For years, congress has kicked the proverbial can of Social Security’s financial deficit down the road to be dealt with at a later date. In 2026, we may be looking at the end of that road. This year’s Social Security Trustees’ Report warns that the retirement fund is only 6 years from absolute insolvency, when the program will no longer have the funds to continue paying benefits.
In July of 2025, President Trump signed the “One Big Beautiful Bill” (OBBBA) into law, setting into motion one of the most sweeping transformations to the American welfare state in modern history. At the center of this legislative overhaul is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). As the nation’s preeminent anti-poverty initiative since 1964, SNAP provides an estimated 42 million Americans with vital funds for food.
Indiana can be considered a relatively safe Republican stronghold. Both the senators from the state are Republicans, and only 2 of the 9 representatives are Democrats. This year, neither Senator Todd Young nor Senator Jim Banks are up for election, but the house is a different story. All nine seats are up for grabs in theory, although most seats are drawn in a way that all but ensures the current party makeup from changing. That didn’t stop President Donald Trump from trying, however, as late last year he urged the state of Indiana to redraw its congressional districts to unseat incumbent Democrats Frank Mrvan of the 1st district and André Carson of the 7th district. Despite a Republican-supermajority in the Senate, a Trump vow to primary Republican holdouts, and anonymous bomb threats, the measure failed and the maps remained unchanged.
Brief #149 – Foreign Policy Brief
by: Abran C
Recent elections across several countries have brought significant political shifts. In France, no party gained a majority, causing political uncertainty. The UK’s Labour Party won decisively, contrasting with Europe’s right-wing trends. In Iran, reformist Masoud Pezeshkian won amid low voter turnout. India saw Modi’s party lose seats but retain power through coalitions. Mexico elected Claudia Sheinbaum as its first female president, maintaining her party’s control of Congress amidst security challenges.
Brief #145 – Foreign Policy
By Yelena Korshunov
I spent my childhood years in Odessa, a sunny seaport city in south Ukraine, on the Black Sea shore. People of more than 133 nations and nationalities have been residing in the Odessa region for hundreds of years. This multicultural melting pot induced tolerance to each other’s traditions, cultures, and languages. That is what was engraved in my childhood memory.
Brief #29 – Social Justice
By Erika Shannon
The House Select Committee on the January 6 riot has been making a lot of headway into their investigation. They have been issuing subpoenas, looking over documents and tips, questioning people, and trying to work around those who are unwilling to help with their investigation. The Committee is doing their best to piece together the day’s events in the hopes that situations like this can be avoided in the future.
Brief #7—Congressional Updates
By William Bourque
We continue our review of Michigan’s congressional races by moving onto District 6, where once again a republican is the incumbent. The district’s most notable area is the city of Kalamazoo, but also includes rural areas in the southwest corner of the state
With each week seeming to bring ever more drama to the White House and Russia investigations, recent news has brought no respite.
On July 14, 2017, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) published a little-seen notice in the Federal Register that showed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had requested permission to destroy controversial detention records. The records that were targeted for destruction were of ICE detainee…