Blog
Welcome to our blog – The Bottom Line, where you’ll find up-to-date commentary and analysis on the most important news in the fiscal world. Below is a list of our blog posts.
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Talking Debt and Deficits in the GOP Debates
In the first four Presidential primary debates, the GOP candidates have mentioned the deficit or debt a combined 35 times, with former United Nations...
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Payroll Taxes Fall Short of Paying for Social Security and Medicare
In a recent New York Times opinion piece which keyed off a recent analysis from Karen Smith and Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget board...
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Marc Goldwein and Chris Towner: Social Security Can’t Grow Its Way Out of Trouble
Marc Goldwein is senior vice president and senior policy director of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. Chris Towner is policy director...
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Lawmakers Are Mulling Up to $2.3 Trillion in Borrowing
So far, this year, lawmakers have enacted $1.3 trillion of ten-year debt reduction (see our debt thermometer) – the most since 2011. But policies...
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Lower Costs, More Transparency Act Passes House
The House of Representatives passed the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act yesterday with a large bipartisan majority. Within the legislation is an...
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A Breakdown of Foreign Aid Obligations
With policymakers considering supplemental appropriations for Ukraine, Israel, and other foreign policy needs, many are wondering how much of the...
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Can Social Security Be Saved by Selling America’s Oil & Gas Reserves?
In a town hall hosted by Fox News, former President Donald Trump suggested that America’s fiscal problems – and specifically Social Security’s looming...
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CBO Scores National Security and Border Bill at $113 Billion
The Senate will soon consider a bill combining President Biden's national security supplemental funding request with border security measures. The...
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Vivek Ramaswamy's Proposal to Increase Defense Spending
Vivek Ramaswamy, businessman and current GOP presidential candidate, has proposed increasing spending on national defense to at least 4 percent of...
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Comparing 2024 Appropriations Levels
With the passage of the second continuing resolution (CR) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2024, Congress should turn to passing full-year appropriations bills...
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Five Revenue-Raising Loophole Closures Policymakers Should Consider
George Callas of Arnold Ventures, who previously served as a senior tax counsel in the U.S. House of Representatives – both for the Ways and Means...
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Year-End Tax Deal Could Cost Over $800 Billion if Made Permanent
UPDATE (January 2024): We have published an updated analysis of this tax deal. You can find the updated analysis here . According to press reports...