The states have various welfare programs, which are at least in part funded and regulated by the federal government. Unfortunately, these programs should be solely state run as the Constitution does not grant the federal government the power to redistribute wealth or offer assistance to those in need at the expense of taxpayers.
While most taxpayers have no problem assisting those who truly need, they do not want to work so someone else, someone quite capable, does not have to. They also shouldn’t want the federal government to sidestep the Constitution instead of leaving welfare, a states rights issue, to the several states.
States are not only better prepared to provide for their people than a cold and distant government, but they can also be more easily controlled. The people have a greater hand in their own governance when the state runs various programs.
There are also issues of waste, fraud, abuse, corruption and red tape. Each of these programs becomes a self-perpetuating bureaucracy, always on the look out for more ways and more users to help take advantage of federal funding streams. It’s gotten so bad now that some states advertise to sign people up for their programs. Even people who are not citizens of this country are invited to take part in numerous types of government assistance and services.
Despite the pork, the “administrative costs” that eat up a huge percentage of the budget, and documented abuse, these programs don’t teach people to become self-sufficient. Most important, welfare programs from food stamps and disability to Medicaid and Medicare (and everything in between) are not within constitutional parameters as long as the federal government has a hand in them.
