Sunday, May. 08, 2005

Numbers

33% Increase in federal spending during President George W. Bush's first term

27% Spending increase over the past decade for the 101 biggest domestic programs that the Republican-led Congress vowed in 1995 to eliminate

$89.4 million Amount of Iraqi money disbursed by U.S. officials for Iraq reconstruction efforts that auditors say cannot be sufficiently accounted for

$7.2 million Additional Iraqi funds disbursed there that cannot be accounted for at all

6% Percentage increase from 2003 to '04 in U.S. Latino employment, primarily in low-skilled jobs, according to a new analysis of government data

5% Percentage wage decrease from 2002 to '04 for Hispanics, the only major ethnic group to experience a decline for two consecutive years

$244,600 Winning bid on eBay in Germany for the new Pope's 1999 Volkswagen Golf

46,605 Number of miles on its odometer

Sources: Cato Institute (2); Washington Post (2); Pew Hispanic Center (2); New York Times (2)