it it late and I don't have time to write much. First and foremost Medicare and most other government programs are wholly unconstitutional. Second, all the money the government spends (opps, wastes) on social programs accomplish little good and damage the very core of a moral and free society. The hard working citizens of this great Republic, if given back the dollars wasted by the parasite class of DC and the state capitols, would spend the money more wisely and help those in need more compassionately that ANY government bureaucrat. It is an absolute insult to the concept of Liberty and responsibility to believe in any way, "if the government doesn't do it, it wont get done." Last, do you realize that with most social programs over 70% of the money is absorbed by petty bureaucrats who's main purpose is to create useless rules and harass the innocent. The RINOs in Congress are betraying the very foundations of this great Republic. They should be shamed and run out of town.
Good point about the un-constitutional nature of this. If voters really believe in helping the sick through the power of the state, then they can vote for those programs through their state and local governments.
That is how Republicans can win this argument at the federal level. Assuming they aren't actually closet socialists.
Every colonial state had poor laws in effect.
One of the colonial judges roles were to force towns to care for the lame and indigent. Some communities had a bad habit of taking their poor and indigent to other communities and dropping them off. So the state judicial system began forcing towns to care for their own.
This same problem surfaced between states. And that's a large part of how it became federalized.
You may be right that consitutional power is not specified for poor laws at the federal level. But if it wasn't I'd vote for an amendment in a heartbeat.
If you are right that 70% of the money is absorbed by petty bureacrats, then we need to fix the program and make it more efficient. However, fixing the program CANNOT include eliminating governmental support for the poor.
Scripture links a kings tenure to how he treats the poor. If "we the people" fail to perform our inate governmental duty to the poor, I believe God will remove us from governing ourselves.