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National Debt

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

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National Debt

Why the U.S. once relied on tariffs to raise revenue — and what it would mean to go back

by Stephanie Hughes
Nov 13, 2024
President-elect Donald Trump has suggested he would cut or even eliminate income taxes, ramping up the role tariffs play instead.
90% of the federal government’s revenue came from tariffs. From the country’s inception until the 1860s, said one trade historian.
Win McNamee/Getty Images
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National Debt

How Harris, Trump plans compare on the national debt, and why you should care

by Sabri Ben-Achour
Oct 11, 2024
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget says both candidates' tax and spending promises would widen deficits, Trump's by a lot more.
The Harris campaign promises funding support for elder care and first-time homebuyers, as well as hiking the corporate tax rate, and Trump's policy agenda includes expanded tax cuts and increased trade tariffs.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
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Marketplace Morning Report

Doing the numbers on campaign promises

Oct 7, 2024
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Breaking Ground

How the relationship between government and economy has changed since "The Great Society"

by Kai Ryssdal and Maria Hollenhorst
Oct 2, 2024
Decades after the promise of "The Great Society" for Americans, President Biden is once again changing the relationship between the economy and the government.
Many modern government programs have roots to "The Great Society."
Brandon Bell/Getty Images
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National Debt

Congress is back with a budget to pass, but this time a shutdown seems unlikely

by Kimberly Adams
Sep 9, 2024
Nobody wants to take the blame in an election year.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
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Breaking Ground

How a small Kentucky town was 10 years ahead of the government

by Kai Ryssdal and Andie Corban
Aug 28, 2024
As the federal government tries to connect every home to high-speed internet by 2030, Kai Ryssdal visits a Kentucky town that already did that — 10 years ago.
An early transition toward high-speed fiber internet has transformed some American communities.
Andie Corban/Marketplace
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Breaking Ground

In national broadband rollout, rural landscapes pose a challenge

by Kai Ryssdal and Sarah Leeson
Aug 27, 2024
The government is spending billions to expand internet access. But distance, low housing density and other factors complicate the plan.
Chip Spann of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration gave Marketplace's Kai Ryssdal a tour of sites related to Kentucky's broadband expansion.
Sarah Leeson/Marketplace
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Breaking Ground

The U.S. is investing billions of dollars in fiber internet. Here's what makes it run.

by Kai Ryssdal and Andie Corban
Aug 26, 2024
We tour a North Carolina plant where melted glass is pulled into the hair-like strands that power fiber-optic cable.
Manufacturers like Prysmian supply fiber-optic cables to internet service providers.
Andie Corban/Marketplace
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Breaking Ground

Libraries are essential for internet access, even as national broadband projects ramp up

by Kai Ryssdal and Sarah Leeson
Aug 23, 2024
The federal government wants to bring fiber connections to every home. In the meantime, some areas will still rely on the library.
Debra Lawson, director of the Spencer County Public Library, says she doesn't know what some patrons would do without the library's internet access. "The way they use our computers, they're participating in society," she says.
Andie Corban/Marketplace
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Breaking Ground

Phoenix’s semiconductor boom was supposed to change their lives, but did it?

by Maria Hollenhorst
Aug 15, 2024
Months after completing a semiconductor technician training course, two workers share their stories.
Students in the Semiconductor Technician Quick Start training course at Mesa Community College practice using hand tools while wearing “bunny suits,” the required workwear at fabrication plants.
Maria Hollenhorst/Marketplace
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