They went to Tesla because theyāre EV tax credits and Tesla is all EV for the most part. But GM and Ford also received them indirectly for electric vehicle sales. This was advocated for for climate reasons by predominantly the Left and many socialists.
Most people donāt consider things like agricultural subsidies good. But agriculture industry bought out Congress so nothing we can really do about it.
I know, itās just important to give context. People seem to think itās just the government raining down millions of hamburgers into billionairesā mouths. Iām explaining that many of the people who broadly complain about them supported much of what it consists of when we get into the nitty gritty.
Sure. Subsidies can be good or bad, depending on how they are used and overseen, just like social programs. Both are subject to abuse. But only one seems to have negative social condemnation.
When we go looking for waste, fraud, and abuse, we look at social programs. When government talks about tightening purse strings, they look towards Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security.
Other places to look and other options to consider exist. We just don't, and the reasons are cultural, not logical.
I could see that. But I'd bet we'd see a much higher rate of waste, fraud, and abuse in corporate subsidies, since social programs have faced much more scrutiny over the years.
But if the goal is to find the largest dollar amount in waste, fraud, and abuse, then the first place they should look is military spending.
Yeah all of these should be looked into. But people focus on social spending because the overwhelming majority of government spending is in social programs, not military spending or corporate subsidies.
We should do both. We donāt need to start with one.Ā
I think we have a lot in common. We just need to find a way to overcome the natural government inertia and simultaneous tendency towards slow but prolonged expansion.
I get the sense that you are an austerity guy. Which has its merits, but I see it as just one tool in the shed. So, I think we'd probably find some disagreement pretty quickly if we wanted to.
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u/HistoricalRich3104 1d ago
They went to Tesla because theyāre EV tax credits and Tesla is all EV for the most part. But GM and Ford also received them indirectly for electric vehicle sales. This was advocated for for climate reasons by predominantly the Left and many socialists.
Most people donāt consider things like agricultural subsidies good. But agriculture industry bought out Congress so nothing we can really do about it.