It’s coverage like this that lays bare the noxiousness of our new Bailout Nation. From the Belmont (Mass.) Citizen Herald:

Jeffrey Simon, the state’s infrastructure investment director, said the state’s eventual harvest from the federal stimulus act, including competitive grants, tax and bond benefits, could hit roughly $17 billion.
Between direct funding for state and local governments and recovery and reinvestment monies earmarked for individuals and non-governmental organizations, Massachusetts is receiving $17.7 billion in funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, according to a report released Wednesday by the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center.
So far, $2.5 billion has been received by residents in the form of tax reductions, Pell Grants, unemployment benefits and other programs, while about $1.8 billion has gone to state government, according to the report.
Budget analysts say the funding has been vital in propping up state services, but warn that without a second, massive stimulus, the state will face a “cliff effect” in fiscal 2012 when that pool of federal aid runs dry.

You see how Washington is now akin to a drug pusher? An initial bailout of state governments eases their pain and makes them feel better for a little while, after which they’re going to crash without another fix.

But more fundamentally, are Massachusetts residents really getting a net bailout in the first place? State politicians, liberal activists, and the people they are able to snooker with their prattle focus entirely on the flow of funds from Washington to Beacon Hill, and then out to local communities, without considering the flow of funds to Washington from investors buying bonds and, eventually, from taxpayers paying them off.

The net differs across the states based on such factors as average incomes, urbanity, geography, and natural resources. According to the Tax Foundation’s analysis of state interactions with the federal budget, Massachusetts became a net donor state nearly 20 years ago. That is, residents of Massachusetts only get back a little over 80 cents for every dollar they are compelled to send to Washington. The provisions of the federal “stimulus” package, properly consider a federal bailout of state politicians, do not appear to change the underlying dynamic.

In other words, Washington is indeed treating Massachusetts very much like a pusher — giving it a fleeting feeling of euphoria while robbing it blind.