Some Bailout Context

Amanda Carpenter | December 01, 2008 9:36 AM

Bianco Research crunched the adjusted for inflation numbers for previous conflicts and federal programs to compare it to the cost of the financial bailout

If you count the Citi bailout, our total Wall Street welfare costs are more than $4.6 trillion. This is more than all the programs below

combined. It will also cost more than the entire cost of World War II which, adjusted for inflation, cost Americans $3.6 trillion in today's dollars.

• Marshall Plan: Cost: $12.7 billion
Inflation Adjusted Cost: $115.3 billion

• Louisiana Purchase: Cost: $15 million
Inflation Adjusted Cost: $217 billion

• Race to the Moon: Cost: $36.4 billion
Inflation Adjusted Cost: $237 billion

• S&L Crisis: Cost: $153 billion
Inflation Adjusted Cost: $256 billion

• Korean War: Cost: $54 billion, Inflation Adjusted Cost: $454 billion

• The New Deal: Cost: $32 billion (Est)
Inflation Adjusted Cost: $500 billion (Est)

• Invasion of Iraq: Cost: $551b
Inflation Adjusted Cost: $597 billion
• Vietnam War: Cost: $111 billion
Inflation Adjusted Cost: $698 billion
• NASA: Cost: $416.7 billion
Inflation Adjusted Cost: $851.2 billion

TOTAL: $3.92 trillion