STOP! Federal Spending Rises Record 16% in 2009

Federal domestic spending increased a record 16 percent to $3.2 trillion in 2009, the Census Bureau reported Tuesday, largely because of a boost in aid to the unemployed and the huge economic stimulus package enacted to rescue the sinking economy.

The rise in spending was the largest since the Census Bureau began compiling the data in 1983. The Washington region was among the biggest beneficiaries of the government's spending.

With congressional elections looming this fall, the spike in federal spending has emerged as one of the nation's most contentious political issues.

Many Republicans accuse President Obama and his Democratic allies of being reckless spenders who are harming the nation's long-term economic prospects by inflating the deficit.

"The stimulus put the nation a trillion dollars further into debt, which was bad enough, but an additional concern is that there will be efforts to extend and make permanent many of the stimulus programs," said Chris Edwards, an economist at the Cato Institute, a right-leaning think tank.

Obama and many Democrats argue that the spending rescued an imploding economy while repositioning it for the future by dramatically expanding funding for education, green energy technology and job training.

They also say that much of the increase in federal outlays went to struggling families through emergency health-care assistance, extended unemployment benefits and food stamp enhancements.