America the Welfare State

A Washington Post piece by Robert J. Samuelson illustrates how the welfare state dominates spending in the US:

The table shows the rise of the American welfare state. In 1956, defense dominated the budget; the Cold War buildup was in full swing. The welfare state, which is what 'payments to individuals' signifies, was modest. Now everything is reversed. Despite the war in Iraq, defense spending is only a fifth of the budget; so-called entitlement payments to individuals are almost 60 percent -- and rising. In fiscal 2006, the federal government spent almost $2.7 trillion. Social Security ($544 billion), Medicare ($374 billion) and Medicaid ($181 billion) dominated. There was $199 billion more for payments to the poor, including the earned-income tax credit and food stamps.

Defense is one of the few constitutional duties of the United States government, yet handouts and doing for people what they should be doing for themselves has become our greatest priority.