
How the nation’s fiscal and economic challenges, and possible solutions, impact current and future generations.
Episodes

May 20, 2026
May 20, 2026
44 min
This week on Facing the Future, Todd Harrison of the American Enterprise Institute lays out the pros and cons of the president's request for a 50 percent increase in the defense budget.

May 13, 2026
May 13, 2026
44 min
This week on Facing the Future, former U.S. Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND) explains why he supports a new fiscal commission as a way of finding solutions to the nation's growing debt and how reinstating the "Conrad rule" in the Senate would help.

May 6, 2026
May 6, 2026
44 min
This week on Facing the Future, Molly Reynolds of the Brookings Institution explains why the budget resolution recently passed by Congress is highly unusual and a year behind schedule.

Apr 29, 2026
Apr 29, 2026
44 min
This week on Facing the Future, students from the University of Iowa and their faculty adviser Dr. Alexandra Nica, describe how they reduced the debt-to-GDP ratio over the next 30 years and what they learned in winning this year's nationwide Fiscal Challenge competition.

Apr 22, 2026
Apr 22, 2026
44 min
This week on Facing the Future, Ben Ritz, Vice President of Policy Development at the Progressive Policy Institute, discusses why new tax cut proposals have him wondering whether Democrats learned the wrong lesson from 2024.

Apr 15, 2026
Apr 15, 2026
44 min
This week on Facing the Future, Jessica Riedl of the Brookings Institution evaluates President Trump's new budget and describes her findings on the Biden fiscal legacy.

Apr 8, 2026
Apr 8, 2026
44 min
The week on Facing the Future, former Senator Rob Portman and Concord Coalition Executive Director Carolyn Bourdeaux lay out the opportunities for impactful legislation to bring the debt under control. Alex Brill, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, moderates the discussion.

Apr 1, 2026
Apr 1, 2026
44 min
This week on Facing the Future, Alex Brill of the American Enterprise Institute will discuss tax policy and the budget. Then, Jon McHenry of North Star Opinion Research will explain the latest findings of the Peterson Foundation's Fiscal Confidence Index.

Mar 25, 2026
Mar 25, 2026
44 min
This week on Facing the Future, former Obama and Clinton economic advisor Jason Furman talks about the economic fallout from the war in Iran and the importance of putting the debt on a sustainable path.

Mar 18, 2026
Mar 18, 2026
44 min
This week on Facing the Future, Douglas Holtz-Eakin of the American Action Forum and former director of the Congressional Budget Office discusses the economy, potential war costs and how the rapid growth of U.S. debt is already having a negative effect on the economy and living standards.
