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Health Foundation Responds to Baroness Casey's Speech at the LGA Conference 2026
LONDON, England, July 9 -- The Health Foundation issued the following statement on July 8, 2026, by senior policy fellow Lucinda Allen:
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The Health Foundation responds to Baroness Casey's speech at the LGA Conference 2026
Responding to Baroness Casey's speech to the LGA Conference today, Senior Policy Fellow Lucinda Allen said,
'We welcome the prospect of a 'Big Conversation' with the public on social care funding reform. This will be an important opportunity to raise awareness of the problems with the current system and build support for improving it.
'Our polling with Ipsos suggests ... Show Full Article LONDON, England, July 9 -- The Health Foundation issued the following statement on July 8, 2026, by senior policy fellow Lucinda Allen: * * * The Health Foundation responds to Baroness Casey's speech at the LGA Conference 2026 Responding to Baroness Casey's speech to the LGA Conference today, Senior Policy Fellow Lucinda Allen said, 'We welcome the prospect of a 'Big Conversation' with the public on social care funding reform. This will be an important opportunity to raise awareness of the problems with the current system and build support for improving it. 'Our polling with Ipsos suggestsconfusion among the public about who is responsible for providing and paying for social care. It also shows a clear preference for the state playing a bigger role in paying for care. Under the current system, only the very poorest people with the highest needs are eligible for publicly funded support.
'It is encouraging that Baroness Casey recently told MPs she is open to speeding up her work. The government's 2028 deadline for the commission has always been a concern, as it risks its recommendations landing dangerously close to the next general election. Andy Burnham knows better than most how the white heat of election campaigns has burnt previous plans for social care reform.
'The next prime minister must make social care an early priority to finally deliver the reforms needed to improve millions of people's lives. The other parties also need to step up to support the change needed. After decades of political failure, this is a test of our political system as well as the leadership of the next Labour leader.'
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Notes to editors
For more on the case for social care reform, read our briefing covering funding (https://url.uk.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/KzCpCGv5oTJM3X2iKfPfBGWC0?domain=74n5c4m7.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me), wider investment, workforce pressures and public support for change.
Additionally, the Health Foundation has an ongoing programme of work on public perceptions with Ipsos. Key findings on social care include that:
* Public awareness and understanding of social care is low. 33% of people incorrectly believe the NHS provides most social care. After the 2024 general election, 76% were not aware of the promise to create a National Care Service.
* Only 12% of people agree their local social care services are good and 6% think government has the right policies for social care.
* In-depth research finds strong support for funding reform, once people understand how the current system works. 77% prefer a system where the state has a bigger role in paying for care.
* 57% of people either currently provide unpaid care or think it is likely that they will have to at some point in their life.
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Original text here: https://www.health.org.uk/media-office/press-releases/the-health-foundation-responds-to-baroness-caseys-speech-at-the-lga-conference-2026
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The Health Foundation responds to Baroness Casey's speech at the LGA Conference 2026
Responding to Baroness Casey's speech to the LGA Conference today, Senior Policy Fellow Lucinda Allen said,
'We welcome the prospect of a 'Big Conversation' with the public on social care funding reform. This will be an important opportunity to raise awareness of the problems with the current system and build support for improving it.
'Our polling with Ipsos suggests ... Show Full Article LONDON, England, July 9 -- The Health Foundation issued the following statement on July 8, 2026, by senior policy fellow Lucinda Allen: * * * The Health Foundation responds to Baroness Casey's speech at the LGA Conference 2026 Responding to Baroness Casey's speech to the LGA Conference today, Senior Policy Fellow Lucinda Allen said, 'We welcome the prospect of a 'Big Conversation' with the public on social care funding reform. This will be an important opportunity to raise awareness of the problems with the current system and build support for improving it. 'Our polling with Ipsos suggestsconfusion among the public about who is responsible for providing and paying for social care. It also shows a clear preference for the state playing a bigger role in paying for care. Under the current system, only the very poorest people with the highest needs are eligible for publicly funded support.
'It is encouraging that Baroness Casey recently told MPs she is open to speeding up her work. The government's 2028 deadline for the commission has always been a concern, as it risks its recommendations landing dangerously close to the next general election. Andy Burnham knows better than most how the white heat of election campaigns has burnt previous plans for social care reform.
'The next prime minister must make social care an early priority to finally deliver the reforms needed to improve millions of people's lives. The other parties also need to step up to support the change needed. After decades of political failure, this is a test of our political system as well as the leadership of the next Labour leader.'
* * *
Notes to editors
For more on the case for social care reform, read our briefing covering funding (https://url.uk.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/KzCpCGv5oTJM3X2iKfPfBGWC0?domain=74n5c4m7.r.eu-west-1.awstrack.me), wider investment, workforce pressures and public support for change.
Additionally, the Health Foundation has an ongoing programme of work on public perceptions with Ipsos. Key findings on social care include that:
* Public awareness and understanding of social care is low. 33% of people incorrectly believe the NHS provides most social care. After the 2024 general election, 76% were not aware of the promise to create a National Care Service.
* Only 12% of people agree their local social care services are good and 6% think government has the right policies for social care.
* In-depth research finds strong support for funding reform, once people understand how the current system works. 77% prefer a system where the state has a bigger role in paying for care.
* 57% of people either currently provide unpaid care or think it is likely that they will have to at some point in their life.
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Original text here: https://www.health.org.uk/media-office/press-releases/the-health-foundation-responds-to-baroness-caseys-speech-at-the-lga-conference-2026
Ford Foundation Promotes Rebecca Cokley to Program Director for U.S. Disability Rights
NEW YORK, July 9 -- The Ford Foundation issued the following news on July 8, 2026:
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Ford Foundation Promotes Rebecca Cokley to Program Director for U.S. Disability Rights
The Ford Foundation today announced the appointment of Rebecca Cokley as the inaugural program director of its U.S. Disability Rights (USDR) program. Cokley, who joined the foundation as the first-ever program officer for the USDR portfolio in 2021, has successfully steered the foundation's historic investments in disability rights. She assumed this role in June 2026.
"Through her deep expertise and intentional collaboration ... Show Full Article NEW YORK, July 9 -- The Ford Foundation issued the following news on July 8, 2026: * * * Ford Foundation Promotes Rebecca Cokley to Program Director for U.S. Disability Rights The Ford Foundation today announced the appointment of Rebecca Cokley as the inaugural program director of its U.S. Disability Rights (USDR) program. Cokley, who joined the foundation as the first-ever program officer for the USDR portfolio in 2021, has successfully steered the foundation's historic investments in disability rights. She assumed this role in June 2026. "Through her deep expertise and intentional collaborationwith the disability field, Rebecca has fundamentally shifted how philanthropy engages with disability rights and justice, ensuring they are recognized as a critical cornerstone of the broader fight against inequality," said Sarita Gupta, vice president of U.S. Programs at the Ford Foundation. "This promotion is a well-deserved recognition of her exceptional leadership and the groundbreaking work she has done to build our U.S. Disability Rights program from the ground up."
Since joining Ford, Cokley has pioneered the foundation's commitment to disability rights, successfully moving more than $100 million directly to disability rights and justice movements. In addition to her program portfolio, she serves as the interim co-chair of Ford's Native American Working Group and is an active member of the Economic Policy Collaborative.
"I am incredibly proud of what we have built alongside our grantee partners and fellow funders who are on the frontlines every day," said Rebecca Cokley, director of the U.S. Disability Rights program at the Ford Foundation. "Establishing this program has been a deeply collaborative effort to ensure the power, dignity, and voices of disabled people are structurally recognized and supported. I am honored to step into this role as we continue to anchor this vital work within the foundation."
Prior to joining the Ford Foundation, Cokley built a distinguished career spanning government, advocacy, and public policy. She was the cofounder and director of the Disability Justice Initiative at the Center for American Progress, where she steered a landmark campaign that resulted in an unprecedented 12 presidential candidates developing disability policy platforms during the 2020 election cycle. Her leadership also drove prominent national campaigns to protect the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), SNAP, and Medicaid.
A three-time presidential appointee, Cokley served in key policy roles at the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and oversaw diversity and inclusion efforts for the White House. Additionally, she served as the executive director for the National Council on Disability for four years.
Cokley is a highly sought-after public speaker and writer who has given a TedX talk and spoken at Netroots Nation, New York Comic Con, Yale University, and the Women's March National Conference. Her commentary has been published in The Nation, Rewire, CNN, Refinery 29, and The Washington Post, and she has appeared as a guest on MSNBC and Last Week Tonight With John Oliver. A collection she contributed to on "the talk" for the Emancipator won an Edward R. Murrow award in 2023.
Cokley sits on the board of directors for the Rockwood Leadership Institute and the New York Women's Foundation. She also lends her expertise as an Equity Advisory Board member for Sephora and as an advisory board member for Paid Leave for All and Emerge. She holds a bachelor's degree in politics from the University of California, Santa Cruz, where she was honored as a Karl S. Pister Scholar.
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Original text here: https://www.fordfoundation.org/news-and-stories/news-and-press/news/ford-foundation-promotes-rebecca-cokley-to-program-director-for-u-s-disability-rights/
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Ford Foundation Promotes Rebecca Cokley to Program Director for U.S. Disability Rights
The Ford Foundation today announced the appointment of Rebecca Cokley as the inaugural program director of its U.S. Disability Rights (USDR) program. Cokley, who joined the foundation as the first-ever program officer for the USDR portfolio in 2021, has successfully steered the foundation's historic investments in disability rights. She assumed this role in June 2026.
"Through her deep expertise and intentional collaboration ... Show Full Article NEW YORK, July 9 -- The Ford Foundation issued the following news on July 8, 2026: * * * Ford Foundation Promotes Rebecca Cokley to Program Director for U.S. Disability Rights The Ford Foundation today announced the appointment of Rebecca Cokley as the inaugural program director of its U.S. Disability Rights (USDR) program. Cokley, who joined the foundation as the first-ever program officer for the USDR portfolio in 2021, has successfully steered the foundation's historic investments in disability rights. She assumed this role in June 2026. "Through her deep expertise and intentional collaborationwith the disability field, Rebecca has fundamentally shifted how philanthropy engages with disability rights and justice, ensuring they are recognized as a critical cornerstone of the broader fight against inequality," said Sarita Gupta, vice president of U.S. Programs at the Ford Foundation. "This promotion is a well-deserved recognition of her exceptional leadership and the groundbreaking work she has done to build our U.S. Disability Rights program from the ground up."
Since joining Ford, Cokley has pioneered the foundation's commitment to disability rights, successfully moving more than $100 million directly to disability rights and justice movements. In addition to her program portfolio, she serves as the interim co-chair of Ford's Native American Working Group and is an active member of the Economic Policy Collaborative.
"I am incredibly proud of what we have built alongside our grantee partners and fellow funders who are on the frontlines every day," said Rebecca Cokley, director of the U.S. Disability Rights program at the Ford Foundation. "Establishing this program has been a deeply collaborative effort to ensure the power, dignity, and voices of disabled people are structurally recognized and supported. I am honored to step into this role as we continue to anchor this vital work within the foundation."
Prior to joining the Ford Foundation, Cokley built a distinguished career spanning government, advocacy, and public policy. She was the cofounder and director of the Disability Justice Initiative at the Center for American Progress, where she steered a landmark campaign that resulted in an unprecedented 12 presidential candidates developing disability policy platforms during the 2020 election cycle. Her leadership also drove prominent national campaigns to protect the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), SNAP, and Medicaid.
A three-time presidential appointee, Cokley served in key policy roles at the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and oversaw diversity and inclusion efforts for the White House. Additionally, she served as the executive director for the National Council on Disability for four years.
Cokley is a highly sought-after public speaker and writer who has given a TedX talk and spoken at Netroots Nation, New York Comic Con, Yale University, and the Women's March National Conference. Her commentary has been published in The Nation, Rewire, CNN, Refinery 29, and The Washington Post, and she has appeared as a guest on MSNBC and Last Week Tonight With John Oliver. A collection she contributed to on "the talk" for the Emancipator won an Edward R. Murrow award in 2023.
Cokley sits on the board of directors for the Rockwood Leadership Institute and the New York Women's Foundation. She also lends her expertise as an Equity Advisory Board member for Sephora and as an advisory board member for Paid Leave for All and Emerge. She holds a bachelor's degree in politics from the University of California, Santa Cruz, where she was honored as a Karl S. Pister Scholar.
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Original text here: https://www.fordfoundation.org/news-and-stories/news-and-press/news/ford-foundation-promotes-rebecca-cokley-to-program-director-for-u-s-disability-rights/
Fat cells transform to help heal wounds, OMRF finds
OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma, July 9 -- The Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation posted the following news:
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Fat cells transform to help heal wounds, OMRF finds
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You probably never imagined your fat cells could heal wounds.
Scientists also didn't think it was possible. But now they know differently, thanks to an Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation discovery.
OMRF's Lorin Olson, Ph.D., recently led a team of scientists who found that fat cells can morph into scar-forming cells to help repair wounds. This finding could someday lead to major treatment implications for certain types of wounds. ... Show Full Article OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma, July 9 -- The Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation posted the following news: * * * Fat cells transform to help heal wounds, OMRF finds * You probably never imagined your fat cells could heal wounds. Scientists also didn't think it was possible. But now they know differently, thanks to an Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation discovery. OMRF's Lorin Olson, Ph.D., recently led a team of scientists who found that fat cells can morph into scar-forming cells to help repair wounds. This finding could someday lead to major treatment implications for certain types of wounds.
"We've long viewed fat cells as having reached their final identity," Olson said. "This study shows they can completely change that identity by losing their stored fat, beginning to divide again and becoming fibroblasts that help repair injured tissue."
Fibroblasts are the cells responsible for producing the connective tissue that closes wounds and forms scars. One study elsewhere had suggested fat cells might change - only temporarily - to help heal wounds, but the idea remained controversial, with conflicting findings from other labs.
Using a new genetic tracing technique, Olson's lab followed individual fat cells over 21 days during wound healing. In a result that surprised Olson, the cells changed into fibroblasts, and they remained that way after the wound healed.
"Like most scientists in this field, I was highly skeptical that fat cells could transform," he said. "We think this discovery alters scientific dogma."
While the experiments were done in mice, Olson said there's no reason to think the process differs in humans.
"Dr. Olson's study changes the way we think about fat cells," said OMRF's vice president of research, Courtney Griffin, Ph.D. "Turns out they are much more adaptable than we realized."
The findings also might explain diseases in which scar tissue develops abnormally, Olson said. In conditions such as scleroderma, fat beneath the skin disappears as excessive scar tissue forms. Similar changes may take place in some cancers, where fibroblasts surrounding tumors may contribute to disease progression.
Olson is now investigating the earliest steps of the process in which fats cells change to scar tissue. A better understanding of wound healing, he hopes, could lead to strategies to reduce harmful scar tissue and surgical adhesions while preserving the body's ability to repair itself.
This discovery was published in the journal Cell Reports. The work was funded through grant Nos. R01-AR080896 and F32-AR083823 from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, and by grants from the Presbyterian Health Foundation and the Oklahoma Center for Adult Stem Cell Research, a program of the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust.
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Original text here: https://omrf.org/fat-cells-transform-to-help-heal-wounds-omrf-finds/
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Fat cells transform to help heal wounds, OMRF finds
*
You probably never imagined your fat cells could heal wounds.
Scientists also didn't think it was possible. But now they know differently, thanks to an Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation discovery.
OMRF's Lorin Olson, Ph.D., recently led a team of scientists who found that fat cells can morph into scar-forming cells to help repair wounds. This finding could someday lead to major treatment implications for certain types of wounds. ... Show Full Article OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma, July 9 -- The Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation posted the following news: * * * Fat cells transform to help heal wounds, OMRF finds * You probably never imagined your fat cells could heal wounds. Scientists also didn't think it was possible. But now they know differently, thanks to an Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation discovery. OMRF's Lorin Olson, Ph.D., recently led a team of scientists who found that fat cells can morph into scar-forming cells to help repair wounds. This finding could someday lead to major treatment implications for certain types of wounds.
"We've long viewed fat cells as having reached their final identity," Olson said. "This study shows they can completely change that identity by losing their stored fat, beginning to divide again and becoming fibroblasts that help repair injured tissue."
Fibroblasts are the cells responsible for producing the connective tissue that closes wounds and forms scars. One study elsewhere had suggested fat cells might change - only temporarily - to help heal wounds, but the idea remained controversial, with conflicting findings from other labs.
Using a new genetic tracing technique, Olson's lab followed individual fat cells over 21 days during wound healing. In a result that surprised Olson, the cells changed into fibroblasts, and they remained that way after the wound healed.
"Like most scientists in this field, I was highly skeptical that fat cells could transform," he said. "We think this discovery alters scientific dogma."
While the experiments were done in mice, Olson said there's no reason to think the process differs in humans.
"Dr. Olson's study changes the way we think about fat cells," said OMRF's vice president of research, Courtney Griffin, Ph.D. "Turns out they are much more adaptable than we realized."
The findings also might explain diseases in which scar tissue develops abnormally, Olson said. In conditions such as scleroderma, fat beneath the skin disappears as excessive scar tissue forms. Similar changes may take place in some cancers, where fibroblasts surrounding tumors may contribute to disease progression.
Olson is now investigating the earliest steps of the process in which fats cells change to scar tissue. A better understanding of wound healing, he hopes, could lead to strategies to reduce harmful scar tissue and surgical adhesions while preserving the body's ability to repair itself.
This discovery was published in the journal Cell Reports. The work was funded through grant Nos. R01-AR080896 and F32-AR083823 from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, and by grants from the Presbyterian Health Foundation and the Oklahoma Center for Adult Stem Cell Research, a program of the Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust.
***
Original text here: https://omrf.org/fat-cells-transform-to-help-heal-wounds-omrf-finds/
As Ebola Surges, 3 in 4 Americans Back Restoring U.S. Aid to Fight It, Per New Echelon Poll Commissioned by Rockefeller Foundation
NEW YORK, July 9 (TNSrep) -- The Rockefeller Foundation posted the following news release:
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As Ebola Surges, 3 in 4 Americans Back Restoring U.S. Aid to Fight It, per New Echelon Poll Commissioned by Rockefeller Foundation
* Conducted ahead of America's 250th anniversary, the survey finds nine in ten Americans (90%) across the political spectrum support funding programs to prevent disease outbreaks abroad, the highest-testing program area in the survey.
* Those who primarily support President Trump are the least concerned about Ebola spreading to the U.S., yet more than one in two (52%) ... Show Full Article NEW YORK, July 9 (TNSrep) -- The Rockefeller Foundation posted the following news release: * * * As Ebola Surges, 3 in 4 Americans Back Restoring U.S. Aid to Fight It, per New Echelon Poll Commissioned by Rockefeller Foundation * Conducted ahead of America's 250th anniversary, the survey finds nine in ten Americans (90%) across the political spectrum support funding programs to prevent disease outbreaks abroad, the highest-testing program area in the survey. * Those who primarily support President Trump are the least concerned about Ebola spreading to the U.S., yet more than one in two (52%)back restoring U.S. aid to contain the outbreak, along with 60% of Republican-leaners and 89% of Democrat-leaners.
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With the Ebola outbreak the third-largest on record, and growing, survey data from The Rockefeller Foundation and Echelon Insights shows that 75% of Americans -- including more than one in two (52%) who primarily support President Trump -- agree that the United States should restore disease prevention aid to contain the virus. An American Perspective on Foreign Aid (https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/reports/an-american-perspective-on-foreign-aid/), which evaluated Americans' opinions on foreign assistance ahead of the nation's 250th anniversary, also reveals near universal support across political party lines (90%) for funding overseas disease prevention programs. The findings suggest that despite the official closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) one year ago this month, Americans across the political spectrum continue to see disease prevention abroad as a core U.S. interest, not a partisan one.
"Twelve years ago, Ebola reminded the world the hard way what happens when we are unprepared. This outbreak is doing the same--and may become far worse," said Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation and former USAID Administrator, who led USAID during the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, one of the costliest in history. "The answer now is not to rebuild the old system but to build a smarter one, pairing AI-powered surveillance and real-time data with strong local health systems where outbreaks spread fastest. This is not charity, it's national security, and as this data shows, Americans across the political spectrum already know it."
In May 2026, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) declared a new Ebola outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, that has since spread into Uganda. The World Health Organization declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on May 17. With more than 1,500 confirmed cases and over 500 deaths reported as of July 5, and counts still climbing, it is already the third-largest Ebola outbreak on record, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has warned it could become one of the largest ever recorded. There is no approved vaccine or treatment for the Bundibugyo strain, and conflict and weak health infrastructure in eastern DRC complicate detection and treatment. While U.S. officials consider the domestic risk low, the CDC raised its response to its highest level in late June. Aid workers and former U.S. officials have pointed to U.S. funding cuts for disease surveillance as a factor that hampered detection and response, a characterization the U.S. State Department disputes (see statement (https://www.state.gov/state-department-ebola-response-updates)).
Americans' Views on Foreign Aid to Fight Ebola:
More than 2,000 adults were surveyed by U.S.-based Echelon Insights, commissioned by The Rockefeller Foundation's public charity, RF Catalytic Capital (RFCC), from June 12-16, 2026 across all 50 states, balanced across party, region, age, gender, and race/ethnicity. Three of the questions were directly tied to the Ebola outbreak as follows:
1. "How concerned are you about the potential spread of Ebola into the United States?" After responding, they were presented with the following information: "For over 20 years, the U.S. government has provided aid to the Democratic Republic of the Congo to combat the spread of Ebola, including surveillance, pandemic response, and healthcare infrastructure. Since 2018, U.S. global health aid to the Congo has prevented the spread of seven outbreaks, saving countless lives. In 2026, the World Health Organization declared a new Ebola outbreak in the Congo, featuring a rare and especially lethal strain of the virus. Health experts have pointed to cuts in U.S. funding for disease monitoring and pandemic response as key factors behind the latest outbreak."
2. "Would you support or oppose restoring U.S. disease prevention aid to help contain this new Ebola outbreak in the Congo?" Immediately following their response, they were asked:
3. "In light of the recent Ebola outbreak, would you support or oppose the U.S. government changing course to restore some or all global health aid?"
Across all three questions, a clear majority favored restoring aid:
* Broad Support for Action on the Ebola Outbreak. Three in four Americans (75%) support restoring Ebola-specific aid to DRC, including more than one out of every two who primarily support President Trump (52%, a net +18), 60% among Republican-leaners overall, and 89% among Democrat-leaners. That support holds even though Americans aren't especially alarmed by the threat at home: more than one in two (54%) are very or somewhat concerned about Ebola spreading to the U.S. Concern is lowest among those who primarily support President Trump (37%) and Republican-leaners (40%), compared with 68% of Democrat-leaners.
* A Mandate to Restore Global Health Funding. 72% support the U.S. changing course to restore some or all global health funding worldwide in light of the outbreak, including 46% among those who primarily support President Trump, 56% among Republican-leaners overall, and 88% among Democrat-leaners.
"This poll makes clear that Americans remember what too many in Washington forget about outbreaks: diseases don't check your party registration or your passport," said Dr. John A. Gans, former Chief Speechwriter at the Pentagon, author of White House Warriors, and current Senior Vice President at The Rockefeller Foundation. "One year after USAID's razing, three in four Americans, across every political line, understand that stopping deadly diseases at their source is a matter of national security, not just generosity. The lesson for Washington is clear: don't doubt the generosity and concerns of Americans, act on them."
Additional Global Health Findings from the Poll Include:
* An Overwhelming Mandate for Global Health Security. Nine in ten Americans (90%) support funding overseas disease prevention programs, the single highest-testing program area in the whole survey. Support is 82% among those who primarily support President Trump, 85% among Republican-leaners overall, and 94% among Democrat-leaners. Support for global health funding more broadly reaches 84% overall, including 68% among those who primarily support President Trump, 74% among Republican-leaners overall (81% among Republicans who prioritize the Party over Trump), and 93% among Democrat-leaners.
* Support Holds When Americans See the Human Cost. When told experts estimate aid cuts could cause over 9 million preventable deaths by 2030, primarily from disease and malnutrition, 70% said they would support restoring aid funding, including 47% among those who primarily support President Trump, 55% among Republican-leaners overall, and 85% among Democrat-leaners.
* A Proven Success Story Resonates. The story of U.S.-funded tuberculosis programs in Bangladesh, which cut TB deaths by 35% over a decade, was convincing to 77% of Americans, including 58% among those who primarily support President Trump, 65% among Republican-leaners overall, and 88% among Democrat-leaners.
Dr. Shah concludes: "When presented with a real-world example of a fast-moving threat that can easily cross borders and where U.S. foreign aid can save lives, most Americans want their government to help. The findings also point to a path forward. Americans support foreign aid when they understand its purpose, its cost, and its impact." Read the full Statement from Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation, on New Public Opinion Research on Foreign Aid Programs.
An American Perspective on Foreign Aid is the latest research commissioned by The Rockefeller Foundation's Build the Shared Future Initiative, through which the 113-year-old philanthropic organization aims to inspire and inform global cooperation and international development work that matches the challenges of the 21st century, including efforts to align with governments around the world on country-led solutions that maximize every dollar of remaining aid and stimulate new investments.
Recent research includes The Impact of Two Decades of Humanitarian and Development Assistance and the Projected Mortality Consequences of Current Defunding to 2030, which examines the human costs of the historic slashing of official development assistance (ODA) in 2025 by the U.S. and other wealthy nations. Those cuts exceeded the modeling assumptions used in an earlier Rockefeller Foundation-supported study by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), published in The Lancet Global Health. That study warned that at least 9.4 million additional people, including 2.5 million children under the age of five, could die by 2030 across 93 low- and middle-income countries.
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Note to Editors: Methodology
Echelon Insights conducted a survey on behalf of The Rockefeller Foundation to better understand voters' attitudes on foreign aid. The survey was fielded online from June 12-16, 2026 in English among a sample of 2,022 voters in the likely electorate nationwide using non-probability sampling, with a base sample of N=1,512 Registered Voters in the Likely Electorate Nationwide and an oversample of N=510 Republican Voters, achieving a total of 1,080 Republican voters in the sample. This oversample was included in order to be able to more closely examine opinions within this cohort of respondents. The sample was drawn from the Lucid sample exchange based on demographic quota targets for registered voters in the likely electorate nationwide, and matched to the L2 voter file to verify respondents' voter registration status. Measures taken to ensure data quality included measures to prevent duplicate responses, questions designed to disqualify inattentive respondents, and the removal of respondents from the data file who answered more than one-third of the questions they were asked in less than one-third of the median response time per question. The sample was weighted to reflect modeled turnout and demographic characteristics of the population of voters in the 2026 likely electorate nationwide based on a probabilistic model that incorporates data from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey and Current Population Survey Voting and Registration Supplement, as well as L2 voter file data. Weighting dimensions included gender, age, race/ethnicity, education, region, and turnout probability, as well as gender by age, education by gender, race by age, race by education, and age by education. The sample was also weighted on party affiliation to reflect an even balance between Republican/Republican-leaning and Democratic/Democratic-leaning voters. Calculated the way it would be for a random sample and adjusted to incorporate the effect of weighting, the margin of sampling error is +- 2.5 percentage points. To download a full copy of An American Perspective on Foreign Aid, visit: https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/reports/an-american-perspective-on-foreign-aid/.
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Note to Editors: Statement From Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation, on New Public Opinion Research on Foreign Aid Programs
As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, new polling shows that the American people want an active, engaged relationship with the world. They recognize that helping vulnerable people and building a safer, healthier, and more prosperous world is an investment in America's own security and prosperity. At a moment when many U.S. and world leaders are pulling back from global engagement, a report published today by Echelon Insights, supported by The Rockefeller Foundation, finds that Americans across political parties back efforts that prevent disease outbreaks, feed hungry children, reduce suffering, and create opportunity. The polling shows that 72% of Americans believe foreign aid keeps the U.S. safer from threats. Support is even stronger for specific types of aid: preventing disease outbreaks (90%), humanitarian and disaster relief (90%) and global health (84%). As an example, after receiving information about the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo respondents overwhelmingly (3 in 4) supported restoring U.S. foreign aid funding to fight the disease. When presented with a real-world example of a fast-moving threat that can easily cross borders and where U.S. foreign aid can save lives, most Americans want their government to help. The findings also point to a path forward. Americans support foreign aid when they understand its purpose, its cost, and its impact. They overwhelmingly favor strengthening and modernizing effective programs rather than eliminating them, and they want resources focused where they can save the most lives and deliver the greatest results. Americans' support for foreign aid and global engagement remains strong. The opportunity before us is to answer that call by building a more modern model of development -- one that is country-led, results-driven, and capable of meeting today's challenges through innovation, partnership, and impact. In the 21st century, foreign aid should deliver better outcomes for vulnerable communities while continuing to advance America's long-term interests. Americans are ready to help build what comes next. Their leaders should listen. Available here: https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/news/statement-from-dr-rajiv-j-shah-president-of-the-rockefeller-foundation-public-opinion-research-foreign-aid-programs/.
* * *
About The Rockefeller Foundation
Investing $30 billion over the last 113 years to promote the well-being of humanity, The Rockefeller Foundation is a pioneering philanthropy built on unlikely partnerships and innovative solutions that deliver measurable results for people in the United States and around the world. We leverage scientific breakthroughs, artificial intelligence, and new technologies to make big bets across energy, food, health, and finance with our partners and our affiliated public charity, RFCC. For more information, follow us on LinkedIn @the-rockefeller-foundation, X @RockefellerFdn, Instagram @rockefellerfdn, and YouTube @RockefellerFdn, and sign up for our newsletter at www.rockefellerfoundation.org/subscribe.
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Original text here: https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/news/ebola-surges-americans-back-restoring-us-aid-echelon-poll-rockefeller-foundation/
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As Ebola Surges, 3 in 4 Americans Back Restoring U.S. Aid to Fight It, per New Echelon Poll Commissioned by Rockefeller Foundation
* Conducted ahead of America's 250th anniversary, the survey finds nine in ten Americans (90%) across the political spectrum support funding programs to prevent disease outbreaks abroad, the highest-testing program area in the survey.
* Those who primarily support President Trump are the least concerned about Ebola spreading to the U.S., yet more than one in two (52%) ... Show Full Article NEW YORK, July 9 (TNSrep) -- The Rockefeller Foundation posted the following news release: * * * As Ebola Surges, 3 in 4 Americans Back Restoring U.S. Aid to Fight It, per New Echelon Poll Commissioned by Rockefeller Foundation * Conducted ahead of America's 250th anniversary, the survey finds nine in ten Americans (90%) across the political spectrum support funding programs to prevent disease outbreaks abroad, the highest-testing program area in the survey. * Those who primarily support President Trump are the least concerned about Ebola spreading to the U.S., yet more than one in two (52%)back restoring U.S. aid to contain the outbreak, along with 60% of Republican-leaners and 89% of Democrat-leaners.
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With the Ebola outbreak the third-largest on record, and growing, survey data from The Rockefeller Foundation and Echelon Insights shows that 75% of Americans -- including more than one in two (52%) who primarily support President Trump -- agree that the United States should restore disease prevention aid to contain the virus. An American Perspective on Foreign Aid (https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/reports/an-american-perspective-on-foreign-aid/), which evaluated Americans' opinions on foreign assistance ahead of the nation's 250th anniversary, also reveals near universal support across political party lines (90%) for funding overseas disease prevention programs. The findings suggest that despite the official closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) one year ago this month, Americans across the political spectrum continue to see disease prevention abroad as a core U.S. interest, not a partisan one.
"Twelve years ago, Ebola reminded the world the hard way what happens when we are unprepared. This outbreak is doing the same--and may become far worse," said Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation and former USAID Administrator, who led USAID during the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, one of the costliest in history. "The answer now is not to rebuild the old system but to build a smarter one, pairing AI-powered surveillance and real-time data with strong local health systems where outbreaks spread fastest. This is not charity, it's national security, and as this data shows, Americans across the political spectrum already know it."
In May 2026, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) declared a new Ebola outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, that has since spread into Uganda. The World Health Organization declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on May 17. With more than 1,500 confirmed cases and over 500 deaths reported as of July 5, and counts still climbing, it is already the third-largest Ebola outbreak on record, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has warned it could become one of the largest ever recorded. There is no approved vaccine or treatment for the Bundibugyo strain, and conflict and weak health infrastructure in eastern DRC complicate detection and treatment. While U.S. officials consider the domestic risk low, the CDC raised its response to its highest level in late June. Aid workers and former U.S. officials have pointed to U.S. funding cuts for disease surveillance as a factor that hampered detection and response, a characterization the U.S. State Department disputes (see statement (https://www.state.gov/state-department-ebola-response-updates)).
Americans' Views on Foreign Aid to Fight Ebola:
More than 2,000 adults were surveyed by U.S.-based Echelon Insights, commissioned by The Rockefeller Foundation's public charity, RF Catalytic Capital (RFCC), from June 12-16, 2026 across all 50 states, balanced across party, region, age, gender, and race/ethnicity. Three of the questions were directly tied to the Ebola outbreak as follows:
1. "How concerned are you about the potential spread of Ebola into the United States?" After responding, they were presented with the following information: "For over 20 years, the U.S. government has provided aid to the Democratic Republic of the Congo to combat the spread of Ebola, including surveillance, pandemic response, and healthcare infrastructure. Since 2018, U.S. global health aid to the Congo has prevented the spread of seven outbreaks, saving countless lives. In 2026, the World Health Organization declared a new Ebola outbreak in the Congo, featuring a rare and especially lethal strain of the virus. Health experts have pointed to cuts in U.S. funding for disease monitoring and pandemic response as key factors behind the latest outbreak."
2. "Would you support or oppose restoring U.S. disease prevention aid to help contain this new Ebola outbreak in the Congo?" Immediately following their response, they were asked:
3. "In light of the recent Ebola outbreak, would you support or oppose the U.S. government changing course to restore some or all global health aid?"
Across all three questions, a clear majority favored restoring aid:
* Broad Support for Action on the Ebola Outbreak. Three in four Americans (75%) support restoring Ebola-specific aid to DRC, including more than one out of every two who primarily support President Trump (52%, a net +18), 60% among Republican-leaners overall, and 89% among Democrat-leaners. That support holds even though Americans aren't especially alarmed by the threat at home: more than one in two (54%) are very or somewhat concerned about Ebola spreading to the U.S. Concern is lowest among those who primarily support President Trump (37%) and Republican-leaners (40%), compared with 68% of Democrat-leaners.
* A Mandate to Restore Global Health Funding. 72% support the U.S. changing course to restore some or all global health funding worldwide in light of the outbreak, including 46% among those who primarily support President Trump, 56% among Republican-leaners overall, and 88% among Democrat-leaners.
"This poll makes clear that Americans remember what too many in Washington forget about outbreaks: diseases don't check your party registration or your passport," said Dr. John A. Gans, former Chief Speechwriter at the Pentagon, author of White House Warriors, and current Senior Vice President at The Rockefeller Foundation. "One year after USAID's razing, three in four Americans, across every political line, understand that stopping deadly diseases at their source is a matter of national security, not just generosity. The lesson for Washington is clear: don't doubt the generosity and concerns of Americans, act on them."
Additional Global Health Findings from the Poll Include:
* An Overwhelming Mandate for Global Health Security. Nine in ten Americans (90%) support funding overseas disease prevention programs, the single highest-testing program area in the whole survey. Support is 82% among those who primarily support President Trump, 85% among Republican-leaners overall, and 94% among Democrat-leaners. Support for global health funding more broadly reaches 84% overall, including 68% among those who primarily support President Trump, 74% among Republican-leaners overall (81% among Republicans who prioritize the Party over Trump), and 93% among Democrat-leaners.
* Support Holds When Americans See the Human Cost. When told experts estimate aid cuts could cause over 9 million preventable deaths by 2030, primarily from disease and malnutrition, 70% said they would support restoring aid funding, including 47% among those who primarily support President Trump, 55% among Republican-leaners overall, and 85% among Democrat-leaners.
* A Proven Success Story Resonates. The story of U.S.-funded tuberculosis programs in Bangladesh, which cut TB deaths by 35% over a decade, was convincing to 77% of Americans, including 58% among those who primarily support President Trump, 65% among Republican-leaners overall, and 88% among Democrat-leaners.
Dr. Shah concludes: "When presented with a real-world example of a fast-moving threat that can easily cross borders and where U.S. foreign aid can save lives, most Americans want their government to help. The findings also point to a path forward. Americans support foreign aid when they understand its purpose, its cost, and its impact." Read the full Statement from Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation, on New Public Opinion Research on Foreign Aid Programs.
An American Perspective on Foreign Aid is the latest research commissioned by The Rockefeller Foundation's Build the Shared Future Initiative, through which the 113-year-old philanthropic organization aims to inspire and inform global cooperation and international development work that matches the challenges of the 21st century, including efforts to align with governments around the world on country-led solutions that maximize every dollar of remaining aid and stimulate new investments.
Recent research includes The Impact of Two Decades of Humanitarian and Development Assistance and the Projected Mortality Consequences of Current Defunding to 2030, which examines the human costs of the historic slashing of official development assistance (ODA) in 2025 by the U.S. and other wealthy nations. Those cuts exceeded the modeling assumptions used in an earlier Rockefeller Foundation-supported study by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), published in The Lancet Global Health. That study warned that at least 9.4 million additional people, including 2.5 million children under the age of five, could die by 2030 across 93 low- and middle-income countries.
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Note to Editors: Methodology
Echelon Insights conducted a survey on behalf of The Rockefeller Foundation to better understand voters' attitudes on foreign aid. The survey was fielded online from June 12-16, 2026 in English among a sample of 2,022 voters in the likely electorate nationwide using non-probability sampling, with a base sample of N=1,512 Registered Voters in the Likely Electorate Nationwide and an oversample of N=510 Republican Voters, achieving a total of 1,080 Republican voters in the sample. This oversample was included in order to be able to more closely examine opinions within this cohort of respondents. The sample was drawn from the Lucid sample exchange based on demographic quota targets for registered voters in the likely electorate nationwide, and matched to the L2 voter file to verify respondents' voter registration status. Measures taken to ensure data quality included measures to prevent duplicate responses, questions designed to disqualify inattentive respondents, and the removal of respondents from the data file who answered more than one-third of the questions they were asked in less than one-third of the median response time per question. The sample was weighted to reflect modeled turnout and demographic characteristics of the population of voters in the 2026 likely electorate nationwide based on a probabilistic model that incorporates data from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey and Current Population Survey Voting and Registration Supplement, as well as L2 voter file data. Weighting dimensions included gender, age, race/ethnicity, education, region, and turnout probability, as well as gender by age, education by gender, race by age, race by education, and age by education. The sample was also weighted on party affiliation to reflect an even balance between Republican/Republican-leaning and Democratic/Democratic-leaning voters. Calculated the way it would be for a random sample and adjusted to incorporate the effect of weighting, the margin of sampling error is +- 2.5 percentage points. To download a full copy of An American Perspective on Foreign Aid, visit: https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/reports/an-american-perspective-on-foreign-aid/.
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Note to Editors: Statement From Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation, on New Public Opinion Research on Foreign Aid Programs
As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, new polling shows that the American people want an active, engaged relationship with the world. They recognize that helping vulnerable people and building a safer, healthier, and more prosperous world is an investment in America's own security and prosperity. At a moment when many U.S. and world leaders are pulling back from global engagement, a report published today by Echelon Insights, supported by The Rockefeller Foundation, finds that Americans across political parties back efforts that prevent disease outbreaks, feed hungry children, reduce suffering, and create opportunity. The polling shows that 72% of Americans believe foreign aid keeps the U.S. safer from threats. Support is even stronger for specific types of aid: preventing disease outbreaks (90%), humanitarian and disaster relief (90%) and global health (84%). As an example, after receiving information about the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo respondents overwhelmingly (3 in 4) supported restoring U.S. foreign aid funding to fight the disease. When presented with a real-world example of a fast-moving threat that can easily cross borders and where U.S. foreign aid can save lives, most Americans want their government to help. The findings also point to a path forward. Americans support foreign aid when they understand its purpose, its cost, and its impact. They overwhelmingly favor strengthening and modernizing effective programs rather than eliminating them, and they want resources focused where they can save the most lives and deliver the greatest results. Americans' support for foreign aid and global engagement remains strong. The opportunity before us is to answer that call by building a more modern model of development -- one that is country-led, results-driven, and capable of meeting today's challenges through innovation, partnership, and impact. In the 21st century, foreign aid should deliver better outcomes for vulnerable communities while continuing to advance America's long-term interests. Americans are ready to help build what comes next. Their leaders should listen. Available here: https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/news/statement-from-dr-rajiv-j-shah-president-of-the-rockefeller-foundation-public-opinion-research-foreign-aid-programs/.
* * *
About The Rockefeller Foundation
Investing $30 billion over the last 113 years to promote the well-being of humanity, The Rockefeller Foundation is a pioneering philanthropy built on unlikely partnerships and innovative solutions that deliver measurable results for people in the United States and around the world. We leverage scientific breakthroughs, artificial intelligence, and new technologies to make big bets across energy, food, health, and finance with our partners and our affiliated public charity, RFCC. For more information, follow us on LinkedIn @the-rockefeller-foundation, X @RockefellerFdn, Instagram @rockefellerfdn, and YouTube @RockefellerFdn, and sign up for our newsletter at www.rockefellerfoundation.org/subscribe.
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Original text here: https://www.rockefellerfoundation.org/news/ebola-surges-americans-back-restoring-us-aid-echelon-poll-rockefeller-foundation/
Foundation for Economic Education Posts Commentary: What Do They Do With Your Tax Dollars?
DETROIT, Michigan, July 8 -- The Foundation for Economic Education posted the following commentary by Douglas Carswell, Mississippi Center for Public Policy president and CEO:
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What Do They Do with Your Tax Dollars?
Why does public spending seem to keep rising, rapidly, no matter who we elect?
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Perhaps it is not so much the party of those we send to Congress or to our state legislature that counts. Perhaps what matters more is that so many of the decisions about how your money is spent are made in the dark.
Setting a budget is complicated. The data might exist. Some of it might even ... Show Full Article DETROIT, Michigan, July 8 -- The Foundation for Economic Education posted the following commentary by Douglas Carswell, Mississippi Center for Public Policy president and CEO: * * * What Do They Do with Your Tax Dollars? Why does public spending seem to keep rising, rapidly, no matter who we elect? - Perhaps it is not so much the party of those we send to Congress or to our state legislature that counts. Perhaps what matters more is that so many of the decisions about how your money is spent are made in the dark. Setting a budget is complicated. The data might exist. Some of it might evenbe public. But it sits squirreled away on a spreadsheet somewhere, and you would need a CPA to make sense of it. Frankly, most folk do not have the time.
But what if technology could suddenly take all that data and build something that makes it easy to see? Easy to see who gets your tax dollars, and what they do with them once they have them.
This is not a problem peculiar to one state. It is the condition of government almost everywhere in America. We are taxed by authorities we cannot scrutinize, to fund programs we cannot see, run by people who would rather we did not ask.
That is what we set out to change at the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, with a tool we built called TaxToolMS.com. It is, as far as we know, the first of its kind in the country. And there is no reason something like it could not exist in all 50 states.
Here is how it works. Type in a few details, and up pops your tax bill: what you pay to your local government, to your state capital, and to Washington, itemized by the agencies and departments that spend it. How much goes to your local schools? To the department of corrections? To the ever-expanding category politicians like to call "economic development"? You can see all of it, line by line. It is free, there is no login, and nothing you type ever leaves your own screen.
But the calculator is only half of it. Alongside it we built a search box for public money--a kind of state-level DOGE. Type in a name, and you can comb through the tens of thousands of vendors, contractors, and recipients who take in taxpayer dollars, and see which of them have quietly enjoyed the largest increases.
Consider what a tool like that might have caught elsewhere. In Minnesota, a scheme known as "Feeding Our Future" siphoned roughly a quarter of a billion dollars in federal funds through charities that were barely feeding anyone. Had ordinary citizens been able to watch that money move in something close to real time, would it really have taken so long for someone to ask the obvious questions?
Run a search, and you can also see how many millions of dollars government spends on lobbyists--to lobby government. Splendid news for the lobbyists. Rather less so for families struggling with rising prices. The whole arrangement is absurd, and it persists largely because so few people can see it.
The scale of what is hidden is hard to overstate. In our state, the legislature openly debates a budget of around $7 billion a year, while more than three times that flows through state agencies annually, almost entirely beyond public view. Multiply that across the country, and you begin to grasp how much public money moves every year with virtually no one watching.
We did not build this to manufacture outrage. We built it to give citizens information that has, for all practical purposes, been the private preserve of the political class. Every figure comes from official data. It cannot know your full circumstances, so it is only ever an estimate.
Sunlight, as the old line has it, is the best disinfectant. Perhaps the surest way--maybe the only way--to stop public spending from rising ruinously, in any state and at every level, is to let the people who pay for it finally see where it goes.
So, find out. It is your money. You ought to know where it goes, and who gets it.
* * *
Douglas Carswell is President and CEO of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy.
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Original text here: https://fee.org/articles/what-do-they-do-with-your-tax-dollars/
* * *
What Do They Do with Your Tax Dollars?
Why does public spending seem to keep rising, rapidly, no matter who we elect?
-
Perhaps it is not so much the party of those we send to Congress or to our state legislature that counts. Perhaps what matters more is that so many of the decisions about how your money is spent are made in the dark.
Setting a budget is complicated. The data might exist. Some of it might even ... Show Full Article DETROIT, Michigan, July 8 -- The Foundation for Economic Education posted the following commentary by Douglas Carswell, Mississippi Center for Public Policy president and CEO: * * * What Do They Do with Your Tax Dollars? Why does public spending seem to keep rising, rapidly, no matter who we elect? - Perhaps it is not so much the party of those we send to Congress or to our state legislature that counts. Perhaps what matters more is that so many of the decisions about how your money is spent are made in the dark. Setting a budget is complicated. The data might exist. Some of it might evenbe public. But it sits squirreled away on a spreadsheet somewhere, and you would need a CPA to make sense of it. Frankly, most folk do not have the time.
But what if technology could suddenly take all that data and build something that makes it easy to see? Easy to see who gets your tax dollars, and what they do with them once they have them.
This is not a problem peculiar to one state. It is the condition of government almost everywhere in America. We are taxed by authorities we cannot scrutinize, to fund programs we cannot see, run by people who would rather we did not ask.
That is what we set out to change at the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, with a tool we built called TaxToolMS.com. It is, as far as we know, the first of its kind in the country. And there is no reason something like it could not exist in all 50 states.
Here is how it works. Type in a few details, and up pops your tax bill: what you pay to your local government, to your state capital, and to Washington, itemized by the agencies and departments that spend it. How much goes to your local schools? To the department of corrections? To the ever-expanding category politicians like to call "economic development"? You can see all of it, line by line. It is free, there is no login, and nothing you type ever leaves your own screen.
But the calculator is only half of it. Alongside it we built a search box for public money--a kind of state-level DOGE. Type in a name, and you can comb through the tens of thousands of vendors, contractors, and recipients who take in taxpayer dollars, and see which of them have quietly enjoyed the largest increases.
Consider what a tool like that might have caught elsewhere. In Minnesota, a scheme known as "Feeding Our Future" siphoned roughly a quarter of a billion dollars in federal funds through charities that were barely feeding anyone. Had ordinary citizens been able to watch that money move in something close to real time, would it really have taken so long for someone to ask the obvious questions?
Run a search, and you can also see how many millions of dollars government spends on lobbyists--to lobby government. Splendid news for the lobbyists. Rather less so for families struggling with rising prices. The whole arrangement is absurd, and it persists largely because so few people can see it.
The scale of what is hidden is hard to overstate. In our state, the legislature openly debates a budget of around $7 billion a year, while more than three times that flows through state agencies annually, almost entirely beyond public view. Multiply that across the country, and you begin to grasp how much public money moves every year with virtually no one watching.
We did not build this to manufacture outrage. We built it to give citizens information that has, for all practical purposes, been the private preserve of the political class. Every figure comes from official data. It cannot know your full circumstances, so it is only ever an estimate.
Sunlight, as the old line has it, is the best disinfectant. Perhaps the surest way--maybe the only way--to stop public spending from rising ruinously, in any state and at every level, is to let the people who pay for it finally see where it goes.
So, find out. It is your money. You ought to know where it goes, and who gets it.
* * *
Douglas Carswell is President and CEO of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy.
* * *
Original text here: https://fee.org/articles/what-do-they-do-with-your-tax-dollars/
FFRF: Trump Keeps Cashing in With $1.5 Million Earnings From Bible Licensing
MADISON, Wisconsin, July 8 -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release:
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FFRF: Trump keeps cashing in with $1.5 million earnings from bible licensing
Newly released financial disclosures show President Donald Trump has earned more than $1.5 million licensing his name to the "God Bless the USA Bible," prompting renewed criticism from The Freedom From Religion Foundation.
Trump's latest financial disclosure, covering calendar year 2025, reports he earned an additional $208,486 from the licensed bible, on top of the $1,306,035 he disclosed earning the previous ... Show Full Article MADISON, Wisconsin, July 8 -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release: * * * FFRF: Trump keeps cashing in with $1.5 million earnings from bible licensing Newly released financial disclosures show President Donald Trump has earned more than $1.5 million licensing his name to the "God Bless the USA Bible," prompting renewed criticism from The Freedom From Religion Foundation. Trump's latest financial disclosure, covering calendar year 2025, reports he earned an additional $208,486 from the licensed bible, on top of the $1,306,035 he disclosed earning the previousyear, bringing his total reported earnings from the product to $1,514,521.
The expensive bible packages, which feature the "King James Bible" along with the U.S. Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, Pledge of Allegiance and Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA," blend scripture, patriotic documents and political branding into a single commercial product.
"As all things are with Trump, this has always been about money," said FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor. "Trump wraps himself in Christianity, wraps the Constitution inside a bible, and is persuading supporters to finance his political brand while enriching himself to the tune of more than $1.5 million. It is a stunning example of political pandering and exploiting religious faith for personal profit."
Trump first promoted the bible during the 2024 Easter season, declaring that "every American needs a bible in their home" while urging supporters to purchase what was advertised as "the only bible endorsed by President Trump." The bible has since spawned multiple $99 premium editions, including "Presidential," "America 250" and "Inauguration Day" versions.
Trump has famously struggled to discuss even the most basic aspects of the bible, declining on multiple occasions to identify a favorite verse or even express a preference between the Old and New Testaments. Yet he has earned more than $1.5 million licensing his name to an overpriced bible manufactured in China.
The bible itself has long drawn criticism not only from constitutional advocates but also from progressive Christian leaders who warn that combining scripture with patriotic documents promotes Christian nationalism by conflating devotion to God with allegiance to a political movement.
"Religion should never be a marketing strategy," Gaylor adds. "Nor should the office of the presidency become a platform for selling religious merchandise. Americans deserve leaders who respect both religion and government enough to keep them separate -- not presidents who see faith as another licensing opportunity."
Trump's bible enterprise demonstrates how easily religious symbolism can be weaponized to enrich politicians while undermining the constitutional principle of state/church separation that protects believers and nonbelievers alike. The Freedom From Religion Foundation continues to oppose the growing effort by Christian nationalists to blur the constitutional separation between religion and government for political and financial gain.
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The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to defending the constitutional principle of separation between state and church and educating the public on matters relating to nontheism. With about 41,000 members, FFRF is the largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics and humanists) in North America. For more information, visit ffrf.org.
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Original text here: https://ffrf.org/news/releases/ffrf-trump-keeps-cashing-in-with-1-5-million-earnings-from-bible-licensing/
[Category: Religion]
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FFRF: Trump keeps cashing in with $1.5 million earnings from bible licensing
Newly released financial disclosures show President Donald Trump has earned more than $1.5 million licensing his name to the "God Bless the USA Bible," prompting renewed criticism from The Freedom From Religion Foundation.
Trump's latest financial disclosure, covering calendar year 2025, reports he earned an additional $208,486 from the licensed bible, on top of the $1,306,035 he disclosed earning the previous ... Show Full Article MADISON, Wisconsin, July 8 -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release: * * * FFRF: Trump keeps cashing in with $1.5 million earnings from bible licensing Newly released financial disclosures show President Donald Trump has earned more than $1.5 million licensing his name to the "God Bless the USA Bible," prompting renewed criticism from The Freedom From Religion Foundation. Trump's latest financial disclosure, covering calendar year 2025, reports he earned an additional $208,486 from the licensed bible, on top of the $1,306,035 he disclosed earning the previousyear, bringing his total reported earnings from the product to $1,514,521.
The expensive bible packages, which feature the "King James Bible" along with the U.S. Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, Pledge of Allegiance and Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA," blend scripture, patriotic documents and political branding into a single commercial product.
"As all things are with Trump, this has always been about money," said FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor. "Trump wraps himself in Christianity, wraps the Constitution inside a bible, and is persuading supporters to finance his political brand while enriching himself to the tune of more than $1.5 million. It is a stunning example of political pandering and exploiting religious faith for personal profit."
Trump first promoted the bible during the 2024 Easter season, declaring that "every American needs a bible in their home" while urging supporters to purchase what was advertised as "the only bible endorsed by President Trump." The bible has since spawned multiple $99 premium editions, including "Presidential," "America 250" and "Inauguration Day" versions.
Trump has famously struggled to discuss even the most basic aspects of the bible, declining on multiple occasions to identify a favorite verse or even express a preference between the Old and New Testaments. Yet he has earned more than $1.5 million licensing his name to an overpriced bible manufactured in China.
The bible itself has long drawn criticism not only from constitutional advocates but also from progressive Christian leaders who warn that combining scripture with patriotic documents promotes Christian nationalism by conflating devotion to God with allegiance to a political movement.
"Religion should never be a marketing strategy," Gaylor adds. "Nor should the office of the presidency become a platform for selling religious merchandise. Americans deserve leaders who respect both religion and government enough to keep them separate -- not presidents who see faith as another licensing opportunity."
Trump's bible enterprise demonstrates how easily religious symbolism can be weaponized to enrich politicians while undermining the constitutional principle of state/church separation that protects believers and nonbelievers alike. The Freedom From Religion Foundation continues to oppose the growing effort by Christian nationalists to blur the constitutional separation between religion and government for political and financial gain.
* * *
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to defending the constitutional principle of separation between state and church and educating the public on matters relating to nontheism. With about 41,000 members, FFRF is the largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics and humanists) in North America. For more information, visit ffrf.org.
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Original text here: https://ffrf.org/news/releases/ffrf-trump-keeps-cashing-in-with-1-5-million-earnings-from-bible-licensing/
[Category: Religion]
FFRF Blasts Religious Liberty Commission's Sweeping Attack on State/church Separation
MADISON, Wisconsin, July 8 -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release:
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FFRF blasts Religious Liberty Commission's sweeping attack on state/church separation
The Freedom From Religion Foundation has submitted an official public comment strongly opposing the draft report issued by the federal Religious Liberty Commission, warning that its recommendations would undermine one of the Constitution's most fundamental protections against uniting religion and government.
"The commission has turned the idea of religious liberty on its head," says FFRF Co-President ... Show Full Article MADISON, Wisconsin, July 8 -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release: * * * FFRF blasts Religious Liberty Commission's sweeping attack on state/church separation The Freedom From Religion Foundation has submitted an official public comment strongly opposing the draft report issued by the federal Religious Liberty Commission, warning that its recommendations would undermine one of the Constitution's most fundamental protections against uniting religion and government. "The commission has turned the idea of religious liberty on its head," says FFRF Co-PresidentDan Barker. "Instead of protecting every American's freedom of conscience, it repeatedly treats religious liberty as a license for the government to privilege believers and promote religion. That's not what the First Amendment says, and it's not what our founders intended."
In its extensive comment, FFRF argues that the commission's report is not an objective examination of religious liberty but rather an advocacy document promoting a narrow ideological agenda that mischaracterizes the Establishment Clause while minimizing the constitutional rights of religious minorities and the growing number of nonreligious Americans.
"[The commission's report] rests on a false premise: that the constitutional separation between religion and government is somehow hostile to religion," says FFRF in its formal comment. "The opposite is true. The Establishment Clause protects religious liberty by ensuring that the government neither favors nor disfavors religion. This principle has safeguarded both believers and nonbelievers throughout our nation's history and has helped foster one of the most religiously diverse societies in the world."
FFRF's comment challenges the report's repeated dismissal of longstanding constitutional principles separating church and state. The state/church watchdog notes that the Framers deliberately sought to keep government out of religion, citing James Madison's warnings that government involvement corrupts religion and Thomas Jefferson's famous description of the First Amendment as building a "wall of separation between church and state."
The comment also criticizes the commission for conflating private religious exercise -- which enjoys robust constitutional protection -- with government-sponsored religious activity. While individuals and public officials retain the right to practice their religion, FFRF emphasizes that government entities may not use official authority to promote religion or coerce participation in religious exercises.
Among the commission's recommendations that FFRF opposes are proposals to:
* Encourage the Department of Justice to reinterpret the Establishment Clause in favor of government promotion of religion.
* Create new federal "religious liberty" task forces, hotlines and reporting systems designed to advance preferred religious claims.
* Weaken restrictions on partisan political activity by tax-exempt churches through repeal of the Johnson Amendment.
* Expand government promotion of religion in public institutions.
* Encourage judicial appointments based on a particular ideological vision of religious liberty.
* Create new government awards recognizing a narrow conception of "religious liberty."
FFRF also warns that the commission largely ignores the constitutional rights of atheists, agnostics, humanists, religious minorities and Americans who simply wish to be free from government-sponsored religion.
"Religious liberty belongs equally to every American, including those who practice no religion at all," FFRF writes. "A government that favors Christianity necessarily diminishes the equal citizenship of everyone else."
The organization stresses that genuine religious liberty does not require government support of religion but government restraint.
"Americans remain free to pray or not pray, attend religious services or abstain, preach, evangelize, criticize religion, change beliefs, or reject religion altogether precisely because the Constitution prohibits government from taking sides in matters of faith," the comment states.
FFRF concludes that the commission should substantially revise or withdraw portions of its draft report that seek to redefine the Establishment Clause or privilege particular religious beliefs through governmental action.
"The Religious Liberty Commission is asking the public to comment, and we hope Americans will do exactly that," Barker says. "If you believe the government should not be in the business of promoting religion or privileging one faith over another, now is the time to speak up. Religious liberty belongs to all of us."
The commission has opened its draft report for public comment through Monday, July 12, 2026. Comments may be submitted by email to RLC@usdoj.gov using the subject line: PUBLIC COMMENT - [TOPIC OR CHAPTER NUMBER] - [NAME]
The Department of Justice notes that all comments are public records. Commenters should avoid including personally identifiable information, such as home addresses, in their submissions.
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The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to defending the constitutional principle of separation between state and church and educating the public on matters relating to nontheism. With about 41,000 members, FFRF is the largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics and humanists) in North America. For more information, visit ffrf.org.
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Original text here: https://ffrf.org/news/releases/ffrf-blasts-religious-liberty-commissions-sweeping-attack-on-state-church-separation/
[Category: Religion]
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FFRF blasts Religious Liberty Commission's sweeping attack on state/church separation
The Freedom From Religion Foundation has submitted an official public comment strongly opposing the draft report issued by the federal Religious Liberty Commission, warning that its recommendations would undermine one of the Constitution's most fundamental protections against uniting religion and government.
"The commission has turned the idea of religious liberty on its head," says FFRF Co-President ... Show Full Article MADISON, Wisconsin, July 8 -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release: * * * FFRF blasts Religious Liberty Commission's sweeping attack on state/church separation The Freedom From Religion Foundation has submitted an official public comment strongly opposing the draft report issued by the federal Religious Liberty Commission, warning that its recommendations would undermine one of the Constitution's most fundamental protections against uniting religion and government. "The commission has turned the idea of religious liberty on its head," says FFRF Co-PresidentDan Barker. "Instead of protecting every American's freedom of conscience, it repeatedly treats religious liberty as a license for the government to privilege believers and promote religion. That's not what the First Amendment says, and it's not what our founders intended."
In its extensive comment, FFRF argues that the commission's report is not an objective examination of religious liberty but rather an advocacy document promoting a narrow ideological agenda that mischaracterizes the Establishment Clause while minimizing the constitutional rights of religious minorities and the growing number of nonreligious Americans.
"[The commission's report] rests on a false premise: that the constitutional separation between religion and government is somehow hostile to religion," says FFRF in its formal comment. "The opposite is true. The Establishment Clause protects religious liberty by ensuring that the government neither favors nor disfavors religion. This principle has safeguarded both believers and nonbelievers throughout our nation's history and has helped foster one of the most religiously diverse societies in the world."
FFRF's comment challenges the report's repeated dismissal of longstanding constitutional principles separating church and state. The state/church watchdog notes that the Framers deliberately sought to keep government out of religion, citing James Madison's warnings that government involvement corrupts religion and Thomas Jefferson's famous description of the First Amendment as building a "wall of separation between church and state."
The comment also criticizes the commission for conflating private religious exercise -- which enjoys robust constitutional protection -- with government-sponsored religious activity. While individuals and public officials retain the right to practice their religion, FFRF emphasizes that government entities may not use official authority to promote religion or coerce participation in religious exercises.
Among the commission's recommendations that FFRF opposes are proposals to:
* Encourage the Department of Justice to reinterpret the Establishment Clause in favor of government promotion of religion.
* Create new federal "religious liberty" task forces, hotlines and reporting systems designed to advance preferred religious claims.
* Weaken restrictions on partisan political activity by tax-exempt churches through repeal of the Johnson Amendment.
* Expand government promotion of religion in public institutions.
* Encourage judicial appointments based on a particular ideological vision of religious liberty.
* Create new government awards recognizing a narrow conception of "religious liberty."
FFRF also warns that the commission largely ignores the constitutional rights of atheists, agnostics, humanists, religious minorities and Americans who simply wish to be free from government-sponsored religion.
"Religious liberty belongs equally to every American, including those who practice no religion at all," FFRF writes. "A government that favors Christianity necessarily diminishes the equal citizenship of everyone else."
The organization stresses that genuine religious liberty does not require government support of religion but government restraint.
"Americans remain free to pray or not pray, attend religious services or abstain, preach, evangelize, criticize religion, change beliefs, or reject religion altogether precisely because the Constitution prohibits government from taking sides in matters of faith," the comment states.
FFRF concludes that the commission should substantially revise or withdraw portions of its draft report that seek to redefine the Establishment Clause or privilege particular religious beliefs through governmental action.
"The Religious Liberty Commission is asking the public to comment, and we hope Americans will do exactly that," Barker says. "If you believe the government should not be in the business of promoting religion or privileging one faith over another, now is the time to speak up. Religious liberty belongs to all of us."
The commission has opened its draft report for public comment through Monday, July 12, 2026. Comments may be submitted by email to RLC@usdoj.gov using the subject line: PUBLIC COMMENT - [TOPIC OR CHAPTER NUMBER] - [NAME]
The Department of Justice notes that all comments are public records. Commenters should avoid including personally identifiable information, such as home addresses, in their submissions.
* * *
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to defending the constitutional principle of separation between state and church and educating the public on matters relating to nontheism. With about 41,000 members, FFRF is the largest association of freethinkers (atheists, agnostics and humanists) in North America. For more information, visit ffrf.org.
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Original text here: https://ffrf.org/news/releases/ffrf-blasts-religious-liberty-commissions-sweeping-attack-on-state-church-separation/
[Category: Religion]