For many years, we have been warned that our nation is on an imprudent & unsustainable fiscal path. During the past three years, the Comptroller General has traveled to 25 states as part of the Fiscal Wake-Up Tour. Members of this diverse group of policy experts agree that finding solutions to the nation¿s long-term fiscal challenge will require bipartisan cooperation, a willingness to discuss all options, & the courage to make tough choices. In this testimony, the Comptroller General discusses the long-term fiscal outlook, our nation¿s huge health care challenge, & the shrinking window of opportunity for action. Illustrations.

"The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic marks the most significant, singular global disruption since World War II, with health, economic, political, and security implications that will ripple for years to come." -Global Trends 2040 (2021) Global Trends 2040-A More Contested World (2021), released by the US National Intelligence Council, is the latest report in its series of reports starting in 1997 about megatrends and the world's future. This report, strongly influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, paints a bleak picture of the future and describes a contested, fragmented and turbulent world. It specifically discusses the four main trends that will shape tomorrow's world: - Demographics-by 2040, 1.4 billion people will be added mostly in Africa and South Asia. - Economics-increased government debt and concentrated economic power will escalate problems for the poor and middleclass. - Climate-a hotter world will increase water, food, and health insecurity. - Technology-the emergence of new technologies could both solve and cause problems for human life. Students of trends, policymakers, entrepreneurs, academics, journalists and anyone eager for a glimpse into the next decades, will find this report, with colored graphs, essential reading.

Long-Term Fiscal Outlook: Action Is Needed to Avoid the Possibility of a Serious Economic Disruption in the Future

New Directions in American Politics introduces students not just to how the American political system works but also to how political science works. La Raja brings together top scholars to write original essays across the standard curriculum of American government and politics, capturing emerging research in the discipline in a way that is accessible for undergraduates. Each chapter combines substantive knowledge with the kind of skill-building and analytical inquiry that is being touted in higher education everywhere. Contributors to New Directions highlight why the questions they seek to answer are critical for understanding American politics, and situate them in the broader context of controversies in research. The teaching of American politics follows a well-worn path. Textbooks for introductory courses hew to a traditional set of chapters that describe the Founding, American institutions, the ways citizens participate in politics, and sometimes public policy. The material rarely engages students in the kind of questions that animate scholarship on politics. One hurdle for instructors is finding material that reflects quality scholarship—and thus teaches students about why, not just what—and yet is accessible for undergraduates. Articles in scholarly journals are typically unsuited for undergraduate courses, particularly introductory courses. What is needed is a book that conveys exciting trends in scholarship across vital topics in American politics and illustrates analytical thinking. New Directions in American Politics is that book and will be an ideal companion to standard textbooks that focus mostly on nuts and bolts of politics. The book features: Contributions from a top-notch cast of active scholars and a highly regarded editor A focus on analytical thinking that addresses questions of causality Full coverage of the American politics curriculum Short interviews with each contributor on a companion website to help the research come alive and prompt critical thinking questions for students Work that draws on the highest quality research in political science but is written specifically for first year undergraduate students. There is simply no book like this available to the growing number of faculty who want their introductory American politics course to be a reflection of the political science discipline and not just the nuts and bolt facts of the American political system.

In 2008, Barack Obama lobotomized a generation. For an entire year, otherwise clear-thinking members of the most affluent, over-educated, information-drenched generation in American history fell prey to the most expensive, hi-tech, laser-focused marketing assault in presidential campaign history. Twitter messages were machine-gunned to cell phones at mach speed. Facebook and MySpace groups spread across the Internet like digital fire. YouTube videos featuring celebrities ricocheted across the globe and into college students’ in-boxes with devastating regularity. All the while, the mega-money-raising engine whirred like a slot machine stuck on jackpot. The result: an unthinking mass of young voters marched forward to elect the most radical and untested president in U.S. history. Recognized as one of the country’s top young conservative activists by Human Events, Jason Mattera created an internet sensation with ambush video interviews that exposed clueless young liberals and cunning Democratic officials. Now he reveals the jaw-dropping lengths Barack Obama and his allies in Hollywood, Washington, and Academia went to in order to transform a legion of iPod-listening, MTV-watching followers into a winning coalition that threatens to become a long-lasting political realignment. Obama Zombies uncovers the true, behind-the-scenes story of the methods and tactics the Obama campaign unleashed on youth culture. Through personal interviews and meticulous original research, Mattera explains why conservatism’s future rests upon jolting the young masses from their slumber, yanking out their earphones, and sparking a countercultural conservative battle against the rise of the ignorant Left. The lesson from 2008 is crystal clear: When true conservatives run away, Obama zombies come out to play.

The nation has reached a critical juncture with its current surface transport. (CST) policies and programs. Demand has outpaced the capacity of the system, resulting in increased congestion. In addition, without significant changes in funding levels or planned spending, the Highway Trust Fund -- the major source of fed. highway and transit funding -- is projected to incur significant deficits in the years ahead. This testimony discusses: (1) recent findings on the structure and performance of the CST program; (2) a framework to assess proposals for restructuring of the CST program; (3) potential options to fund invest. in the CST system; and (4) recent findings on the benefits, costs, and trade-offs of using public-private partnerships to help fund transport. invest. Ill.

America¿s physical infrastructure -- incl. aviation, highway, transit, rail, water, and dam infrastructure -- is critical to the nation¿s economy and affects the daily life of virtually all Americans, but is under strain. Estimates to repair, replace, or upgrade aging infrastructure as well as expand capacity to meet increased demand top hundreds of billions of dollars, at a time when the fed. government¿s fiscal outlook is worse than many may understand. This testimony discusses: (1) challenges associated with the nation¿s surface transportation, aviation, water, and dam infrastructure, and the principles to help guide efforts to address these challenges; and (2) existing and proposed options to fund investments in the nation¿s infrastructure. Illustrations.