Your entire post is hyperbole. You can find people with pet issues wherever you go. That does not make them supportive of big government or socialism. You take this way too far in trying to make a point. And you paint with way too broad a brush.
Sorry, but no go.
No one “wants” big, nanny state socialism. They want a federal government that has the power to do whatever they think ought to be done. They’re alright with “living document” arguments about how “things are different now” as long as it’s going to be used for things they think ought to be done.
The problem is that many people are opposed to government programs except when it is in their interest. The farmer may look in disgust at the welfare recipient in the big city while demanding his crop subsidy. The mass transit supporter may decry wasteful highway spending while insisting on subsidies for trains and subways. The "law 'n' order" advocate may disdain meddlesome social workers while seeing nothing wrong with speed traps, police bullying and SWAT team terrorism. The catering to special interests is how government has grown to the enormous size it has reached today, even under a supposedly conservative Administration. As long as special interests want socialism for themselves but laissez faire for others, government will continue to grow.