'When special interests put their thumb on the scale, and distort the free market, the people who compete by the rules come in last.'

"When special interests put their thumb on the scale, and distort the free market, the people who compete by the rules come in last." -- Barack Obama, 2 August 2008

The United States is on an unprecedented spending and borrowing binge.

For the third consecutive year, the budget deficit will top $1 trillion.

Under President Obama the federal government has incurred "more debt than the previous 43 presidents combined... [while] government has taken more control, by purchasing General Motors and Chrysler, monopolizing the student loan market and by owning over half of America's mortgages."

Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels likened the federal debt to the Soviet threat during the Cold War: "We are currently borrowing the entire defense budget from foreign investors... Within a few years, we will be spending more on interest payments than on national security. That is not, as our military friends say, a 'robust strategy'."

And just who are the special interests that the president decries as he rings up these catastrophic deficits?

According to OpenSecrets, labor unions are -- by far -- the dominant contributor to campaigns.

And the lion's share of those donations -- and all donations -- go straight into Democrat campaign coffers.

Dr. Antony Davies of Duquesne University (PDF) states that "Labor unions have given twice as much money to politicians as the Telecommunications, Insurance, Tobacco, Pharmaceuticals, and Real Estate industries combined."

More than half of all union members are public sector workers. Which means the Democrat Party is the party of big government special interests.

Unions funnel more than 90% of members' dues into Democrat campaigns--while Democrat politicians and bureaucrats keep spending on "government programs" (i.e., public sector union employment) to keep those campaign contributions flowing.

This nefarious partnership has resulted in insane and "unsustainable" levels of spending. And that's according to Bill Clinton's Treasury Secretary, Robert Rubin.

Public sector unions need to be de-certified and dismantled if this country is to survive.


Hat tips: Brad, Dr. Antony Davies (graphs from original PDF report) and Gateway Pundit.