Government Growth

A job reports came out this week and it started me thinking. The growth in jobs over the last year, proudly shouted about by the current President’s administration, had been over stated by more than 800,000! Now in this issue I am not going to say anything about government employees. But I do scratch my head when the woman in charge of the office responsible for determining job growth statistics denies any knowledge or can’t explain why the discrepancy occurred bothers me. It is her job! In the private sector had my estimates been off by 25 – 30% I would have been fired. But we all know government employees can’t be fired for performance. But I am an old guy…..

So I decided to do a little bit of digging. The one category poorly estimated that stuck out to me was the government job category. It, unlike manufacturing which actually posted over 100,000 FEWER than previously the government reported actually under estimated government job growth by 1000 MORE! Manufacturing shrunk while government grew. I guess we won’t make stuff in this country just all become bureaucrats. But I am an old guy…..

Since 2000 the federal payrolls have grown by 7% a year!! Today my tax dollars help pay the salaries of 2,900,000 federal employees. State and county employees are another 126,000 employees! Federal, state, and local, is more than all the active duty Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors, and Marines combined. Every time the government creates a new program, changes a regulation, comes up with some study panel, or creates a new office we have to hire more people. The government even adds people when they tax us more. I now shudder every time I hear a politician come up with a new initiative or idea.

Is it not time to cut back on government? Is it not time to grow the economy? Does not government growth take away resources? Does not the private sector support us? Is anyone tired of taxes? Need a job? Go to work for the government. Government business is good. But again I’m an old guy and I don’t get it….