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 [less than $4.6165 trillion]
You could run thoroughly "socialist" welfare and helath care systems (or Soviet Union itself) for decades on this money.
(Hat tip to Jim Bianco and Barry Ritholtz, of course.)
