5 Stupid things about Ayn Rand

[5thHorseman]

Did you not read my post? I said that "size of government" doesn't generally mean the number of federal employees, but how much power the government gives them (and themselves). The "size" factor refers to how much the government invades our private lives, or how much they try to control.

Big Government = Lots of policy, regulation, control, etc.
Small Government = Minimal policy and regulation, with increased civil liberties.

My request for a source was for which party increased the power of government more, merely out of interest (if you had it).

Yes, I read your post.

The Economist seems to believe it's an employment thing.

As you can see, it has contracted under Barack Obama, as it did under Ronald Reagan; the real "big government" types were the two Bushes.

Given how Republicans go on about public sector employees whilst simultaneously removing civil liberties, it doesn't appear to be their definition either.

Nor Wikipedia's.

Big government is primarily defined by its size, a criterion that incorporates variables such as the number of employees, relative costs, and the "spheres of involvement"[clarification needed]. The concept can also be defined by the perceived role of government in society, the quality of services (that is, the impact of government effort), and the degree of democracy and societal representation.[3][4]

Finding something on increased power is seeming to be tough.....

Edit: I can't find much on expansion of power, but there's some here from the Reagan era onwards. It doesn't say anything good about any of them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Ci...Reagan_era