Why anti-government tea partiers still love government entitlements

Yes, the irony is rich. It also has progressive roots.

Tea Party
(Image credit: (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File))

Many conservatives and tea party types talk a good game about shrinking government and cutting spending, but also react virulently when an entitlement they cherish, like Social Security and Medicare, is threatened. Progressives love to mock the tea partiers who demand, "Get your government hands off of my Medicare!" It gets laughs. And sure, fair enough.

But this conservative attitude isn't just rank hypocrisy. It also gets at some key aspects of the way our political life is set up.

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Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry

Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry is a writer and fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. His writing has appeared at Forbes, The Atlantic, First Things, Commentary Magazine, The Daily Beast, The Federalist, Quartz, and other places. He lives in Paris with his beloved wife and daughter.