GET THE APP
Wednesday, January 28, 2026

Tag: budget

congress
September 6, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

House, Senate GOP at Odds Over Expiring Funding For Deep State.

Members of Congress returned to Washington, D.C. this week with only sixteen legislative days to pass a temporary budget fix to avert a government shutdown on October 1st, when the new fiscal year begins. Congress is not expected to pass any of the twelve massive budget appropriations bills before government funding runs out; with the House and Senate instead expected to take up a Continuing Resolution (CR) to keep the government funded while negotiations continue.

The House Freedom Caucus, comprising upwards of a quarter of the House Republican majority, is doubling down on calls for a return to pre-COVID spending levels in exchange for supporting Speaker Kevin McCarthy and his stop-gap funding measure. Rep. Eli Crane (R-AZ), a Freedom Caucus member, posted more expansive demands on X, stating:

“Gov’t funding hinges on whether or not the Establishment will continue bankrolling open borders, weaponized agencies, a woke Pentagon, & an escalation of the war in Ukraine.”

– Rep. Eli Crane, September 2023.

Senate Republicans appear at odds with their House colleagues, with Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) posting: “The federal government will shut down in less than a month unless a funding bill is passed by Sept. 30. That’s only 16 legislative days away (and even fewer for the House) under the current schedule. The House and Senate are in completely different universes when it comes to how lawmakers should fund federal agencies in both the short and long term.”

Cornyn is a rumored successor to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) whose struggles during several recent public appearances have sparked fresh health and leadership concerns.

Stephen Miller, a senior advisor to former President Donald Trump, called the funding fight, “…the most important legislative battle of the Biden presidency,” adding that if rank-and-file Republicans dig in and refuse to pass the blanket short-term funding bill, “…the Deep State expires at midnight on September 30th. After that, it’s up to Congress to decide which salaries, programs and activities to fund.”

Negotiations over the Continuing Resolution are expected to take up much – if not all – of September, while the remainder of the legislative session will be dominated by the 12 budget appropriations bills that will fund the government in its entirety for the next fiscal year.

show less
Members of Congress returned to Washington, D.C. this week with only sixteen legislative days to pass a temporary budget fix to avert a government shutdown on October 1st, when the new fiscal year begins. Congress is not expected to pass any of the twelve massive budget appropriations bills before government funding runs out; with the House and Senate instead expected to take up a Continuing Resolution (CR) to keep the government funded while negotiations continue. show more
gop budget
August 29, 2023
William Upton
News
Politics

GOP Budget Changes Could Push Trump Prosecutions to Post-2024.

Two budget amendments introduced by Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.) aim to push the two federal and two state prosecutions of former President Donald Trump until after the 2024 presidential election. Clyde says he plans to amend the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies 2024 appropriations bill with language that would “…prohibit the use of federal funding for the prosecution of any major presidential candidate prior to the upcoming presidential election on November 5th, 2024.”

The Georgia Congressman called the four pending prosecutions of Trump “sham indictments”, adding they are “… intended to smear and take down President Trump, as well as hinder his ability to campaign effectively.” Clyde stated that, “One amendment would prevent taxpayer dollars from funding federal prosecutions, while a second would prohibit funding for state prosecutions.”

The upcoming Fall appropriations process will include 12 ‘must pass’ budget bills necessary for funding the functions of the U.S. federal government. Some members of the House Republican Conference view the budget appropriations process as an opportunity to secure the passage of legislative agenda items that would otherwise not pass as stand alone legislation.

Last week the House Freedom Caucus announced their list of demands for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to include in a government funding stop-gap measure when Congress resumes its legislative session after Labor Day. The legislative items include further reductions in federal spending levels, a House Republican border security bill that would fund border wall construction and place additional limits on asylum seekers, and a vague ask to address the weaponization of the DOJ.

The stop-gap funding bill, in the form of a Continuing Resolution, will be needed to fund the government as Congress is unlikely to pass the twelve appropriations bills to fund the government before the start of the new fiscal year on October 1st.

show less
Two budget amendments introduced by Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-Ga.) aim to push the two federal and two state prosecutions of former President Donald Trump until after the 2024 presidential election. Clyde says he plans to amend the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies 2024 appropriations bill with language that would "...prohibit the use of federal funding for the prosecution of any major presidential candidate prior to the upcoming presidential election on November 5th, 2024." show more
deficit
August 11, 2023
William Upton
Economy
News

Biden More Than Doubles U.S. Deficit in 2023… and the Fiscal Year Isn’t Over Yet!

The United States budget deficit has doubled under President Joe Biden; hitting $1.6 trillion in the first 10 months of the fiscal year. The continued deterioration of the fiscal state of the U.S. is another blow to Bidenomics, the set of economic agenda items that the Biden White House has pinned their re-election hopes on.

In a thread on X (formerly Twitter), economist EJ Antoni explained that the U.S. Treasury “…continues hemorrhaging cash as spending balloons, receipts fall; deficit and interest on the debt keep rising.” Antoni noted net interest payments on the U.S. debt exceeded spending on national defense, medicare, veterans benefits and services, and transportation. 

Even more concerning is that the Fiscal-Year-To-Date’s deficit is already $238 billion above the last Fiscal Year’s entire deficit. There are still two months remaining in the current Fiscal Year.

The negative news on the U.S. deficit only darkens the storm clouds over the U.S. economy. The July Consumer Price Index numbers signaled a re-acceleration in inflation – despite many in the mainstream media claiming that the inflation crisis was over. In response to the re-acceleration of inflation in July, Antoni stated:

The CPI has risen so much faster than wages under Biden that the average American worker effectively paid a $4.62 an hour inflation tax in July. And yet, many components of the CPI are understating the realities faced by Americans, including housing. The monthly payment on a median price home today is twice what it was in January 2021.

Last wee, Fitch Ratings downgraded U.S. government debt from AAA to AA+ and projected the American economy would enter into a recession in late 2023 or early 2024.

show less
The United States budget deficit has doubled under President Joe Biden; hitting $1.6 trillion in the first 10 months of the fiscal year. The continued deterioration of the fiscal state of the U.S. is another blow to Bidenomics, the set of economic agenda items that the Biden White House has pinned their re-election hopes on. show more
May 30, 2023
Jake Welch
Breaking
News

DATA: Voters Support Govt Shutdown Until Spending is Cut.

A majority of Americans – 54 percent – would prefer a partial government shutdown until federal spending reduces than avoiding a shutdown by authorizing higher levels of government spending, according to a recent survey by Rasmussen Reports.

The majority comprised more than a third of Democrats – 36 percent – and almost two-thirds of Republicans – 74 percent.

A total of 57 percent of Democrats and only 17 percent of Republicans would prefer increased spending would prefer more spending.

Responsibility for the Federal Deficit Budget.

Rasmussen Reports also asked the 1038 likely U.S. voters: “Which is more to blame for the size of the federal budget deficit? Either “taxpayers’ unwillingness to pay more in taxes” or “politicians’ unwillingness to reduce government spending.”

The overwhelming majority of Americans – 68 percent – believe politicians are to blame, including a whopping 88 percent of Republicans and 47 percent of Democrats.

Only 40 percent of Democrats believed that an unwillingness to pay taxes was the primary reason for the size of the budget deficit.

Delay in Debt-Ceiling Increase.

Lastly, Rasmussen posed the question: “How likely is it that delay in passing a debt-ceiling increase will lead to the United States defaulting on its debt payments?”

A majority of 57 percent believed it was either “very likely” or “somewhat likely,” with 67 percent of Democrats and 45 percent of Republicans.

show less
A majority of Americans – 54 percent – would prefer a partial government shutdown until federal spending reduces than avoiding a shutdown by authorizing higher levels of government spending, according to a recent survey by Rasmussen Reports. show more
debt ceiling deal
May 28, 2023
Jake Welch
News

What does Biden and McCarthy’s Debt Ceiling Deal Mean, in Practice?

President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reached an agreement ‘in principle‘ on the debt ceiling this week. Though the deal stills needs Congressional approval, Speaker McCarthy lauded it as “worthy of the American people”. The House of Representatives will get just 72 hours to read the legislation concerning trillions of dollars before bringing it to the floor for a vote.

Biden said the deal was a compromise “because it prevents what could have been a catastrophic default and would have led to an economic recession, retirement accounts devastated, and millions of jobs lost.” But the agreement has been referred to as an “utter capitulation” by the likes of Rep Dan Bishop (R-NC), Republican Ralph Norman (R-SC). Norman tweeted the deal was “insanity.”

“We just risked the entire US economy to save $50 billion which is just 0.2% of GDP,” according to a global capital markets newsletter.

Key Points of the Fiscal Responsibility Act.

 

  • The federal debt ceiling will be raised by over $4 trillion without cutting any current federal spending;
  • Spending will increase by one percent in 2025;
  • Defense spending will not be capped, and will stay in line with Biden’s 2024 budget request of $886 billion;
  • The proposed deal suggests spending will be cut by 0.2 percent of the United States GDP – around $50 billion;
  • Congress will “claw back” some unspent COVID-19 funds, and cut $400 million from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) “Global Health Fund” that sends billions to health programs around the world, including China;
  • Accelerating approval process for energy projects, requiring only one federal agency to review a permit;
  • A reduction in the $80 billion in Internal Revenue Service (IRS) funding pushed through by the Democrats;
  • Reforms to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), requiring adults without dependents between 49 and 54 to work for food aid;
  • Restarting student loan payments, though no start date has been specified.

As it stands, the Republicans who have announced their intention to vote against the bill include Chip Roy (R-TX), Dan Bishop (R-NC), Ralph Norman (R-SC), and Lauren Boebert (R-CO), and Tim Burchett (R-TN).

“Utter capitulation in progress. By the side holding the cards,” Bishop said.

“This bill almost guarantees you $4 trillion with no cuts,” said former Trump advisor Stephen K. Bannon on Sunday. “It’s dead on arrival.”

“Any Republican that votes for this—they should primary them because this is nothing but a set of small optics compared to the real problem. The problem that this exacerbates the debt problem because it takes off any limits to what can be added to the debt ceiling. There’s no number, and we know it’s for two years.”

show less
President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reached an agreement 'in principle' on the debt ceiling this week. Though the deal stills needs Congressional approval, Speaker McCarthy lauded it as "worthy of the American people". The House of Representatives will get just 72 hours to read the legislation concerning trillions of dollars before bringing it to the floor for a vote. show more