As the United States contemplates providing further aid to Ukraine and also considers further sanctions against Russia, it should consider the surprisingly robust state of the Russian economy – and what effect it has on Russia’s ability to maintain its war against its neighbor to the west. When Russia invaded Ukraine, many observers believed that […]
When it comes to political donations, many Americans probably think that Republicans – historically, the party of the wealthy – way outraise Democrats. That was true years ago but has not been the case in recent cycles and does not seem likely to be the case this year, even as fundraising efforts accelerate in advance […]
A growing economy. More jobs. Abating inflation. A record stock market. A recent spate of economic data all points in one direction: an economy that continues to perform more strongly (and with less inflation) than many expected just a few months ago. While public perceptions often lag realities, all of this augurs well for President […]
Congress narrowly avoided another government shutdown on Thursday – but did so by kicking the can down the road, leaving key issues of government spending and immigration policy to be dealt with over the next six weeks. Unusually, while the Senate is more often the dysfunctional body of Congress, it’s the House of Representatives that […]
As President Biden closes out this third calendar year as president, with reelection looming, what does his economic scorecard look like? While it’s been a bit of a bumpy ride, his economy is ending 2023 on a strong note. And although next year looks to be another year of solid performance, none of that has […]
The war in the Middle East and the antics of former President Trump have been dominating the news of late but behind those headlines, the economy continues – for the most part – to perform well, with inflation moderating and growth continuing. However, it’s important to note that the efforts by the Federal Reserve to […]
After two years of escalating prices, there’s modestly good news this holiday season for both Thanksgiving diners and gift-shoppers: Prices for many popular items are lower than last year (or at least only modestly higher). This may come as a surprise to shoppers; a survey by Deloitte found that 72% of Americans expect higher prices […]
The surge of migrants at America’s southern border looms large as a 2024 election issue. But the debate about our immigration policies and what is actually happening is filled with confusion and misinformation. A look at the data shows a reality considerably different from common perception; we are suffering from a complicated, overburdened system that […]
Mike Johnson, the new Republican Speaker of the House, has lost no time in taking aim at a favorite Republican whipping boy: the Internal Revenue Service. Under the guise of offsetting the cost of aid to Israel, Johnson has proposed budget cuts for the IRS (on top of cuts the Republicans won during the debt […]
Thanks to Speaker Kevin McCarthy and House Democrats, a shutdown of the federal government was barely averted last weekend. Why is this happening so soon after Republicans and Democrats were supposed to have resolved their fiscal differences during the debt ceiling drama less than four months ago? The short answer: because the hard-right Republicans decided […]
