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Video: Modernizing Congress: The business case to upgrade government

Antiquated operations and processes, out-of-date technology, and 20th-century personnel and management practices make it difficult for members of Congress to provide business and other constituents with the level of service they deserve — including businesses, large and small.

In 2018, six Democrats and six Republicans formed the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress with the goal of making the institution more effective and efficient. At a time when Congress is increasingly polarized, the committee has been an exciting model of bipartisan progress.


The committee’s work drew to a close at the end of 2022 and resulted in over 200 recommendations on improving the adoption of technology and changing long-standing rules and norms. So far, 132 of the committee’s recommendations have been fully or partially implemented — but there is still more to do.

In the 118th Congress, BFA is mobilizing the business community to advocate for adopting additional recommendations to revitalize Congress to make it work better for every American.

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Making America’s Children Healthy Requires Addressing Deep-Rooted Health Disparities

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Making America’s Children Healthy Requires Addressing Deep-Rooted Health Disparities

In early September, the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission released a 19-page strategy to improve children’s health and reverse the epidemic of chronic diseases. The document, a follow-up to MAHA’s first report in May, paints a dire picture of American children’s health: poor diets, toxic chemical exposures, chronic stress, and overmedicalization are some of the key drivers now affecting millions of young people.

Few would dispute that children should spend less time online, exercise more, and eat fewer ultra-processed foods. But child experts say that the strategy reduces a systemic crisis to personal action and fails to confront the structural inequities that shape which children can realistically adopt healthier behaviors. After all, in 2024, the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine updated Unequal Treatment, a report that clearly highlights the major drivers of health disparities.

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Affordability Crisis and AI: Kelso’s Universal Capitalism

Rising costs, AI disruption, and inequality revive interest in Louis Kelso’s “universal capitalism” as a market-based answer to the affordability crisis.

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Affordability Crisis and AI: Kelso’s Universal Capitalism

“Affordability” over the cost of living has been in the news a lot lately. It’s popping up in political campaigns, from the governor’s races in New Jersey and Virginia to the mayor’s races in New York City and Seattle. President Donald Trump calls the term a “hoax” and a “con job” by Democrats, and it’s true that the inflation rate hasn’t increased much since Trump began his second term in January.

But a number of reports show Americans are struggling with high costs for essentials like food, housing, and utilities, leaving many families feeling financially pinched. Total consumer spending over the Black Friday-Thanksgiving weekend buying binge actually increased this year, but a Salesforce study found that’s because prices were about 7% higher than last year’s blitz. Consumers actually bought 2% fewer items at checkout.

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Accountability Abandoned: A Betrayal of Promises Made
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Accountability Abandoned: A Betrayal of Promises Made

Eleven months ago, Donald Trump promised Americans that he would “immediately bring prices down” on his first day in office. Instead, the Big Beautiful Bill delivered tax cuts for the wealthy, cuts to food benefits, limits on Medicare coverage, restrictions on child care, and reduced student aid — all documented in comprehensive analyses of the law. Congress’s vote was not just partisan — it was a betrayal of promises made to the people.

Not only did Congress’s votes betray nurses, but the harm extended to teachers, caregivers, seniors, working parents, and families struggling to make ends meet. In casting those votes, lawmakers showed a lack of courage to hold themselves accountable to the people. This was not leadership; it was betrayal — the ultimate abandonment of the people they swore to serve.

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