News about the federal budget is almost impossible to follow, so here’s some straight talk about whether or not there’s a federal budget for 2013 and why things are even worse than they seem.

Actually, the fiscal cliff never left. If you thought we solved the fiscal cliff with the deal back in January (or even the more recent debt ceiling deal), you’re mistaken.

The State of the Union is usually a speech about a vision – not only for the twelve months ahead, but for years to come. This year is different.

Last week’s fiscal cliff deal left much unresolved – no agreement on raising the debt ceiling, the fiscal year 2013 budget is still incomplete, and there was no more than a delay in dealing with one of the major components of the cliff: sequestration.