All articles tagged with #spending
Two Gallup polls show that roughly one-third of Americans are cutting daily spending to cover medical costs, and about half of middle-income households have delayed major life events such as buying a home or starting a family because of health-care expenses, as premiums rise and Medicaid spending is trimmed.
Current and former FEMA staff celebrate Kristi Noem's firing as DHS secretary, arguing her micromanagement and drive to shrink FEMA degraded disaster response and delayed billions in reimbursements, with the agency's backlog hitting about $17 billion; Trump names Markwayne Mullin as her successor, though officials worry it may not fully restore FEMA's effectiveness.
President Trump proposed sweeping, historically deep cuts to many federal programs, but Congress largely blocked those plans for 2026, leaving education, health, housing and research programs funded at or near prior levels. Preliminary data show about $1.6 trillion in discretionary spending for 2026, only modest changes from 2025. While the White House used tools like rescissions and pursued unilateral budget maneuvers and thousands of federal workers were affected, lawmakers preserved funding for Pell Grants and housing vouchers and rejected sharp reductions for agencies such as Education, the EPA and NIH. The episode underscores the persistent political friction around austerity and the ongoing battle between the presidency and Congress over spending priorities.
The Senate backed a two-week continuing resolution to fund DHS and five major agencies, sending the package to the House as lawmakers seek guardrails on immigration enforcement; agencies are preparing for a possible lapse, with the IRS set to continue operations and other agencies ready to pause nonessential work if funding runs out.
The Senate reached a deal to vote on a broad government funding package, allowing seven amendments and a final passage vote to fund agencies through the fiscal year, plus a two-week DHS stopgap to buy time for negotiating guardrails on immigration. The House could act as soon as Monday to end the partial shutdown, but Sen. Lindsey Graham’s objections over related amendment language threaten the path forward.
With the 2026 midterms looming, Republicans fear that immigration chaos is undercutting their traditional edge on border policy, as party leaders meeting over DHS funding grapple with messaging and political risk amid a heated immigration policy debate.
US consumer confidence dropped to its lowest level since 2014, signaling heightened household caution and a likely slowdown in consumer spending amid uncertain economic conditions.
The House narrowly approved a broad government funding package—covering the Department of Homeland Security, the Pentagon and other agencies—while Democrats protested ICE funding in the wake of the Renee Good shooting; the bill rejects deep Trump cuts, keeps ICE funding roughly flat, and now moves to the Senate before a Jan. 30 deadline to avert a shutdown.
In the first year of Trump’s second term, the economy showed resilience in spending and overall growth after a tariff-driven dip, but job creation slowed to its weakest pace outside recessions since 2003, keeping the labor market under strain while inflation remained above the Fed target. Federal employment fell sharply as efficiency measures trimmed payrolls, and while consumer spending stayed strong—though in a K-shaped pattern favoring higher-income households—the pace of hiring and policy uncertainty suggest risks to sustained growth ahead.
Congress largely rejected President Trump’s request for deep, sweeping budget cuts, passing bipartisan funding bills that keep most federal programs funded and only modestly trim a few, including maintaining NASA and NSF funding and preserving Voice of America, the National Endowment for Democracy, and the National Endowment for the Arts. The House approved funding for State and Treasury and foreign aid with more than Trump’s request but below current levels, and eight of twelve appropriation bills have moved forward as lawmakers race toward a Jan. 30 deadline. The White House’s attempt to cancel IRS funding was blocked, while disagreements remain over Homeland Security and immigration policy.
House Speaker Mike Johnson remains bullish about pursuing a second party-line budget reconciliation package, holding meetings with GOP leaders amid skepticism from some committee chairs. In parallel, Republicans push a DHS funding bill with explicit ICE body-camera funding, advance a stock-trading restrictions measure on party lines, and navigate a two-bill spending package through the House as floor chaos and defections threaten votes. Other stories include ongoing investigations into Slotkin and Hillary Clinton, talk of Venezuela war powers, and the possibility of shelving the Save Local Business Act amid a pro-labor revolt, all signaling a turbulent Capitol ahead of looming funding deadlines.
Economists say Europe's economic growth prospects heavily depend on Germany's increased spending, highlighting Germany's crucial role in the continent's economic outlook.
The 2025 economy remains surprisingly steady with consistent consumer spending, business investment in AI, stable gas prices near $3, low unemployment around 4%, and Americans saving about 5% of their income, despite some challenges.
US consumer confidence has declined for the fifth consecutive month in December, driven by pessimism about the labor market and business conditions, with concerns over inflation, tariffs, and politics weighing on consumers. Despite a strong Q3 economic expansion, consumer sentiment remains subdued, and economists expect tepid hiring and little improvement in unemployment in 2026, which could further impact confidence and spending.
China's investment decline has worsened amid President Xi Jinping's criticism of 'reckless' spending, signaling potential economic challenges and shifts in government policy.