Budget Matters Blog


President Obama and Romney/Ryan on Deficits

A few weeks ago, with the announcement of Rep. Paul Ryan as Gov. Romney’s running mate, we wrote about how the two presidential candidates represent starkly different visions for this country in the years to come. One issue we didn’t cover in detail is the candidates’ projected budget deficits.


Heading West to Colorado

What kind of country do you want to live in? That's a question I'll be asking Colorado residents on Sept. 4th and 5th when I have the honor of speaking at the Tattered Cover Book Store in Denver and the Boulder Book Store in downtown Boulder. We'll be talking about A People's Guide to the Federal Budget and how our elected officials are faced with decisions that will shape this country for years to come.


You Ask, We Answer: What's a Block Grant? (And Why Nuns Care)

Karen from Colorado asks us, “What’s a block grant?” She said she’s been hearing that phrase a lot without knowing what it means – or if it’s important. It’s a great question, Karen, because block grants are important. They’re part of the reason a group of nuns recently began the Nuns on the Bus cross-country tour.


Gridlock in the Budget Process

President Obama released a budget in February, the House passed a very different budget in March, and the Senate has declined to do a budget. The seeds are planted for stalemate this election year. Why can't Congress just pass a budget without all this conflict?


These Are Competing Visions, says President Obama

“I can’t remember a moment when the choice between competing visions of our future has been so clear,” the president said in a speech on Tuesday. He was talking about the stark differences between his budget and the budget resolution introduced last week by Rep. Paul Ryan (R- WI). National ...


Budget Process Update: Where Are We Now?

The president submitted his fiscal year 2013 budget request to Congress on Feb. 13. Earlier this week, Congressman Paul Ryan (R-WI), chairman of the House Budget Committee, unveiled his draft budget resolution. The role of the annual budget resolution is to set the overall spending limits that appropriators will use ...