Quotes Professor Anthony Fowler
February 20, 2025

A new poll from Reuters/Ipsos finds that roughly 58% of respondents are worried that the Trump administration's efforts to cut government funding could negatively impact their lives, expressing concerns for programs like Social Security and federal student aid. Even among respondents who self-identify with the "Make America Great Again" label, 44% worry that the richest Americans are profiting from ties to the White House.

For all these concerns, Professor Anthony Fowler explains to Reuters that even with all the uncertainty, as long as these more localized outcomes on programs like Social Security don't come to pass, President Trump's sweeping cuts would likely be a political boon. He says, 

If DOGE successfully saves taxpayers money without significantly cutting things they care about, this will be a political winner for the Republicans. Of course, government employees who lose their jobs will be upset, but the median voter would like to see the government downsized, so if DOGE does its job well, it will be popular.

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Anthony Fowler
Faculty Spotlight

Anthony Fowler
Sydney A. Stein Jr. Professor

Anthony Fowler is the Sydney A. Stein Jr. Professor at the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago. His research applies econometric methods for causal inference to questions in political science, with particular emphasis on elections and political representation.