When Jonn McCain and Barack Obama rushed back to the White House prior to the election to make sure the $700 billion dollar bailout plan succeeded, many Americans where understandably concerned about the implications of such a consolidation of financial power and wealth. Little did most Americans know how quickly bailout spending would spiral out of control.

Congressmen and Congresswomen from all over the country received thousands and thousands of signatures and e-mails from citizens pleading for congress not to pass the bailout plan. Arguing that the bailout was a necessary evil, our politicians asserted that they knew better about finances than their constituents. Now, with the stock market continuing to drop, automakers lining up for their one bailout, and an astronomical budget deficit, CNBC reports that the total bailout bill is already running at over 4 trillion, so far:

Given the speed at which the federal government is throwing money at the financial crisis, the average taxpayer, never mind member of Congress, might not be faulted for losing track.

CNBC, however, has been paying very close attention and keeping a running tally of actual spending as well as the commitments involved.

Try $4.28 trillion dollars. That's $4,284,500,000,000 and more than what was spent on WW II, if adjusted for inflation, based on our computations from a variety of estimates and sources*.

Read the whole article from CNBC here