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Podcast: How the budget mess in Congress hurts all of us

Podcast: How the budget mess in Congress hurts all of us

This year the federal government is expected to collect more than $3.5 trillion in taxes— a vast amount of money by any measure. One of the key functions of Congress is to pass a budget. But often that seems close to impossible.


Lack of agreement over federal spending regularly threatens to bring about government shutdowns that have a negative impact on millions of Americans. Yet few of us can even begin to understand the byzantine budget process.
Both of our guests in this episode have worked with other policy experts to make the budget process function better, with greater efficiency and transparency.



Alison Acosta Winters is a fiscal conservative and was most recently a senior policy fellow at Americans for Prosperity. Emily Holubowich is vice president for federal advocacy at the American Heart Association, and often supports more government spending.


Brought together by Convergence Center for Policy Resolution, Alison, Emily and other stakeholders from diverse backgrounds spent months working together to come up with several major proposals for overhauling the budget process.

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America, you're better than this
white and brown concrete building

America, you're better than this

America is crying out for new leadership. We are stuck in a political swamp of hate and being hated. We can’t continue like this – we must make rational decisions to complex problems, and many of them need to be made quickly. It is simply not possible within the system that Congress has created. We need fresh ideas, fresh minds, and a fresh American spirit.

These are dangerous times for American self-government. We’ve heard that warning before—but the threat is here, right now, within the hearts and minds of our elected leaders. The institutions meant to represent us have become paralyzed or simply reneged on their duties. Partisanship has hardened into identity. Politics has turned into tribal combat instead of public service.

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Can socialism ever be more than just a fad in America?

Politicians, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), right, New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, second from right,, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, middle, and New York State Attorney General Letitia James, second from left, march during the NYC Labor Day Parade on Sept. 6, 2025, in New York City.

(Heather Khalifa/Getty Images/TNS)

Can socialism ever be more than just a fad in America?

Here we go again.

Socialism is making a comeback, according to friend and foe alike. A new NBC poll now suggests that a majority of registered voters don’t like capitalism.

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Fulcrum Roundtable: Militarizing U.S. Cities
The Washington Monument is visible as armed members of the National Guard patrol the National Mall on August 27, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Getty Images, Andrew Harnik

Fulcrum Roundtable: Militarizing U.S. Cities

Welcome to the Fulcrum Roundtable.

The program offers insights and discussions about some of the most talked-about topics from the previous month, featuring Fulcrum’s collaborators.

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Congress Bill Spotlight: Remove the Stain Act

A deep look at the fight over rescinding Medals of Honor from U.S. soldiers at Wounded Knee, the political clash surrounding the Remove the Stain Act, and what’s at stake for historical justice.

Getty Images, Stocktrek Images

Congress Bill Spotlight: Remove the Stain Act

Should the U.S. soldiers at 1890’s Wounded Knee keep the Medal of Honor?

Context: history

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