Budget Battles
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Biden Slams Trump’s Coronavirus Response
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The Republican Clash Over Coronavirus Aid
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Trump Wants to Cut Enhanced Unemployment Benefits: Report
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Trump Threatens to Permanently Cut WHO Funding
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$500 Billion Coronavirus Fund Has Barely Been Used
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House Set to Pass $3 Trillion Coronavirus Relief Bill
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Trump Stakes Out a Negotiating Position on Coronavirus Aid
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US Has Saved $429 Billion by Cutting Waste — and There’s Plenty More to Go: GAO
By Michael RaineyThe government could save billions of dollars by operating more efficiently in a wide range of areas, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office. Wasting taxpayer funds is...
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Trump Administration Will Send Nearly $5 Billion to Nursing Homes
The Department of Health and Human Services said Friday it has begun distributing some $4.9 billion to nursing homes to help them combat the coronavirus pandemic and provide support for home facing...
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Biden Slams Trump’s Coronavirus Response
Former Vice President Joe Biden on Friday slammed President Trump’s efforts to prop up the economy in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, charging that the focus so far has been on helping large...
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Small Business Program Is Popular, but Congress Eyes Changes
By Michael RaineyAlthough critics say the $670 billion Paycheck Protection Program, which provides small businesses with loans and grants during the coronavirus crisis, is seriously flawed, there’s no doubt that it...
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As Unemployment Filings Top 38 Million, McConnell Vows to End Enhanced Benefits
By Michael RaineyAbout 2.4 million people filed claims for unemployment benefits last week, the Labor Department announced Thursday, bringing the nine-week total since the coronavirus crisis struck to more than 38...
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Can Republicans Come Together on Another Coronavirus Relief Bill?
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Thursday that there is a “strong likelihood” that Congress will need to pass another coronavirus relief bill, though he said the additional stimulus won’t be...
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Trump Threatens Funding to Michigan and Nevada Over Mail-in Voting
President Trump threatened Wednesday to “hold up” federal funding to Michigan and Nevada after those states announced plans to expand mail-in voting options in response to the coronavirus pandemic...
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Small Business Relief Program May Get Overhaul
By Michael RaineyFrom the moment the Paycheck Protection Program began operating in early April, critics have charged that it could end up hurting the small businesses it is supposed to help. Most notably, the...
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Trump Wants to Cut Unemployment Benefits Amid Record Unemployment: Report
The enhanced unemployment benefits provided by Congress for laid-off workers as part of the $2.2 trillion CARES Act are shaping up to be a major point of contention as lawmakers engage in an...
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Progressive Lawmakers Call for Pentagon Budget Cuts
A group of 29 liberal House Democrats wants to cut military spending, arguing that the money is better spent fighting the coronavirus pandemic. “Congress must remain focused on responding to the...
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Trump Ramps Up His Battle With World Health Organization
President Trump threatened late Monday to permanently stop funding the World Health Organization and “reconsider” U.S. membership in the group if it does not “commit to major substantive improvements...
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Fed Chief Again Nudges Congress to Do More
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell again cautioned that the central bank and Congress may need to do more to prevent longer-term economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic — and that concerns...
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$500 Billion Coronavirus Relief Fund Has Barely Been Used
The Treasury Department has disbursed just $37.5 billion out of $500 billion in emergency coronavirus funds approved by Congress as part of the CARES Act passed in March, according to the first...
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House Passes $3 Trillion Coronavirus Relief Bill Destined to Die in the Senate
The House on Friday night passed a $3 trillion emergency coronavirus relief bill in a 208-199 vote. The package, which would be the largest emergency spending package in U.S. history, is destined to...
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Millions of Americans Are Still Waiting to Get Their Unemployment Benefits
Two months after the coronavirus pandemic first led to vast parts of the U.S. economy being shut down and an unprecedented loss of jobs, states are still struggling to handle the surge of new...