Fellow Conservative,

On Thursday, tens of millions of Americans watched as former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden squared off on the debate stage. This election cycle is the first time since 1956 that the American people have been faced with a presidential rematch—and only the second time in U.S. history that two presidents have run against each other. Grover Cleveland was both the 22nd and 24th U.S. President after losing to Benjamin Harrison, then returning with a successful challenge to retake the White House.

The stakes for this debate were especially high for Biden, whose poll numbers are underwater. For weeks, pundits have argued the Biden campaign viewed this historically-early debate as the president’s opportunity to reverse his sinking approval rating. Instead, Biden’s performance was widely criticized by Americans on both sides of the aisle. A staggering 67% of debate watchers thought Trump was the winner, leaving only 33% for Biden.

This was a huge week in politics with a lot on the line for our country’s future. Here’s a recap of some of the most important moments:

A Tale of Two Americans

Border

The two sparred over their records on border security, with President Biden even falsely claiming that illegal border crossings have decreased under his administration. Like President Trump, we aren't exactly sure what he meant, so we’ll just let the numbers do the talking: Every single month Biden has been in office, the number of illegal crossings has been significantly higher (often double) than at any point during the Trump administration.

Inflation
Since January of 2021 prices of the everyday goods and services American families need have skyrocketed:

• Eggs - 40.3%
• Bread - 39.1%
• Frozen Vegetables - 28.1%
• Chicken - 26.5%
• Gasoline - 40.9%
• Electricity - 29.3%
• Car Insurance - 51.5%

Inflation is—in large part—the product of out-of-control deficit spending in Washington. Since 2020, the pace of new debt has accelerated and pumped trillions of borrowed dollars into the economy. For months on end, too much money has been chasing too few goods—forcing the price of those goods upward. Biden continued to blame his administration's inflation record on President Trump, even after correctly stating that inflation was near zero when he took office.

>>>Read a full report HERE

The United States does not have a taxing problem—we have a spending problem.

Economic Freedom

The two presidents also painted different visions of their plan for economic prosperity. Biden insists that a key part of his plan is to make the rich “pay their fair share” while Trump supports broader tax cuts. The “fair share” argument is a commonly-repeated fallacy, since the top 1% of Americans already pay 40% of all federal income taxes, while lower income Americans pay 3%.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) that was passed in 2017 is set to expire next year but the data show that this bill lowered the tax rate for nearly all income brackets. If the bill expires, as Biden wants, nearly every taxpayer could pay more every paycheck.

President Biden’s performance at the debate has thrown the Democrat Party and the media into a full scale meltdown with headlines like “Biden is toast” and others calling it a “disaster.”

Status Update: Appropriations 

Speaking of the federal budget, curbing the government’s addiction to deficit spending is critical for economic stability and prosperity. The end of the fiscal year is coming up in September and Heritage Action is working with lawmakers to encourage funding bills for Fiscal Year 2025 (FY2025) that reduce the size and scope of the federal government to put money back in your pockets.

Specifically, we’ve been urging lawmakers on Capitol Hill to push back on Biden's immigration disaster, demand important pro-life provisions, cut funding to the global aid industry, and support our allies in Israel and Taiwan. Of the 12 regular appropriations bills, four have passed the House: Military Construction/Veterans Affairs, Homeland Security, State/Foreign Operations, and Defense. This work will continue when they return after the July 4th recess.

Want to know more about the appropriations process? Check out our Guide to Federal Spending HERE.

Biden takes a shot at the firearm industry

It wouldn’t be the Biden administration without another assault on American firearms manufacturers. This administration has attacked American gun companies with layers of bureaucratic red tape while cutting into their profits by limiting firearm and ammunition sales to civilians in other countries.

But how does this executive regulation affect you? If implemented, these restrictions and compliance costs are estimated to result in about a 7% reduction—or $40 million—of the current $600 million in U.S. firearm exports per year. This will greatly disrupt American firearm companies which could eventually reduce your access to firearms and ammunition.

Your voice can make the difference in the stand against Biden’s red-tape and regulation.

>>>Read Heritage Action’s latest op-ed<<<

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In Case You Missed It

The Supreme Court is nearing the end of its 2024 term and has released dozens of rulings as they get ready to leave DC for their summer break. Here are some of the most important decisions released so far:

• Loper Bright Enterprises vs. Raimondo — This case overturned a previous ruling that established ‘Chevron deference,’ a judicial doctrine that allowed agencies and their “experts” broad freedom in interpreting legislative statutes and gave significant power to unelected bureaucrats. This ruling will reign in overactive and overreaching agencies and force Congress to act if the federal government wants to impose regulations on Americans.
• SEC v. Jarkesy — This case ruled that federal agencies cannot put someone on trial in one of their own in-house tribunals without providing a jury. This ruling will require agencies’ respect Americans’ constitutional rights.
• Oregon v. Johnson — This case found that local governments enforcement of laws concerning the homeless camping on public property does not violate the Eighth Amendment and is therefore within their prerogative. This ruling will allow localities to enforce laws to maintain the safety of their community.
• Fischer v. United States — This case ruled that the interpretation of the law under which 330 people who participated in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot are being prosecuted was too broad and improperly applied. This could affect hundreds of cases of people who were potentially over prosecuted.
• Murthy v. Missouri — This case ruled that those who sued the government for collaborating with Big Tech to censure online information did not have the standing to challenge the government’s actions. This is a set back to First Amendment free speech rights.
• Moyle v. United States and Idaho v. United States — This case dismissed a pair of consolidated cases challenging the Biden administration over whether the federal government should require all federal funding hospital emergency rooms to perform abortions even if a state law prohibited it. This leaves an unanswered question about how the court would rule on the merits of the case.

Thank you for all the work that you continue to do.

- Ryan and the Heritage Action team

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