Cares About Spending
The Republican presidential candidate sells his fiscal conservatism to Trevor Noah.
Mitch McConnell Predicted the GOP Tax Cut Would Raise Revenue and Reduce the Deficit. Nope.
A year after the tax law, growth is up but tax revenue is down.
Donald Trump's Libertarian Christmas?: Podcast
Reason editors' best and worst moments of 2018, including the president's welcome and long-overdue drawdown from Afghanistan
