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August 13, 2025
U.S. national debt reaches a record $37 trillion, the Treasury Department reports
(AP) The U.S. government’s gross national debt has surpassed $37 trillion, a record number that highlights the accelerating debt on America’s balance sheet and increased cost pressures on taxpayers. The $37 trillion update is found in the latest Treasury Department report issued Tuesday which logs the nation’s daily finances.
Go to discussionUS deficit grows to $291 billion in July despite import tax revenue surge
(Reuters) The U.S. government's budget deficit grew nearly 20% in July to $291 billion despite a nearly $21 billion jump in customs duty collections from President Donald Trump's tariffs, with outlays growing faster than receipts, the Treasury Department said on Tuesday. The deficit for July was up 19%, or $47 billion, from July 2024. Receipts for the month grew 2%, or $8 billion, to $338 billion, while outlays jumped 10%, or $56 billion, to $630 billion, a record high for the month.
Go to discussionTrump's nominee to oversee jobs, inflation data faces shower of criticism
(AP) The director of the agency that produces the nation’s jobs and inflation data is typically a mild-mannered technocrat, often with extensive experience in statistical agencies, with little public profile. But like so much in President Donald Trump’s second administration, this time is different. Trump has selected E.J. Antoni, chief economist at the conservative Heritage Foundation, to be the next commissioner at the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. Antoni’s nomination was quickly met with a cascade of criticism from other economists, from across the political spectrum.
Go to discussionBefore A Steel Plant Exploded, Trump's EPA Hid Risks From The Public
(Lever News) The Trump administration, at the behest of the powerful chemical lobby, has been working to gut oversight of so-called Risk Management Program facilities, chemical plants that are considered at the highest risk of deadly explosions. In April, two months after an explicit request from industry, Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) scrubbed a tracking tool listing such facilities from its website. Clairton Coke Works, the U.S. Steel plant near Pittsburgh that erupted in black smoke on Monday, is one such facility.
Go to discussionRevealed: Trump planning new military unit to rapidly crush civil unrest
(The Hill) The Trump administration is looking at plans to set up a 600-person National Guard “quick reaction force” to quickly deploy to U.S. cities to quell protests or other unrest, The Washington Post reported Tuesday. Internal Pentagon documents reviewed by the Post lay out the parameters for a “Domestic Civil Disturbance Quick Reaction Force,” calling for hundreds of guard members outfitted with weapons and riot gear to be on constant standby and deployable in as little as one hour.
Go to discussionChris Murphy goes all in on funding bill boycott as Dems seek bipartisanship
(Politico) Chris Murphy has been warning for months that voters want Democrats to fight. This summer, the Connecticut senator is picking a battle that puts him at odds with his Democratic colleagues. Murphy has made surprising moves over the last month to protest bipartisan government funding talks as a member of the Appropriations Committee, demonstrating his vision of what opposition to President Donald Trump should look like and further stoking speculation about his own presidential ambitions.
Go to discussionSherrod Brown to run for Senate
(Politico) Sherrod Brown has decided to run for Senate in Ohio in 2026, according to two people familiar with his thinking, making a play for his old job just months after he was beaten by Republican Bernie Moreno last November. The Democrat will face off against Sen. Jon Husted, whom Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine appointed to the Senate after JD Vance left his seat to become vice president.
Go to discussionDC mayor says Trump takeover shows why US capital should be 51st state
(USA Today) Washington, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser is advocating for the city to become the 51st state after President Donald Trump announced the federal government would take control of the local Metropolitan Police Department. Bowser, who has been the city’s mayor since 2015, made the remarks during an appearance on Charlamagne Tha God’s radio show “The Breakfast Club” on Tuesday, Aug. 12.
Go to discussion'Where are the limits?' Fed-up judge cuts off Trump DOJ from the bench
(Raw Story) U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer, presiding over a case in San Francisco regarding President Donald Trump’s deployment of military forces to Los Angeles in June, pressed the Department of Justice for answers during a Tuesday hearing. “Where are the limits? Where are the limits?” the judge repeatedly asked, cutting off the DOJ, according to reporting by journalist Adam Klasfeld.
Go to discussionTrump official tells census workers Congress has final say over the count, not Trump
(NPR) Less than a week after President Trump said he has ordered a "new" census, the cabinet official who oversees the Census Bureau acknowledged Tuesday that Congress, not the president, has final say over the national head count that's used to reshape election maps and guide federal funding, NPR has exclusively learned.
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