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National Debt

What is national debt and how does it affect our economy?

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National Debt

Child care gets a boost in the new federal spending law, but advocates say it isn't enough

by Kimberly Adams
Mar 27, 2024
They say programs designed to help low-income families are only reaching a fraction of those eligible.
"We got this $1 billion increase that's going to help the [child care] programs that exist, but we need so much more," said the Century Foundation's Julie Kashen.
Ina Fassbender/AFP via Getty Images
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National Debt

Proposed appropriations bill would practically double the size of the Border Patrol

by Kimberly Adams
Mar 22, 2024
Congress failed to pass comprehensive immigration reform, so it's using the appropriations bill to bulk up the Department of Homeland Security.
The $1.2 trillion spending package to be voted on by the House on Friday includes funds to hire 22,000 more Border Patrol agents.
Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP via Getty Images
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Breaking Ground

Wait, how much will the Inflation Reduction Act's climate provisions cost?

by Kai Ryssdal and Andie Corban
Mar 13, 2024
We break down the role of uncapped tax credits in the IRA's climate provisions with John Bistline of the Electric Power Research Institute.
Many of the IRA's tax credits are not capped and last for at least 10 years, creating variability in the total projected cost.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
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Breaking Ground

The Biden administration’s bet on sustainable aviation fuel

by Kai Ryssdal and Maria Hollenhorst
Feb 22, 2024
Right now, sustainable aviation fuel is “a drop in the bucket” compared to conventional jet fuel, but that might not be the case for long.
"Marketplace" host Kai Ryssdal and Samir Sukhtankar, director of operations for World Energy, a biofuels maker, look over the company’s Paramount production facility.
Maria Hollenhorst/Marketplace
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National Debt

Economic issues at the annual CPAC meeting

by Kimberly Adams
Feb 19, 2024
At the annual meeting of right-wing thinkers, economic issues such as tariffs and government spending are expected to be discussed.
Former President Donald Trump is slate to speak at this year's CPAC and has already said he wants another round of tariffs.
Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images
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Breaking Ground

How the infrastructure law will upgrade a neglected street in glitzy Las Vegas

by Kai Ryssdal and Andie Corban
Feb 8, 2024
"Marketplace’s" Kai Ryssdal visits a low-income district of the tourist mecca, where a federal grant will improve transportation and safety.
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
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National Debt

Who’s afraid of our $34 trillion national debt?

by Stacey Vanek Smith
Jan 30, 2024
Our U.S. debt is bigger than our economic output. Consequences include ballooning interest payments and potential trust issues.
The U.S. national debt is about 120% of what the economy generates in a year. But is this cause for concern?
Win McNamee/Getty Images
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Breaking Ground

FDR's New Deal transformed the economy. Could Biden do the same?

by Kai Ryssdal , Andie Corban and Maria Hollenhorst
Jan 24, 2024
We look back at a moment in U.S. history when the federal government remade its relationship with the economy.
President Joe Biden sits in the Oval Office in November. Above the fireplace is a portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
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Breaking Ground

The New Deal history in LA's freeways

by Kai Ryssdal and Andie Corban
Jan 19, 2024
The backbone of Los Angeles' extensive highway system was built with the aid of FDR's historic public works program.
The first potion of the Arroyo Seco Parkway opened in 1940, connecting Pasadena and downtown Los Angeles.
AFP/Getty Images
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National Debt

Criticism, crashes, and crises: Revisiting three ghosts of debt ceiling battles past

by Stacey Vanek Smith
Dec 5, 2023
There have been about 80 debt ceiling battles since 1960. But those decades of drama have never led to an actual default.
The National Debt Clock shows the increasing U.S. debt, near an IRS office in New York City. When this photo was taken, on July 26, 2011, Congress was one week away from a debt ceiling deadline.
Stan Honda/AFP via Getty Images
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