The welfare state isn’t going anywhere. The current debate is, as our recent guest William Voegeli argues, simply “narcissism of small differences.” It will surely mean a nasty fight, but it won’t end with any dramatic changes to the public’s philosophy of government and what it is meant to do or provide. The truth is – people like getting stuff. And politicians have no incentive to be clear about how the welfare state works. Instead, they are comfortable with the vast majority of the public fundamentally misunderstanding social security and welcome the welfare state’s ability to buy off voters.
Why so pessimistic? As Voegeli argues in the episode below, “liberal victories advance liberalism. Conservative victories postpone liberalism.” Even in the reign of the Republican Party from 1980 – 2007 (where the GOP controlled any combination of the White House, House and Senate), the cost of the welfare state ballooned 77%.
No one under the age of 45 has any memory of government being organized any differently – FDR’s New Deal and LBJ’s Great Society fundamentally changed the intellectual framework for our government, We went from a limited constitutional government to a more energetic, powerful government that can (try to) solve people’s problems. Voegeli, while submitting to the reality of a continued welfare state, argues that the GOP needs to find a welfare state that we can live with and admire. One that creates a social safety net that actually helps those who really need it, without propping up and enabling those that don’t and/or spending money that we simply do not have.
For a historical look at the creation of the welfare state, its growth and continuation (and thoughts on what to do about it), watch Voegeli’s full episode below:
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