On their respective blogs, economists Mike Konczal and Paul Krugman criticize the widely cited finding that a nation’s debt above 90 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) slows economic growth. They presume that the limitations of one study by Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff mean that its warning can …
Despite claims by the Obama Administration that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) budget couldn’t afford sequestration cuts without reducing personnel—thus causing longer wait times at airports—the agency had no qualms about adding a $50 million contract for new uniforms the week before the spending cuts officially began. On February 27, …
The House version of the continuing resolution (CR) — necessary to fund the government through the end of the fiscal year on September 30 — was Congress’s opportunity to reprogram cuts from sequestration or cut even further. Regrettably, the bill fails to deliver on both counts. Worse, because of the …
Sequestration has taken effect, and yet government spending continues growing. Sequestration’s 2.4 percent reductions are not enough to fix Washington’s spending and debt problem because they do nothing to reform entitlement programs, whose costs will grow rapidly with America’s aging population. As more Americans age and retire, more Americans will …
Senator Jim DeMint, the president-elect of The Heritage Foundation, apparently has a crystal ball. This morning he predicted that Obama would use the sequester as a smokescreen: So why is President Obama leading a scare campaign filled with untruths about how sequestration will necessitate firing firefighters, cops, and teachers? I’ll …
About 77,000 unused or underused federal buildings cost taxpayers $1.67 billion to operate and maintain in 2010 alone (latest data available), according to a Congressional Research Service (CRS) report from last year. Unlike your typical house on the market today, these buildings are beyond unsightly. The word derelict might not …
President Obama is meeting with lawmakers Friday in a last-ditch effort to stop sequestration. Budget cuts representing just 2.4 percent out of total government spending are set to take effect at the stroke of midnight. Heritage Foundation President-Elect Jim DeMint appeared on CNN’s “The Situation Room” tonight alongside liberal pundit …
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced plans to furlough all of its employees and shut down for three days this year to absorb sequestration’s spending cuts. But the sequester cuts do not have to lead to shutdowns. The Heritage Foundation recently pointed out that prioritized cuts at the National Institutes …
