Money, Wealth & Power—A Daily Look at the Financial World
President Donald Trump’s $10 billion legal clash with the Internal Revenue Service has already turned a technical tax dispute into a political brawl. Now a Democratic lawmaker is escalating the fight with a provocative proposal to strip Trump of any personal windfall if he prevails, effectively daring Congress to decide whether a sitting president can…
Illinois Democrats in the Senate are no longer soft-pedaling their revenue agenda. When one member said bluntly that “we in Illinois need to tax,” it crystallized a broader strategy: lean into new levies on wealth, corporations, and targeted sectors rather than retreat in the face of predictable backlash. The fight now is over who pays,…
California’s latest fight over how to pay for roads has erupted into a full‑blown backlash, with drivers accusing Democrats of plotting a per‑mile tax that would drain their wallets. The anger is real, even as state officials insist there is no new mileage fee on the books and that the current push is limited to…
Tax filing season has become open season for criminals who see confusion, tight budgets, and digital habits as an opportunity to steal refunds and identities. The Internal Revenue Service is warning that scams are surging in sophistication and volume, from fake messages about “held” refunds to abusive schemes that promise huge payouts. I see the…
Millions of households entered this filing season steeling themselves for thinner Internal Revenue Service checks, even as Washington touts a wave of new tax breaks. The fear is simple: withholdings have not kept up with shifting rules, so the surprise at the end of the process could be a smaller cushion than families are counting…
Property tax bills are rising fast enough to push some longtime homeowners out of their neighborhoods, and state politicians have noticed. A handful of states have already moved to cut or cap those bills, while others are racing to copy them with proposals that range from targeted relief to abolishing the tax entirely. I see…
California’s fight over how to pay for its roads has turned into a proxy war over trust in government. Democrats are backing a shift from gas taxes to a per‑mile charge, arguing that electric vehicles and fuel efficiency are blowing a hole in the state’s transportation budget. California Republicans, in response, say the plan treats…
Tax season is colliding with a rare legal moment that could put unusually large checks in some Americans’ mailboxes. Between new tax law provisions, high stakes tariff litigation and a headline grabbing lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service, the outcome of several court fights will help decide who gets paid back and how much. At…
Florida’s push to unwind local property taxes has moved from slogan to a detailed, high stakes experiment in rewriting how the state pays for schools, police, and basic services. Governor Ron DeSantis is now tying that effort more tightly to his broader budget and constitutional agenda, sharpening the focus on who actually benefits and who…
Property taxes are suddenly at the center of some of the boldest tax experiments in decades, from statehouse plans to wipe out bills for homeowners to federal efforts that reshape how much local tax you can write off. Together, these moves could shift thousands of dollars a year for households that own even a modest…