Budget Watchdog All Federal

The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) caps national security spending at $895 billion in 2025, but changes to the Pentagon's budget request may not hold as the budget process moves forward. TCS policy analyst Gabe Murphy joins host Steve Ellis with an analysis of the potential for Congress to exceed these caps, the Navy's shipbuilding budget and the F-35 .

Lawmakers in the 118th Congress again have the power to “bringing home the bacon” with federal dollars to specific projects in their home states and districts. Has transparency worked to provide scrutiny and limit potential abuse? TCS  Director of Research and Policy Josh Sewell and TCS Research Associate Chris Howe-Smith join host Steve Ellis for a critical update on Earmarks (see: Congressionall...

What is the role of the federal government in responding to disaster, particularly when the tragedy is manmade? TCS President Steve Ellis is joined by Michael Surrusco and Chris Howe-Smith for a discussion about the Baltimore bridge collapse and the financial impact on taxpayers. 

Budget Watchdog AF considers President Biden’s $7.3 Trillion Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Request. A budget that proposes a 4.5% cut in discretionary spending from the previous fiscal year and a reduction in budget deficits by nearly $3 trillion over the next decade. But how rosy are the economic growth projections upon which this budget request is built?  And what gimmicks are baked in there to create...

The impasse in the divided and chaotic U.S. Congress over funding of the federal government has reached another inflection point. Join TCS President Steve Ellis and Director of Research and Policy Josh Sewell for a look at the costs and implications for taxpayers. 

Are farm subsidies wasteful spending? What impact will new economic data have on the upcoming Farm Bill reauthorization? TCS Director of Research Josh Sewell and Senior Policy Analyst Sheila Korth get their hands dirty coming up with answers. 

The Biden administration's National Defense Industrial Strategy will significantly impact taxpayers. Is the aim to strengthen US defense capabilities or put America on a permanent war footing? The NDIS contains contradictions, especially considering taxpayers will soon pay more each year to service the nation's debt than on the military. Hit play to hear TCS National Security Analyst Gab...

On Jan. 19th, 2024, funding runs out for roughly 20 percent of the U.S. Government — including essential programs like some veterans assistance and food and drug safety services.  The funding for the rest of the government runs out on Feb. 2. Hit play to get up to speed on the state of play in Congress with Host Steve Ellis and special guests Josh Sewell and Mike Surrusco.

It’s never too late to harvest savings for taxpayers. On this episode of Budget Watchdog AF, we dig deep and root out the egregious taxpayer subsidies being sent to foreign insurers and large mega-farms.

Admitting you have a problem is the first step. And Houston, we have a problem. America’s fiscal health is in grave danger. Host Steve Ellis is joined by Josh Sewell and Mike Surrusco to consider the creation of a bipartisan, bicameral fiscal commission to address our nation’s unsustainable national debt and the pending insolvency of critical government programs. 

In what might be considered a victory, the passage of another continuing resolution comes with its own kind of damage.  TCS Director of Research and Policy Josh Sewell joins host Steve Ellis for a discussion about how taxpayers stand to lose from the passage of a clean CR.

All Hallows’ Eve is upon us! And 2023 has been uncommonly spooky. Disappearances. Hauntings. Bloodletting. So, if you dare look deeper - if you seek to hear more.  Enter the haunted dome of Capitol Hill and come face to face with the real ghouls, monsters, and fiscal horrors that lurk in the shadows. 

TCS National Security Analyst Gabe Murphy joins Steve Ellis with an important update on America's military budget and spending issues . Hit play for the latest on the defense budget, military aid to Ukraine, the F-35 fighter jet, the Marine Corps transformation plan, and the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) rule, that guides the Pentagon's role in addressing climate change.

It turns out that avoiding the self-inflicted fiscal damage of a government shutdown was merely the beginning of a historic and even more highly chaotic period in the US House of Representatives.  Just before noon on Tuesday, October 3rd a rebellion led by Representative Matt Gaetz, a far-right Republican from Florida led to the House voting 216-210 to oust McCarthy. Why? Because on Saturday the S...

We are on the edge of our seats waiting to see if Congress can complete a Hail Mary pass to keep the government running and give lawmakers time to pass the dozen annual spending bills.  The Senate has the ball and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is lined up in the shotgun position, hoping to connect on a last-minute six-week Continuing Resolution. TCS star players Autumn Hanna and Josh Sewell join S...

Oil & Gas Leasing in Nevada is trouble for taxpayers .  Host Steve Ellis and TCS Vice President Autumn Hanna are joined by Russell Kuhlman , Executive Director of the Nevada Wildlife Federation for a discussion about bonding requirements, federal royalty rates, and what constitutes a fair return for taxpayers. 

Lawmakers are back and the September 30 deadline to fund the federal government for fiscal year 2024 — or to pass a continuing resolution for stopgap funding until negotiators can agree on appropriations — looms larger by the minute. Can Speaker Kevin McCarthy unite his fractured conference on spending?  Will there be a government shutdown?  And how much money would it cost taxpayers?  TCS Senior...

The recent credit rating downgrade of the United States government by Fitch Ratings might have been met with alarm bells and market tremors.  It was not.  Host Steve Ellis is joined by TCS Senior Policy Analyst, Josh Sewell, and TCS Director of Special Projects, Mike Surrusco,  to shed light, context, and analysis of the underlying issues that continue to simmer.

Ten billion taxpayer dollars per year in subsidies won’t fix farmers’ problems.  Why? Because dollars alone won’t solve any problem. Join host Steve Ellis and TCS Senior Policy Analysts Josh Sewell and Sheila Korth for an exclusive look behind the curtain at the special interests driving the formation of the 118th Congress' Farm Bill.

We’re back with the latest evidence of the increasing costs to taxpayers from climate change.  Join Steve Ellis and Josh Sewell as they shine a spotlight on the fat stacks taxpayers are laying down on Climate in 2023.

Today on the podcast, everything you need to know about biofuels and how the Renewable Fuel Standard has failed consumers, taxpayers, and the climate. Host Steve Ellis is joined by journalist and author Michael Grunwald and TCS Senior Policy Analyst Sheila Korth.

Wildfire smoke pouring in from Canada is a frightening real-time example of the impacts of climate change.  It is also an apt metaphor for how the mounting costs of climate change are being quietly paid by American Taxpayers.  Host Steve Ellis and TCS Vice President Autumn Hanna are joined by Bob Keefe and Sandra Purohit with the national, nonpartisan group E2 to breakdown the findings in the new...

The threat of defaulting on the national debt is soon to become real. The American government is on borrowed time and the music is about to stop.  TCS Vice President Autumn Hanna and TCS Senior Policy Analyst Josh Sewell join host Steve Ellis to help make sense of what’s at stake.

Wendy Jordan has analyzed every Pentagon budget request for the last 35 years. She has a multi-faceted understanding of defense programs. And an encyclopedic knowledge of Congressional action. And a voice that listeners of this podcast will soon be missing. Hit play and hear the Wendy Jordan exit interview (uncensored).

The end of Federal Debt Limit brinksmanship is upon us. Extraordinary measures have been in effect for some time. America is now driving with the “empty light” on and about to blow past the last gas station exit. The near-term costs of a default on our national debt are calculable.  The long-term costs of a breach in the “full faith and credit of the United States,” are not. TCS Senior Policy Anal...