In 1956, the US population was 168,903,031, and the federal government spent about 76 billion dollars (about 556.65B adjusted for inflation to 2006). In 2006, the US population was about 300 million, and the feds spent about 2,285.491 billion. Dividing the spending by the population numbers gives us a per person adjusted for inflation 1956 spending of $3,295 in 1956 and a whopping $7,618 per person in 2006.
The feds are spending almost two and a half times as much per person, adjusted for inflation. And that number is only going to grow faster over the next few years.
The feds are spending almost two and a half times as much per person, adjusted for inflation. And that number is only going to grow faster over the next few years.