American Action Forum

04/04/2025

While the goal of HHS staff layoffs may be to better everyone’s health and create efficiencies at federal agencies, this recent spate of action is most likely to do the opposite by complicating the development of essential and new drugs.

News this week regarding staff changes at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) – particularly those within the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health – has rattled the health care community. Thousands...

04/04/2025

The overall cost of “Liberation Day” and all other newly implemented tariffs will be between $366.5–391.6B on an annual basis. These tariffs are not, in fact, “reciprocal,” as they in no way match the weighted average tariffs of other countries.

Reciprocal Tariffs in Name Only What’s Happening: On April 2, which the administration has dubbed “Liberation Day,” President Trump announced new tariff rates on all U.S. trade partners alongside 25-percent tariffs on all automobile imports. These “reciprocal” tariffs are far larger and wi...

04/04/2025

The better-than-expected jobs report comes just two days after President Trump announced his administration’s new tariff regime. The market response to this new policy suggests a downshift in economic growth and potentially higher prices.

Job growth was much stronger than expected in March as employers added 228,000 new hires to their payrolls. The three-month average dipped to 152,000 from 184,000 in the prior month. Combined revisions to January and February showed 48,000 fewer jobs were created than previously estimated. The unemp...

04/03/2025

AAF President Douglas Holtz-Eakin discusses President Trump's tariffs and the state of the economy on CNN.

04/03/2025

PODCAST:AAF President Douglas Holtz-Eakin and Trade Policy Analyst Jacob Jensen join us to discuss tariffs, inflation, and reconciliation.

AAF President Douglas Holtz-Eakin and Trade Policy Analyst Jacob Jensen join us to discuss tariffs, inflation, and reconciliation.

04/03/2025

The federal government is downsizing its employment, although it turns out that DOGE cannot fire a Department of Agriculture employee. The actual employer has to lay off its workers. So the courts have effectively unwound the chaotic, random DOGE cuts.

This is a simple one. The federal government is downsizing its employment. This is not the DOGE-driven cuts. It turns out that DOGE, via the Office of Personnel Management, cannot fire a Department of Agriculture employee. The Department of Agriculture, the actual employer, has to lay off its worker...

04/02/2025

There once was a man from Mar-a-Lago
Who hated the idea of inbound cargo
So he declared himself sheriff
And jacked up tariffs
Slowing us to recessionary tempo.

There once was a man from Mar-a-Lago Who hated the idea of inbound cargo So he declared himself sheriff And jacked up tariffs Slowing us to recessionary tempo.

04/01/2025

President Trump has indicated that he would impose on imported pharmaceuticals to induce manufacturers to build production facilities in the US. In order for the policy to be successful, drug prices will have to be higher. Good plan.

As the U.S. economy speeds toward “Liberation Day” – and the freedom of being unshackled from real wage growth, low unemployment, and stable inflation – it is worth remembering that there is a lot more potentially on the table than simply reciprocal tariffs. For example, President Trump has ...

03/31/2025

The Trump’s “reciprocal tariffs” are set to go into effect April 2. Assuming the administration utilizes a country-by-country approach, these tariffs will cost U.S. consumers and businesses between $26.3–34.5 billion in the first year.

Executive Summary On April 2, the Trump Administration’s “reciprocal tariffs” – import duties that are designed to match the tariff and non-tariff barriers of other countries – are set to go into effect. As of March 31, it is unclear how the administration will calculate reciprocal tariffs...

03/31/2025

President Trump levied 25-percent tariffs on imported autos and auto parts, costing roughly $60 billion per year. That will have a noticeable impact on car prices and a modest slowdown in the pace of growth. Expect even more tariffs on "Liberation Day."

This past week, President Trump levied 25-percent tariffs on autos and auto parts imported into the United States. This coming Wednesday – which he has dubbed “Liberation Day” – he will announce his decisions on “reciprocal tariffs” to be levied on America’s trading partners. The auto ...

03/30/2025

Disparities in occupational licensing call the methodology of state licensing boards into question: Are they designed to protect consumers and ensure quality, or are they unnecessary barriers to entry designed to protect incumbents?

Executive Summary On February 26, 2025, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Andrew Ferguson issued a directive forming a joint labor task force consisting of the directors of the Bureaus of Competition, Consumer Protection, and Economics, and the Office of Policy Planning. Chairman Ferguson dire...

03/29/2025

As with many of the president’s announcements, it is unclear whether the threat to tariff importers of Venezuelan oil will be carried out or if it is simply another bargaining chip. Regardless, many countries purchasing oil from Venezuela will likely be able to find alternatives.

Explore the impact of automobile tariffs and Venezuelan oil turmoil on the U.S. economy in this analysis from the American Action Forum.

03/28/2025

Congress will likely consider a variety of changes to mandatory spending programs, including and , to address their long-term fiscal challenges. This AAF insight analyzes these proposals.

Executive Summary In its fiscal year 2025 budget, Congress intends to include reconciliation instructions that direct committees to find spending reductions; and while the two chambers have not agreed to a budget, the House-passed budget calls for $2 trillion in net spending reductions. Whatever the...

03/28/2025

AAF President Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director of Technology and Innovation Policy Jeffrey Westling, and Director of Health Care Policy Michael Baker join us to discuss Washington’s whirlwind weeks, spectrum developments, and single-payer system fact checks.

03/28/2025

The FTC assigned a task force to investigate harms to workers from occupational licensing. This is a good step. The concern over occupational licensing is neither new nor partisan.

As detailed by Fred Ashton and Savanna Scott, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Andrew Ferguson has formed an FTC task force to investigate harms to workers from occupational licensing. He is especially interested in situations where “employers or professional associations advance or promote...

03/27/2025

CBO’s latest projections show that a permanent, unpaid-for TCJA extension would significantly worsen the long-term budget outlook. As policymakers work to address the TCJA’s looming expiration, they should make an honest effort to offset any extensions.

The Congressional Budget Office recently projected the long-term fiscal impact a permanent Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. CBO finds that debt, deficits, and interest costs would be higher with a permanent TCJA than currently projected under current law.

03/27/2025

AAF President Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director of Technology and Innovation Policy Jeffrey Westling, and Director of Health Care Policy Michael Baker join us to discuss Washington’s whirlwind weeks, spectrum developments, and single-payer system fact checks.

https://www.americanactionforum.org/multimedia/the-aaf-exchange-ep-166-a-washington-whirlwind-spectrum-and-single-payer-systems/

03/27/2025

The Congressional Review Act provides a procedure to remove rules that were finalized in the last 60 legislative days of the previous Congress. In this case, Republican majorities are busy taking down Biden Administration rules to little fanfare.

Like most Americans, I was glued to C-SPAN yesterday for the House debate carrying the chyron: “REPEAL COMMERCIAL REFIGERATION EFFICIENCY RULE.” Ok, maybe not most Americans, but certainly an important demographic. Ok, maybe not even that. But I was struck as I watched by the relative lack of at...