Decisions about the size of the federal government are not so easy in the D.C. region, which has a huge number of residents with ties to Uncle Sam.

The thing about living in the D.C. area is that pretty much everyone has some tie to the federal government. Business owners have customers who work for the federal government.  Doctors have patients who do. WAMU, for instance, receives federal funding and support from federal contractors.

The U.S. is right in the throes of the debate on the appropriate size of the government right now: presidential campaigns are in full swing amidst concern about the growing federal deficit. But those conversations take on different meanings in the D.C. area.  Perhaps because of that co-dependency between area residents and the fed, people who live in the D.C. region are asking some pointed questions about the size and role of the federal government.  Continue reading “Part 1: ‘It’s Complicated’: The Federal Government And The D.C. Region”