Quote:
Originally Posted by Matt 26z
If you believe that Obama has increased the size of the government, I challenge you to post proof. Get a link in here. It shouldn't be too hard.
I'll be waiting.
But of course you won't post proof because none exists.
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According to the New York Times the federal government has grown under Obama.
Fact-Checking Obama and Romney - NYTimes.com
Size of Government
“The only time government employment has gone down during a recession has been under me.” — Mr. Obama
Again, it depends on how it is counted. Looking at the five months from Mr. Obama’s inauguration to June 2009, when the recession officially ended, and including state and local governments, which are not under his direct control, government employment at all levels was virtually unchanged, from 22,576,000 in January 2009 to 22,570,000 in June, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Total government employment was 21,969,000 in May 2012, a reduction of about 600,000 jobs. But looking only at the federal work force under Mr. Obama’s direct control, then government employment has actually gone up. He inherited a federal work force of 2,061,700, and it rose slightly through June 2009 to 2,109,700; by May of this year, it had grown further to 2,204,100, a 7 percent increase.
Mr. Obama is not correct in saying this was the “only time” government shrank during a recession. During the recession from July 1981 through November 1982, under President Ronald Reagan, and again during the recession from July 1990 through March 1991, under the elder President George Bush, government employment shrank slightly, both over all and in the federal work force specifically. The White House said he meant the recession and the 35 months after it.
Either way, while Mr. Obama has boasted of shrinking the public work force, he has advocated policies to prevent it from shrinking by helping state and local governments avoid laying off employees. In recent days, he has lamented that continuing economic troubles result in part from a decreasing public work force.