Trillions

Yesterday I made reference to a federal budget that is "over $2 trillion and headed for three -- if we aren't already there." Well, we are:

$3.6 trillion. Now, it is true that over time as a country's population expands that logically so too does the obligations of its government. But here is some perspective:

• In 1789 the Constitution was ratified, forming the beginnings of the modern federal government
• In 1987 or 1988, depending on who is counting, the first $1 trillion dollar budget was passed
• In 2001 the first $2 trillion budget was passed
  
• In 2008 the first $3 trillion budget was passed
  

For those keeping score, it took 199 years for the federal government to spend its first trillion dollar budget. It took 13 years to raise that to $2 trillion. 7 years to raise it to $3 trillion. And one year after that we are already more than halfway to the fourth trillion.

But you know what the real problem is? Right-wing nihilists who think that government is too big.