FISCAL BLOG

U.S. defense spending increased substantially from 2018 to 2019 relative to other countries.

A large decrease in revenues and a large increase in spending have led the Congressional Budget Office to estimate a deficit of $737 billion in April 2020.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, elected leaders have asked the American people to stay at home and have forced businesses to close to mitigate the spread of the virus.

The decrease in GDP in the first quarter was driven by a decline in consumption and investment.

The new numbers demonstrate the severe economic damage and significant fiscal implications of this unprecedented crisis.

Social Security and Medicare are facing serious financial difficulty in the near future.

The official unemployment rate was 4.4 percent in March 2020, up from 3.5 percent in February. That increase was the largest of any month since January 1975.

High healthcare spending is not necessarily a bad thing, especially if it leads to better health outcomes. However, that is not the case in the United States.

As the United States borrows a significant amount of money to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, let’s take a closer look at a few key characteristics of Treasury borrowing that can affect its budgetary cost.

Compared to historical trends and other advanced economies, corporate tax revenues in the United States are at very low levels.