Taxes & Budget
Coverage of the national budget and your taxes.
Budget Director Russ Vought suspends operations at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
White House Budget Director Russ Vought is suspending operations at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an independent agency that has been criticized by conservatives as being unaccountable.
‘Finally happening’: House Republicans rally behind Elon Musk’s efficiency rampage
Elon Musk and DOGE have rattled the federal bureaucracy to its core by rooting out questionable spending — the type of free-wheeling spending that Republicans have long derided. It begs the question, why did Republicans need Mr. Musk to start cutting spending?
USAID’s $200M tab: $10M of meals to al Qaeda-linked terrorists, millions more to DEI
The Trump administration has flagged nearly $200 million in questionable spending by the U.S. Agency for International Development, which Elon Musk and his team have put in their crosshairs for cutting alleged waste and abuse.
Senate to move on Trump agenda as House GOP splinters over spending cuts
Senate and House Republicans, after weeks of sparring over which chamber holds the key to enacting President Trump’s legislative agenda, are moving forward with separate budget plans.
Sen. Joni Ernst applauds Secretary of State Rubio’s push to overhaul USAID and review its spending
Sen. Joni Ernst is looking to keep the focus on the lack of transparency and accountability at the U.S. Agency for International Development, following up on the Trump administration’s crackdown on the agency’s operations.
Bipartisan bill would force Congress to consider debt payments before approving new spending
A bipartisan group of House lawmakers want to start whittling away at the nation’s debt, and they say more transparency in federal spending is the way to do it.
Trump plans move to dismantle federal Education Department
President Trump plans to shrink the size of government includes abolishing the Education Department, which spends $80 billion a year as student test scores plunge.
Federal workers strategize how to get the most out of Trump’s buyout offer
President Trump’s federal worker buyout may backfire in some cases, giving employees who were going to quit anyway months of extra pay.
As House struggles on first step of Trump agenda, Senate considers taking over
The Senate may steamroll the House on a budget blueprint needed to formally begin the legislative process for advancing much of President Trump’s agenda if Republicans in the lower chamber can’t come together on a plan.
USAID spent funds on DEI, transgender initiatives, terrorist groups
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt laid out some of the odd places the U.S. Agency for International Development spent funds, amid the upheaval of the agency by the Trump administration and Elon Musk.
Marines still only military service to pass independent financial audit
The Marine Corps announced Tuesday that its financial house is fully in order: For the second year in a row, the Marines have passed an audit — still the only military service to do so.
USAID’s humanitarian aid, programs invite onslaught of scrutiny and overtures to action under Trump
President Trump has turned his attention to the “radical lunatics” at the U.S. Agency for International Development in his pursuit of wasteful federal spending.
Elon Musk: Trump ‘agreed’ to shutter USAID
Elon Musk has set his sights on shutting down the U.S. Agency for International Development and said President Trump is fully on board with the move.
White House rescinds federal funding freeze memo
The White House on Wednesday rescinded its order freezing the disbursement of all federal grants and loans, which had created widespread confusion across Washington and in states.
Jake Tapper, Stephen Miller spar over federal workers
CNN’s Jake Tapper and Stephen Miller, President Trump’s deputy chief of staff for policy, debated on air over the federal workforce Tuesday after Mr. Miller suggested that employees who lost their jobs might blame their liberal standing.
Trump’s federal aid freeze likely to reach Supreme Court, Mick Mulvaney says
Mick Mulvaney, former director of the Office of Management and Budget, said President Trump’s federal aid freeze will likely end up at the Supreme Court.
Trump’s spending pause? Biden did it first
President Trump’s decision to hit pause on billions of dollars in federal spending spawned an avalanche of complaints from his opponents on Tuesday.
White House orders freeze on ‘all federal financial assistance’
President Trump’s budget office has ordered all federal agencies to temporarily pause the disbursement of “all federal financial assistance” besides Social Security and Medicare.
Georgians voted to limit property taxes on homes. Many school districts are opting out
Georgians voted in November to limit how much of a home’s increasing value can be taxed, but many school districts across the state are opting out of the cap, meaning homeowners may not benefit.
Trump in Sean Hannity interview says he’s open to multiple spending bills
President Trump said he doesn’t care if Congress gets his top priorities passed through multiple reconciliation bills instead of one as long as it gets done.
