Federal Budget
  • Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) arrives at Democratic Party caucus meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 19, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas/ File Photo

    Factbox: What happens in a U.S. government shutdown?

    By Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell and Amanda Becker and Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell and Amanda Becker, Reuters

    In shutdowns, nonessential government employees are furloughed, or placed on temporary unpaid leave. Workers deemed essential, including those dealing with public safety and national security, keep...

  • FILE PHOTO - Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin listens as U.S. President Donald Trump hosts a tax reform industry meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S., October 31, 2017.  REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

    Trump Tries to Sell Tax Reform to Democrats

    By David Morgan, Reuters

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump intensified his efforts to sell Democrats on his tax reform plan on Wednesday even as Senate Republicans edged closer to passing a budget measure that...

  • U.S. President Donald Trump speaks about the Iran nuclear deal in the Diplomatic Room of the White House in Washington, U.S., October 13, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

    Senate Republicans Gain Crucial Support for Budget Vital to Tax Reform

    By David Morgan, Reuters

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Republicans on Monday gained crucial support for a vote on a budget resolution that is vital to President Donald Trump's hopes of signing sweeping tax reform...

  • FILE PHOTO: Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) speaks during a press conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., September 12, 2017.   REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

    No Talk of Ousting Speaker Ryan, Key Conservative Says

    By Reuters

    Many Republicans are unhappy with the deal President Donald Trump reached last week with Democratic leaders to raise the government's debt ceiling and allow it to continue financing federal spending...

  • FILE PHOTO: The U.S. Capitol Building is lit at sunset in Washington, U.S., December 20, 2016.  REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/File Photo

    Congress sends Trump disaster aid, debt limit increase

    By Richard Cowan and Amanda Becker, Reuters

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives approved a bill to provide disaster aid, extend the debt ceiling and fund the federal government for three months on Friday, delivering on...

  • France's Hollande vows to fight job cuts, graft

    France's Hollande vows to fight job cuts, graft

    By Daniel Flynn and John Irish, Reuters

    PARIS (Reuters) - President Francois Hollande marked Bastille day celebrations on Saturday with a pledge to fight industrial layoffs and clean up French politics, after watching troops parade down...

  • Fed's Lacker: Libor scandal hurting confidence

    Fed's Lacker: Libor scandal hurting confidence

    By Pedro Nicolaci da Costa, Reuters

    RICHMOND, Virginia (Reuters) - A growing scandal surrounding manipulation of a key benchmark interest rate is feeding public anger towards banks, Richmond Federal Reserve bank President Jeffrey...

  • Italy passes market test after downgrade, concern persists

    Italy passes market test after downgrade, concern persists

    By Valentina Za and Lisa Jucca, Reuters

    MILAN (Reuters) - Italian banks came to the rescue on Friday after the country suffered a ratings downgrade, but while Rome cut its three-year borrowing costs at auction, a rise in 10-year bond...

  • Free from Foreign Oil at Last? Not so Fast

    By Merrill Goozner, The Fiscal Times

    The U.S. is on the cusp of an era of domestic energy abundance that could finally end the nation’s dependence on foreign oil, according to some energy industry officials and analysts.

  • The Politics of the “Fiscal Cliff”

    By Bruce Bartlett, The Fiscal Times

    By now, almost everyone knows that under current law a large “fiscal cliff” faces the economy on January 1, as a number of temporary tax cuts expire and automatic spending cuts take effect. The...