Entitlement Spending
According to USA Today:
Federal Employees earning over $150,000/years:
- 2005: 7,420
- 2010: 82,034
Since 2000, federal pay and benefits have increased 3% annually above inflation compared with 0.8% for private workers, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Here’s another USA Today article detailing how federal workers are now earning twice what the privately employed earn.
Ambiance 
chickelit said,
November 16, 2010 at 4:06 pm
In due time we’ll see how much of that astonishing increase occurred under the former and present administrations respectively. I think that under Bush, the federal payroll grew most rapidly with the coming online of entirely new Departments. But the bad press has certainly only come with Obama.
Because the firm I work for has a DC office, I know that Washington DC has been financially hyperactive in the just the past couple years. I hear weekly anecdotes about traffic, overcrowding, and housing prices. Outlandish salaries are driving this in part. The little bubble that is D.C. needs to pop.