Officials and bureaucrats may spend money extorted by government and piously call their efforts "compassionate." But theirs is the compassion of a thief justifying his theft.
That's why the best government is a small government that does not tax beyond the minimum necessary to accomplish its essential business. It leaves resources and money in the hands of people who know the true and effective means of compassion. In an indirect and profound way, then, the most compassionate government is the one that allows the citizens the greatest freedom and means to be compassionate.
The compassion of the bureaucrat was a hallmark of the late Soviet Union.
The only justification for a government's existence is to protect rights. The US was not created in the interest of compassion, nor was compassion recognized as a valid government enterprise. If compassion was truly a motivation of the people, then they would have created a mechanism of service that does not involve any forced cooperation and participation whatsoever.
The word compassion is a misnomer here. The real motivations behind this is, the voters demand for goods and services in return for a vote and the politician's assesment and response to that demand in return for a favorable vote.
Their is no compassion, or justice, involved in using other folks time and money to satisfy their desires and image.