can a democrat explain to me why a bigger government is better?

Question

i don't understand it.

Answer 1

you guys need to get over this party stuff because it no longer applies it's just a big racket of deception

Answer 2

People talk about 'bigger' government but tend not to have a very specific idea of what that term refers to. The moderate left tend to be more supportive of welfare programs, public libraries etc. The downside of which is normally a greater tax burden. The moderate right tend to hold a greater belief in leaving things to the free market economy, with less public money diverted to welfare and other public programs, the benefit of which is is lower taxes. That's why, fairly or unfairly, republicans are often characterized as championing the causes of the rich and democrats the causes of the poor.

What's important to remember in the context of US politics is that BOTH republicans and democrats are right of center. If the democratic party existed in (say) Europe, they'd likely be the conservative option. So for all the talk of democrats supporting big government, neither are particularly keen on legitimately big government.

Also don't forget neo-conservatism, which takes rightish foreign policy (hawkishness) but combines it with a left-thinking acceptance of a larger welfare system etc. In fact the neo-conservatives go one step further in terms of big government, and apply that same idea to military and security agencies, which creates a government even larger than the democratic platform. Neo-conservative thinking has had a great influence on the current administration, so it may be that the current democratic platform is in fact less inclined toward big government than it's republican alternative, which is something of a new phenomenom in US politics.

Answer 3

Democrats and Republicans just don't have the same definition of "big government"

Republicans don't realize that when they try to force religion and morality down everyone throats that can also be considered "big government". Banning abortion, gay marriage and flag burning is also it's own form of "big government". Telling people what they can do in the privacy of their own lives is exactly what the Taliban did to the people of Afghanistan.

Just because Democrats want to spend more of our tax money on helping the people who live in this country.....instead of on a war we should have never started.....doesn't mean they favor "big government".

Answer 4

It isn't. Smaller government=less overhead=less government debt. I would love for a Republican to explain to me why bigger government and more debt is better than the smaller government and less debt we had under the last Democrat president.

Answer 5

The only people who expand government in the last 20 years have been Bush and Reagan, what were they again? Oh yeah , Republicans.

Answer 6

Probably not. But George Bush, or any member of the sitting U.S. Congress could explain to you why bigger government is better; they preside over the largest government in history - and all that's done for American taxpayers is put us TRILLIONS of dollars in debt! Bush's folly in Iraq has cost us $1.27 TRILLION already (that's $1 million a day for 3,478 years!)!!
Homeland Security is a joke, but the cruelest part of that joke is what it's cost American taxpayers. -RKO-

Answer 7

Ask a Republican. Reagan "grew" government beyond anything a Democrat would dare to do. And there is no more bloated, useless agency than Homeland Security, another fine Republican creation.

Answer 8

Only Republicans create bigger governments. Look up the word "specious". This word describes the questions you ask here.

Answer 9

I'm a Democrat and I don't understand your question.

I don't think a "bigger gov't" has anything to do with the democratic platform.

Answer 10

It'd be much better if we could populate government agencies with dwarfs.

Answer 11

clearly, bloated federal Government is the territory of the Neocon party.. you need to read more, and I don't mean sports illustrated.