Budget Watchdog All Federal
The podcast dedicated to making sense of the budget, spending, and tax issues facing the nation. We cut through the partisan rhetoric and talking points to bring you the facts about what's being talked about, bandied about, and pushed in Washington. Budget Watchdog All Federal is brought to you by Taxpayers for Common Sense.
Episodes
123 episodes
Hey Big Spender: Three Trillion-Dollar Numbers, One Fiscal Year
This week, three numbers, one fiscal year. The Congressional Budget Office projects $1.1 trillion in net interest on the national debt in fiscal year 2027. The Pentagon is asking for $1.5 trillion. And in Dallas on September 9th, the president ...
Beef Prices: What Executive Action Can and Can't Do
Ground beef hit a record $6.90 a pound in spring 2026 and has stayed there — $6.89 in July. And in August, the Trump administration responded three times in eight days: a 300,000 metric-ton import quota, a signed proclamation, and a social medi...
Steam Dream: Redesigning a $22 Billion Carrier for Looks
There is an iron law of building complicated things, and it applies to your kitchen renovation exactly the same way it applies to a nuclear-powered warship: the most expensive moment in any project is the moment somebody changes their mind afte...
Punting on First Down
The House passes a CR with two months left on the clock.A punt is a concession you make when you've run out of downs. The House made this one on first down. With more than two months left in the fiscal year and none of the twelv...
How to Cut Half a Trillion Dollars from the Pentagon Budget
The Pentagon's FY2027 budget request comes in at $1.54 trillion — a 45% increase over current spending. TCS teamed up with the Project on Government Oversight (POGO) on a new report,
250 Years, 85% of the Debt in 25
America turns 250, and the fiscal ledger is sobering: $39.3 trillion in national debt — 85% of it accumulated in just the last 25 years. TCS President Steve Ellis and Director of Research & Policy Josh Sewell set aside the holiday Wastebask...
Inside the NDAA Markup
The House Armed Services Committee spent all of Thursday, June 4th, marking up the National Defense Authorization Act, and what happened inside that room was anything but routine. TCS Policy Analyst Gabe Murphy was there for the debate, and he ...
Repair Priorities 2026
America has spent $1.5 trillion on federal surface transportation since the early '90s. Roads and bridges: same condition as 2001. So where did the money go?Steve Ellis talks with Beth Osborne of Smart Growth America about
100 Cents on the Dollar: National Debt Crosses a Historic Threshold
The U.S. economy grew at a solid 2% annual rate in the first quarter of 2026. So why is Taxpayers for Common Sense sounding the alarm? Because at the same moment, the national debt held by the public crossed 100% of GDP — a threshold once consi...
Drilling Won't Fix Gas Prices. Here's the Math.
Gas prices are above $4 a gallon. Crude oil is past $100 a barrel. And Washington is doing what Washington does — pointing to federal leasing as the fix. But is it?TCS President Steve Ellis sits down with TCS Vice President Autumn Hanna ...
The President's FY2027 Budget Request
The president has released his fiscal year 2027 budget request — and buried inside the rhetoric about "historic paradigm shifts" and the end of "fiscal futility" is a $1.5 trillion Pentagon spending request. A 44% increase in a single year. And...
Flood Insurance Realities
Taxpayers for Common Sense doesn't just watch Congress — sometimes it sits at the witness table. Last week TCS President Steve Ellis testified before the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance on flood insurance, repetit...
Iran, War Powers, and the Budget
Two weeks into the U.S. military campaign against Iran — launched without congressional authorization — the costs are staggering. Estimates put taxpayer exposure at up to $28 billion already, with no clear end in sight. TCS President Steve Elli...
The Farm Bill Lives
While breaking news about U.S. military action against Iran dominates the headlines, a consequential piece of legislation quietly cleared a major hurdle in Washington. In the early morning hours of March 5th, after a 20-hour marathon markup ses...
Trump Tariff Takedown
In a historic 6-3 ruling the U.S. Supreme Court struck down President Trump's sweeping global tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), holding that the Constitution's taxing power belongs squarely to Congre...
Why Golden Dome is Bad for American Taxpayers
TCS President Steve Ellis and Policy Analyst Gabe Murphy break down President Trump's Golden Dome missile defense program—an ambitious vision to shield the entire United States from nuclear attack. With potential costs ranging from $3.6 to $6 t...
Short Shutdown
Congress faces a partial government shutdown at midnight over Department of Homeland Security funding—but the border enforcement operations at the center of the fight will continue largely uninterrupted. Last summer's reconciliation bill locked...
Pentagon Plus-Up: Trump's $1.5 Trillion Defense Proposal
Just when you thought Pentagon spending couldn't get more out of control, President Trump proposes a 50% budget increase in one year—rocketing Defense spending from $901 billion to $1.5 trillion. That's $500 billion more... and tariffs won't co...
Inside the $12 Billion Farm Bailout
The Trump administration has announced a $12 billion agricultural bailout package as trade wars squeeze American farmers—a familiar scenario from the first Trump administration. TCS Director of Research and Policy Josh Sewell joins host Steve E...
FEMA Reform: Billion-Dollar Disasters and the Push for Taxpayer Protection
With nearly 30 billion-dollar extreme weather events in 2024 alone, disaster costs are spiraling out of control—and Congress is finally taking action. Steve Ellis sits down with TCS Director of Research Josh Sewell and Policy Analyst Tyler Work...
Half a Billion and Counting: The Hidden Cost of National Guard Deployments
Nearly half a billion dollars spent, families separated over the holidays, small businesses operating short-staffed, and violent crime was already declining. TCS Policy Analyst Gabe Murphy breaks down the mounting taxpayer costs of National Gua...
Shutdown Postmortem
After 43 days, the longest government shutdown in U.S. history has ended. But at what cost? Steve Ellis and Josh Sewell break down the $60 billion price tag taxpayers absorbed for absolutely nothing. Beyond the waste, the Trump administration u...
The Antideficiency Act, Explained
In the midst of a full government shutdown, the Trump administration has taken an unprecedented step: firing thousands of federal workers while government funding remains frozen. The problem? This might violate the Anti-Deficiency Act, a law on...