Just the facts: Democrats & Republicans like same size government

Progressive Review - Contrary to what you have heard from Republicans - and are likely to continue to hear - neither the GOP nor the Democrats like to grow or cut the federal government. In fact, over the past fifty years, the non-uniformed government personnel count has varied by no more than 19%.

The highest civilian employment occurred under LBJ and Reagan. Obama's employment levels have been below that of Reagan for every year except 1982, when Regan had 6,000 fewer employees than Obama at his peak.

The big change in employment has come in the uniformed military. So why has the Pentagon's budget continued to soar? Mainly because it has shifted from funding troops to subsidizing defense contractors.