Support the fact-based journalism you rely on with a donation to Marketplace today. Give Now!

What a second Trump term means for U.S. fiscal health

U.S. fiscal health is at higher risk after Trump won the election. Marketplace's David Brancaccio speaks with Harvard professor Jason Furman to learn more.
"President Trump was basically every week announcing a new area of income that would not be subject to tax," said professor Jason Furman. "You add all of that up, and it's more than $10 trillion worth of promises."
Scott Olson/Getty Images

Trump inherits a sturdy economy

Nov 6, 2024
Higher tariffs and lower taxes are key to Trump's plan. The WSJ's Greg Ip weighs their potential effect on the economy Biden and the Fed built.
Greg Ip of The Wall Street Journal emphasizes that we can't predict what the economy will look like under a second Trump administration.
Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

What to know about Harris and Trump’s tariff campaign promises

Nov 4, 2024
American consumers bear the brunt of tariffs — despite what the former president has said on the campaign trail.
Former president Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event in Raleigh, North Carolina, the day before the 2024 election. At this rally, Trump announced that if elected he would impose tariffs on goods from Mexico to pressure the nation into securing the border it shares with the U.S.
Ryan M. Kelly/AFP via Getty Images

IRS announces new tax brackets and deductions based on inflation rate

Oct 23, 2024
The IRS based the changes on an inflation rate of 2.8%.
The IRS has released new tax guidance detailing updated brackets that adjust for recent inflation.
Getty Images

What if tips weren't taxed?

Aug 13, 2024
Both Donald Trump and Kamala Harris support eliminating federal taxes on tips. It might attract votes from tipped workers, who make up 2.5% of the American labor force. But what would it mean for tax policy?
The Tax Foundation estimates that eliminating income taxes on tips would cost at least $107 billion in revenue over 10 years.
SDI Productions/Getty Images

Fact-checking the economic claims in Donald Trump’s convention speech

Alan Rappeport, economic policy reporter at The New York Times, examines the former president's assertions about inflation, taxes and energy.
Alex Wong/Getty Images

GOP platform promises to preserve retiree benefits, but it's short on details

Jul 18, 2024
The Republican Party says it will maintain Social Security and Medicare entitlements without cutting benefits, but that's a tall order.
Both Social Security and Medicare are projected to go broke in a little over a decade.
William Thomas Cain/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Social Security cuts are inevitable by 2035 unless lawmakers act

Jun 27, 2024
Social Security has been known as “the third rail of American politics” since the early 1980s, with the idea that touching the program can prove deadly to a politician’s career.
Because Social Security can’t take on any debt or tap into general revenues to fund benefits, Congress needs to do something before the money runs out.
J. David Ake/Getty Images

Why Trump wants to make tips tax-free

Jun 21, 2024
Plus, we get smarter on "AI slop" and do the numbers on workplace protections for pregnant workers.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 09: Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump greets supporters upon arrival for his campaign rally at Sunset Park on June 09, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The former president continues campaigning around the country amidst ongoing legal troubles. Trump is scheduled to sit for a probation interview via video on June 10 related to the felony conviction in his New York hush money case. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

The Treasury Department and IRS announce new plan to close tax loophole

Jun 18, 2024
It could lead to collecting more than $50 billion dollars in tax revenue over ten years.
“This is something that can only be pulled off, frankly, by the wealthiest of wealthy taxpayers," said U.S. Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo. 
J. David Ake / Getty Images