Those who are charitable do not need the government to help them give to the poor.
We ARE the government in this country. Or at least we're supposed to be.
No. The government is supposed to be made up of representatives, not each and everyone of us. The representatives are supposed to be entrusted with specific enumerated powers necessary for the benefit of society. Because the representatives are not perfect, their power is supposed to be strictly limited to the enumerated powers. And a system of checks and balances was set up between the branches of government. Charity is not an enumerated power. Thus when representatives start engaging in it, it is no longer us doing it.
So no, the government is not the same as the people. And particularly not the same as "us" in the sense of the body of Christ.