"I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents."
The father of our Constitution, James Madison, firmly believed that our republic needed checks and balances to limit the influence of special interests. And yes, he clearly intended to include government benevolence in his objection.
Who wants to risk being called cold hearted or stingy? And that is the problem. It is too easy to assuage guilt with government benevolence. However, taxes should not be collected for discretionary purposes. The agreement between citizens and our government is to provide protection, promote commerce, educate the population and provide important protection from sanitary and public health threats.
Before public funds are spent, we should ask what is the purpose, list your goals, how is "success" measured, what is the application process for receiving the funds, and there should be a fair opportunity for all who wish to benefit from the expenditure of public funds? There should also be a way to ensure accountability and efficiency for the fruits of the taxpayer's labor.
Unfortunately, many government leaders are content to do nice things with other people's money, especially if it creates good will (or votes) from the recipients.
A quote attributed to Alexis de Tocqueville sums up the dangers of loose fiscal policy:
"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover they can vote themselves largess out of the public treasury."
It's time conservatives start protecting our democracy and demand fundamental changes in the way all levels of government spend our money.
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