iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Canada's revenue as a share of the economy is about 9 percentage points higher than the U.S. ~5 percentage points of the discrepancy is higher individual and corporate income taxes and ~3 percentage points is higher taxes on goods and services (i.e. VATs and sales taxes).

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

In fact, the House-passed version of One Big Beautiful Bill's makes pretty clear that the Rural Opportunity Zones are intended to fuel data center investment in rural areas. www.congress.gov/119/bills/hr...

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Here is the House Ways and Means Committee--Congress's tax writing committee--touting One Big Beautiful Bill's special expansion of Opportunity Zones for rural areas as a way to expand investment in "hyperscale data centers". waysandmeans.house.gov/2025/08/27/b...

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

It’s good news that the Senate included a delay of the proposed OMB grants rule in its bipartisan temporary funding bill — bipartisan recognition of the rule’s harm to communities, small businesses, state and local governments, tribes and taxpayers. 🧵 www.cbpp.org/research/fed...

cbpp.org

The Trump Administration Seeks to End Nonpartisan Grantmaking

A proposed rule would radically transform how grant award decisions are made, allowing them to be based on purely political calculations — including who receives funds, what is required of grantees, a...

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

Great piece from Governing for Impact's Reed Shaw about the Trump Admin's attempt to weaponize terrorism-prevention grants to illegally coerce states on their elections agenda. www.justsecurity.org/148665/trump...

justsecurity.org

No, Trump Can’t Withhold Anti-Terrorism Funds to Pressure States to Change Their Election Rules

The attempt to condition states' counterterrorism funding on changes to election rules is unlawful and likely to be challenged in court.

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

People across the U.S. consistently say they want Washington to focus on affordability, especially the cost of food. Mitigating last year’s cuts to SNAP and staunching the number of families and children losing SNAP would be a good place to start.

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

The House bud res could direct the Ag Cmte to help both farmers & families. At a minimum, they need to slow down the hasty implementation of the massive shift in SNAP costs to states, which is resulting in kids losing SNAP. x.com/Katie_Bergh/...

x.com

Katie Bergh (@Katie_Bergh) on X

NEW: A year after H.R. 1 enacted the deepest SNAP cuts in history, the number of children receiving SNAP nationwide has likely dropped by more than 1.5 million, based on our analysis of available data...

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

But even if no additional cuts are included, “no new cuts” isn’t the right yardstick when more than 1.5M children, and 4M+ ppl overall, have already lost SNAP because of the cuts enacted last year.

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

These members want to run the same play as last year’s harmful reconciliation law, which enacted deep cuts that are already taking away health care & SNAP from millions of people (in that case to offset some of their mammoth tax cuts).

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

It’s helpful that House leadership and the Trump WH apparently don’t want FURTHER cuts to SNAP to pay for the $12B in aid to farmers. But some House Rs are already demanding cuts or offsets to the farmer relief in exchange for their vote. x.com/meredithllee...

x.com

Meredith Lee Hill (@meredithllee) on X

There are no spending offsets so far in House GOP leaders' plans for a $95 billion Iran war and ag package. Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio) warned GOP leaders yesterday: “I’m positive there will be pa...

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

House Rs believe that farmers struggling w/ high costs due to tariffs & oil prices is an emergency that needs to be addressed, but are ignoring another crisis: kids going hungry as their families have SNAP benefits taken away. x.com/JakeSherman/...

x.com

Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) on X

RECONCILIATION instructions are as follows: House Admin: $10B -- this is for SAVE America Act or whatever they can make work in SAVE HASC $60B and Intel $13B - that's another $73B for Iran war and o...

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

At least 1.5M fewer kids are receiving SNAP after unprecedented cuts enacted last year. Now, House Rs are starting a budget process that risks more cuts & ignores the urgent need to help low-income families who are losing SNAP & can't afford groceries. www.cbpp.org/research/foo...

cbpp.org

SNAP Tracker: People Are Losing Food Assistance as the Republican Megabill Is Implemented

SNAP participation nationwide fell by more than 4 million people (nearly 10 percent) between the law’s July 2025 enactment and March 2026, based on the latest month of data.

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Lots of rumors swirling on a Reconciliation 3.0, but it appears House Republicans are once again considering fast-track legislation that could take away health care, nutrition assistance, or other help from low-income people. 🧵

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

The main purpose of this budget resolution is to set up a partisan process to fund ICE/CBP w/o reforms. But it also includes non-binding fiscal targets illustrating that Senate GOP has no plan to improve fiscal trajectory other than big unspecified cuts to public services.🧵

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

Me discussing how enormous, broad-based middle-class tax cuts threaten the progressive economic agenda with @zeeshanaleem.bsky.social. Reversing Trump’s worst policies is important and expensive—a question is whether those tax cuts will make it harder to offset reversing Trump’s policies.

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

Point #1: The deductions for overtime and tips make up a huge percentage of the Trump Administration's talking points on behalf of One Big Beautiful Bill. But they are much smaller than the tax cuts for those making over $500k or the cuts to Medicaid/SNAP.

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

New paper from me on the overhyped and misguided deductions for tips and overtime in the flawed GOP megabill. www.cbpp.org/research/fed...

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Peggy Bailey @peggybaileydc.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

It is amazing! The Admin can propose anything it wants & this hateful, harmful budget is what they throw down. Evicting formally homeless people from their homes, cutting food asst for kids & older adults, reducing utility payment asst, narrowing energy options...etc...etc..

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

Last week, I outlined questions I would be looking to have answered when the President’s budget is released. Now that we have the full proposal, we can now answer them. Hint: It fails to offer affordability solutions to make life more affordable while raising the risk of hasty, harmful cuts. 🧵

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

Trump's budget's revenue projections not only appear to ignore the Supreme Court ruling invalidating many of the tariffs--they exceed CBO's tariff projections made *before the SCOTUS decision.* Not just implausible but also a sign they may not back off on tariffs anytime soon.

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

Stay tuned – more analysis coming.

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

Bottom line: The nation faces enormous opportunities and challenges. Too many people struggle to afford the basics, inequality is glaringly large, AI holds promise and the possibility of dislocation, we need a clean energy transition to address demand and costs,…

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

…and massive tax cuts over the last two decades have robbed us of the resources needed to tackle these problems with creativity and boldness. This budget provides no roadmap for seizing opportunities and addressing challenges. It is fundamentally unserious.

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

What else is missing? The budget lays out no serious plan to address our fiscal challenges, which last year's megabill (HR 1) made worse to the tune of $3.4 trillion over a decade.

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

What are the priorities identified? Massive defense funding increase; deployment of huge HR 1 immigration dragnet $$; cuts in a range of areas that matter to families & a view that we should cede control of the energy transition innovation runway to our int’l competitors.

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

First, the budget lacks any commitment let alone policy ideas to address families’ struggles to afford housing, health care, food, utilities, and child care. Stunning given where the public is focused.

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Sharon Parrott @sharonparrott.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

A few initial thoughts on the President’s FY27 budget. Big picture: Today’s budget isn’t a serious plan to address real issues facing families and the nation and isn’t worthy of the American people.

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Center on Budget and Policy Priorities @centeronbudget.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

The Trump Administration’s upcoming budget proposal should be designed to help people and communities — not harm them by making further cuts to health care, food assistance, and other basic needs programs. More from @brendanvduke.bsky.social: www.cbpp.org/research/fed...

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

Can’t make it up. www.axios.com/2026/03/30/g...

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

We should do what we did in SNAP and Medicaid on the other 78 means-tested welfare programs at a cost of $1.5T. If we did that, we could offset anything that we want to do...especially including supporting our troops in a time of conflict. -House Budget Chair Jodie Arrington on Squawk Box

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

The Chair of the House Budget Committee is literally saying they're going to pay for a war by cutting programs for people with low incomes.

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

The Chair of the House Budget Committee "told us yesterday he wants defense money aded to a reconciliation bill AND PAID FOR WITH SPENDING CUTS ACROSS STATE AND SOCIAL PROGRAMS." The "cost-sharing reductions" are a way to make health care more expensive (explained in next post)

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 26/03/2026

House Republicans are seriously considering cutting Americans' health care to pay for a war in the Middle East that is causing Americans to pay more for gas.

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

A Trump budget is expected in the next few weeks. We don’t know yet what and how much information will provide—if it’ll be “skinny” like last year or have more info—but here are five questions we’ll be seeking to answer when they post it:

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Corey Husak @chusak.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

Econ policymakers should study this poll: what do voters actually want them to focus on? Overwhelmingly, young voters say: housing Older voters say: health care all ages say: food and other necessities retirement/transp/education are in there but nothing else really matters

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

This point from a NYT-Sienna poll--widely considered the gold standard of published public opinion--on how voters prioritize taxes compared to health, food etc. has implications for elected officials considering spending trillions on middle-class tax cuts vs. other priorities like Medicaid and SNAP.

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Congressman Don Beyer @beyer.house.gov · 19/03/2026

Donald Trump and Republicans enacted the largest cuts in history to Medicaid and SNAP because the nation simply “couldn’t afford” them. Now, the Trump Administration is seeking $200 billion to pursue their illegal, poorly planned war of choice against Iran. Absolutely not.

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

This costs more than the ten-year savings from cutting SNAP benefits in Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill that will make it harder for low-income people to buy groceries

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Danny Blinderman @dannyblinderman.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

The dark genius of no tax on tips is that it spurs resentment--if those people don't have to pay taxes, why should I?

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

The Van Hollen standard deduction proposal costs $1.6 trillion or 20x as much as No Tax on Tips. The Booker standard deduction increase costs $5.5 trillion or about 70x as much as No Tax on Tips.

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 13/03/2026

My understanding is that much of the motivation for sweeping middle-class tax cuts comes from the perceived political success of No Tax on Tips. No Tax on Tips is flawed policy, but the one good thing I'll say about it is that it's cheap ($80B if made permanent).

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Brendan Duke @brendanvduke.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

New data from @budgetlab.bsky.social peg this tax cut as costing $1 trillion, almost exclusively benefiting the top 10% and overwhelmingly benefiting the top 1%. All without Congress. budgetlab.yale.edu/research/ind...

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Bobby Kogan @bbkogan.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

Great thread from Chuck

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chuckcbpp.bsky.social @chuckcbpp.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

The proposal’s goal is a good one: how do policymakers make it easier for families to pay the rent, put food on the table, afford child care, & see a doctor? A vigorous debate that goes beyond tax cuts will help us find workable solutions.

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