Take a look at the difference between federal spending on any given state and the federal taxes received from that state. We measure the difference as a dollar amount: Federal Spending per Dollar of Federal Taxes. A figure of $1.00 means that particular state received as much as it paid in to the federal government. Anything over a dollar means the state received more than it paid; anything less than $1.00 means the state paid more in taxes than it received in services. The higher the figure, the more a given state is a welfare queen.

Of the twenty worst states, 16 are either Republican dominated or conservative states. Let's go through the top twenty.

• New Mexico: $2.03/li>
  
• Mississippi: $2.02/li>
  
• Alaska: $1.84/li>
  
• Louisiana: $1.78/li>
  
• West Virginia: $1.76/li>
  
• North Dakota: $1.68/li>
  
• Alabama: $1.66/li>
  
• South Dakota: $1.53/li>
  
• Kentucky: $1.51/li>
  
• Virginia: $1.51/li>
  
• Montana: $1.47/li>
  
• Hawaii: $1.44/li>
  
• Maine: $1.41/li>
  
• Arkansas: $1.41/li>
  
• Oklahoma: $1.36/li>
  
• South Carolina: $1.35/li>
  
• Missouri: $1.32/li>
  
• Maryland: $1.30/li>
  
• Tennessee: $1.27/li>
  
• Idaho: $1.21

...
Where can we find liberal bastions California, New York, and Massachusetts? California is 43rd, getting back only $0.78 for every dollar it sends to Washington. New York is 42nd, and one penny better off, at $0.79 per dollar. Massachusetts is 40th, receiving $0.82 for every dollar it sends to DC.