Institute for Policy Studies

3 weeks ago | ips-dc.org | Caleb Crowder

President Trump is requesting a record-high $1.01 trillion “defense” budget for FY 2026 while gutting federal agencies and social services that actually keep the country safe — things like clean air and water protection, Medicaid, child nutrition programs, the Department of Education, green energy, and so much more. The U.S. already spends more on the military than the next combined despite the Pentagon being the only federal agency that has never passed a federal audit.

3 weeks ago | ips-dc.org | Caleb Crowder

The Trump administration and Republican lawmakers in Congress are currently pushing for a massive, 10-year budget bill that would reduce federal tax revenue by $4.5 trillion. To fund these tax cuts, they will seek to slash hundreds of billions of dollars from Medicaid, food assistance, education and other services that millions of Americans depend on. Many experts are warning of a “fiscal tsunami” for state governments as a result — and the further erosion of America’s frayed social safety net.

3 weeks ago | ips-dc.org | Caleb Crowder

The Trump administration recently released its “skinny budget” for 2026, which slashes funding for science, education, research, foreign aid, environment, health, and anti-poverty programs while boosting Pentagon spending to a record $1.01 trillion. Our National Priorities Project called it “a bonanza for weapons and prison contractors.”This budget has “Project 2025 written all over it,” NPP Director Lindsay Koshgarian told Background Briefing with Ian Masters.

3 weeks ago | ips-dc.org | Caleb Crowder

In a report this spring, Sarah Anderson found that 102 million Americans who live in rural and small-town communities around the country would pay the biggest price for privatization of the U.S. Postal Service. The report finds that one of the biggest impacts would be skyrocketing mail delivery charges: “UPS and FedEx area surcharges now apply to retail customers sending parcels to addresses in ZIP codes where 102 million Americans live.

3 weeks ago | ips-dc.org | Caleb Crowder

In April, IPS, the Athena Coalition, and PowerSwitch Action released a damning new report that highlights how Amazon and its top executives exploit the rigged U.S. tax system. The report finds that Amazon avoids paying even the reduced corporate tax rate of 21 percent. “If they had paid the full statutory corporate rate of 21 percent between 2018 and 2021, their IRS bill would’ve been $12.5 billion higher,” the report explains.