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November 7, 2024

Key Data on Federal Benefits Paid to Illegal Immigrant Households

Soaring illegal immigration during the Biden-Harris administration was a major campaign theme, with a pre-election Harvard poll finding Americans considered immigration the second-most important issue—right behind inflation and ahead of the economy. An AP exit poll seconded that ranking, with 39 percent of voters citing the economy as their top issue, followed by immigration at 20 percent—up from three…

November 1, 2024

Kamala Harris’s Policy Book Doesn’t Even Mention Immigration

The record surge in illegal immigration during the Biden-Harris administration, its consequences and costs, and what to do about it are all major issues in this year’s election. Recent polling suggests addressing immigration is voters’ second biggest priority, right after inflation and ahead of the economy. Yet Vice President Kamala Harris’s “policy book” doesn’t even mention immigration, much…

October 9, 2024

Kamala Harris’s Main Priority Is Expanding Welfare, Not Strengthening the Middle Class

Last week’s vice-presidential debate was chock-full of references to the middle class and plans to improve conditions for the middle class. That’s also a common refrain to the stump speech of presidential candidate Kamala Harris: She touts that she comes from the middle class, supports the middle class, and values the work ethic that defines the…

May 30, 2024

The Contradictions in Democrats’ Child Tax Credit Expansion Promises

Politicians regularly vie for the support of parents with promises of good schools, bigger family benefits, and tax relief. President Joe Biden did just that last week in calling for increased funding for public education, child care, and more. Sometimes just the language of the proposal—like the president’s call to expand the child tax credit (CTC)—appears to…

May 23, 2024

Vast Vote-Buying Strategy — ‘Like We Have Never Seen Before’ — Is Laid to Democrats by North Dakota’s Governor

Governor Burgum of North Dakota — a potential running mate with President Trump — is warning that, under the Biden administration, there is “vote-buying going on at a scale like we have never seen before.” Mr. Trump simplifies the charge to just “they get welfare to vote.” What’s the evidence behind those allegations?  The case could start…

May 8, 2024

Beltway Liberals Are Playing Name Games to Expand the Welfare State

Higher prices aren’t the only kind of inflation coming out of Washington these days. Wildly inflated group names are on the rise, too — and they’re being used as a tool to expand government welfare benefits given even to able-bodied adults without dependents. That’s the term long used by the Department of Agriculture to describe those in their prime working years…

April 4, 2024

Biden’s ‘Tax Cut’ Rhetoric Is Really Just Code For Benefit Increases

President Biden’s rhetoric about his new budget proposal suggests it is full of tax relief for working families. For example, one White House fact sheet is headlined “The President’s Budget Cuts Taxes for Working Families and Makes Big Corporations and the Wealthy Pay Their Fair Share.” Taking from the rich to give more to working (and even non-working) families is a…

March 11, 2024

How Many Forms of “Wage Insurance” Do We Need, Exactly?

One of the most controversial policies included in H. R. 7024, the “Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act” that passed the House on January 31, is a provision that would expand the “lookback” to determine eligibility for the child tax credit (CTC). Under current law, adults claiming the CTC for a tax year…

March 4, 2024

Exploring America’s Social Safety Net And The Political Fights Around It

View the full video here. Our new series, “America’s Safety Net,” is focused on the complex web of programs meant to help Americans in need. Over the coming weeks, we’ll take an in-depth look at the different forms of welfare in the U.S. Up first, Geoff Bennett and producer Sam Lane spend some time explaining…

February 9, 2024

Resolving to Learn Lessons from Record Pandemic Fraud

Congress doesn’t make New Year’s resolutions, but if it did, digesting our new report on pandemic fraud would be a good one. Released last week, the new report (“Pandemic Unemployment Fraud in Context: Causes, Costs, and Solutions”) details the how and why of record unemployment benefit fraud during the pandemic. Enacting even some of our policy resolutions…