U.S. Treasurys are a linchpin of the global financial system — and they’re what’s at risk in the unfolding debt limit debacle. Plus, a deep dive into the mermaid economy.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Friday the projected debt ceiling deadline is extended to June 5, four days later than previously estimated.

The deadline for Congress to raise the debt ceiling is fast approaching, but if signals from top Congressional Republicans and the Biden administration are to be believed, a deal may be imminent. We look at the latest developments in the saga. Plus, schools are on the frontline of what the Surgeon General called social media’s harmful effects on young people. And finally, there’s a whole industry around mock-up mermaid tails that’s getting a boost from Disney’s The Little Mermaid film releasing today. 

Atsi Sheth from Moody’s gives us a behind the scenes look into the company’s ratings process.

Predicting the exact timing of a government default is difficult, given the amount of the variability in government spending and revenue.

As negotiators try to avert a U.S. government debt default, there are questions about what spending would be first on the chopping block in a doomsday scenario. We look at how a potential debt limit breach could play out, starting with benefit checks and public sector salaries. Plus, a check-in with Dr. David Kelly, Chief Global Strategist at JPMorgan Funds, about how investors think the Fed should act at its next interest-rate-setting meeting. And finally, This is Uncomfortable host Reema Khrais tells us about the podcast’s most recent season delving into the business of women selling their eggs. 

Some Congressional Republicans want older Americans to prove that they work or are looking for work to get those benefits.

Supplemental Security Income payments and veterans ‘payments could be among the first checks to be delayed.

In a special episode, we explore what’s at stake in the fight over the debt ceiling and what it reveals about the nature of money.

Raising the federal government’s borrowing limit isn’t about spending. It’s about how money works.