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USAFacts — the nonpartisan civic data initiative founded by former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer — is stepping out of its usual spreadsheet-and-report routine and onto the debate stage, launching its first-ever YouTube debate special titled “The American Dream at 250: Data doesn’t argue. They do.”
The 75-minute program pairs conservative commentator and Daily Wire founder Ben Shapiro with progressive author and NYU Stern professor Scott Galloway to hash out escalating cost-of-living pressures and the viability of homeownership — all while tethering their arguments to official government numbers. PBS NewsHour co-anchor Geoff Bennett moderated.
Ballmer steers the effort from the organization’s Fact Desk, leaning into USAFacts’ core mission of grounding national political flashpoints in verified government numbers rather than partisan rhetoric.
“Americans can disagree about the role of government in their lives, but productive debate begins with a shared understanding of the numbers,” USAFacts President Lauren Woodman said in a news release Wednesday, explaining that the project is designed to give the public a common factual baseline to evaluate competing policy choices.
The debate focused on three core economic questions, using federal data as a launching pad:
Capitalism vs. government intervention: The debaters tackled whether free markets or government programs are better equipped to preserve the American Dream and address mounting economic pressures.
The scale of government: They sparred over whether Washington is currently doing too much or too little to intervene in the everyday lives and finances of citizens.
The housing crisis and homeownership: The discussion zeroed in on whether homeownership remains a realistic milestone of the American Dream for younger generations, and whether the government should step in to make housing more attainable.
Founded by Ballmer in 2017 with $10 million of his own money, Bellevue, Wash.-based USAFacts operates like a reporting unit for the public sector, aggregating statistics from over 70 federal sources.
The organization is best known for publishing annual corporate-style “10-K” reports on government revenue and spending, as well as running a data-driven “State of the Union” companion timed to the president’s annual address to Congress.
Watch the full debate below:
The preliminary results of a study commissioned by Space Northwest, an association focused on regional space ventures, suggest that Washington state’s space economy contributes $8.1 billion in direct economic output annually.
The newly reported figures show that the space industry’s economic impact in the Evergreen State has nearly doubled since a similar study in 2022. That earlier report also documented a doubling effect over the course of four years, from $1.8 billion in 2018 to $4.6 billion in 2022.
Kelly Maloney, Space Northwest’s co-founder and the chair of the association’s board of directors, shared the latest figures today at the Space Northwest Symposium in Federal Way, Wash. She said the preliminary findings, developed by BERK Consulting and Alliance Velocity, reinforce the view that space is not just a niche industry in Washington.
“We are effectively the Space Tech State,” Maloney said.
She said the state’s space sector directly supports about 12,300 jobs and $2.3 billion in labor income. When indirect and induced impacts are included, the figures rise to about 34,200 jobs, $12.4 billion in statewide economic output and $3.9 billion in labor income.
“For every direct space job in Washington, another 1.8 jobs are supported elsewhere in the economy,” Maloney said.
She noted that the space sector’s direct labor income averages about $188,000 per worker.
“That is twice the statewide average,” Maloney said. “So, this is not just a growing industry in terms of employment. It is an industry generating significant economic value and exceptionally strong labor income here in Washington.”
Maloney added that 94% of the state’s direct space sector jobs are concentrated in three highly technical areas. “Nearly 6,500 people work in space vehicle and propulsion manufacturing; more than 3,000 in research, engineering and computing; and just over 2,000 in space electronics and hardware,” she said.
Washington’s space workers play a central role in the satellite industry. More than 68% of all active satellites in Earth orbit were built in the state, according to the analysis. Most of those made-in-Washington satellites were produced at SpaceX’s Starlink operation in Redmond.
The study also found that 24 space startups headquartered or operating in the state have collectively raised more than $4.3 billion, including more than $3.7 billion since 2021.
Space Northwest is lending support to eight space startups through a new program called the Space Technology Accelerator for Growing Entrepreneurship, or STAGE. The selected startups will participate in a 12-week program, with each startup receiving three hours of personalized coaching alongside specialized workshops.
STAGE’s first cohort includes:
The preliminary findings reported by Space Northwest were produced by BERK Consulting and Alliance Velocity. Additional data sources include company-reported information, Crunchbase, and satellite data from Jonathan McDowell. The full report is still pending.
Check Space Northwest’s website for a schedule of Seattle Space Week events.
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