As the New York Times put it, Pres. Trump’s proposed budget “puts struggling Americans on the edge.”

The budget would axe numerous domestic programs, including community development block grants. The $3 billion program implemented in the 1970s was created to provide states and cities flexibility in how they combat poverty. Proposed cuts to the program led to the widespread reports that Trump planned to cut “Meals on Wheels.”

These kinds of cuts create rhetorical difficulty for those of us who believe the government shouldn’t involve itself in social welfare – and other important stuff. While we can make strong economic, pragmatic and constitutional arguments for cutting such programs, in the real world, real people depend on them.  Funding cuts will undeniably create significant hardship for some people. All of the logical arguments in the world get swept aside when proponents of welfare spending say things like this.

“Seriously – can those of you on my Facebook feed who do not want your tax dollars spent on feeding the home-bound elderly and providing after school programs for poor rural youth explain why?”

Face it. No matter how logical your argument, you will come across as a callous jerk when you try to justify cutting funds to something like Meals on Wheels.

But the looming budget axe does offer those of us who oppose the government involving itself in every nook and cranny of life the opportunity to point out an important truth. If you depend on politicians to provide you with all of your needs, you place yourself at the mercy of the politicians. In other words, the moment you depended on Uncle Sam to feed grandma, you set yourself up for a Donald Trump to come along and snatch the spoon out of her mouth.

And we all knew at some point, a Donald Trump would come along, didn’t we? Isn’t that the nature of politics? The political process revolves around acquiring and holding on to power. We all know the vast majority of empty suits walking around Washington D.C.  don’t really care about grandma. They don’t know grandma. If they think they can garner votes by feeding her, great. But if they think they can garner votes by cutting a program, well, grandma can starve.

The same goes for nationalized healthcare. I heard progressives decrying the Ryancare changes to Obamacare, claiming they would literally kill thousands of people. Again, why in the world would you put your life in the hands of politicians or the political process?

“But the Democrats really do care!” so I’m told.

Sorry, I don’t buy it. Call me cynical, but I don’t think most of them care any more about the poor, the sick, or the hungry than the conservatives. They just know they can create permanent voter blocks by fostering dependence. When a person counts on your program, you have a voter for life. It’s all about power – power over you.

The lesson?

Stop trying to solve all of the world’s problems through the political process. If you want to feed the elderly, get people together and privately fund a program in your community. If you want to fund educational television, dig into your pockets and fund a station. If you want quality healthcare, stop letting people like Barack Obama and Paul Ryan come up with “plans” that will make you dependent on their whims and budget considerations.

If you don’t want to be at the mercy of people like Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, stop using government to mold the world into your image.

Trump caricature by DonkeyHotey via Flickr.