Blogs

The Biden Administration released this week a revised Build Back Better framework (BBBF) that reflects the president’s negotiations with Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV), Krysten Sinema (D-AZ), and Bernie Sanders (D-VT). Although significantly scaled back from the initial $3.5 trillion target,…

Real GDP data released this week by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) showed that the nascent economic recovery that began with the COVID vaccine rollout this spring faltered in late summer as the rampant spread of the delta variant…

Earlier this week the Social Security Administration (SSA) announced the annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for next year (2022) would be 5.9 percent. That’s slightly more than the 5.8 percent increase in 2008, and the biggest increase since 1982.[1] Under current…

With pressure mounting to avoid a default on federal government obligations, Senate leaders Republican Mitch McConnell and Democrat Chuck Schumer, agreed to a temporary compromise: Republicans agreed not to filibuster legislation addressing the debt limit and Democrats agreed to…

Earlier this week, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sent her fourth letter to Congress, urging lawmakers “to protect the full faith and credit of the United States by acting [on the debt limit] as soon as possible.” This time, she…

For several months, Republicans and Democrats in Washington, DC have been barreling towards each other on a collision course over a pair of looming fiscal deadlines. First, Congress must prevent a government shutdown by passing a temporary stopgap funding measure,…

The United States Armed Forces uses an alert system called the “defense readiness condition” (DEFCON) to describe different levels of readiness, or states of alert, for military personnel. It increases in severity from DEFCON 5 (least severe) to DEFCON…

Budget Breakthrough After moving at a breakneck pace and holding a special session, the House and Senate passed an FY 2022 budget resolution on Tuesday, setting the table for the annual appropriations process. It also jumpstarts reconciliation, the strategic…