> aren’t politicians supposed to do stuff that they think people will vote for?
This is generally true, but there is a line beyond which this becomes problematic.
Surely you wouldn't support explicit vote buying, where a politician promised to repay voters with public cash after the election! If such a scheme were permitted, democracy would quickly cease to become a marketplace for ideas. It would devolve into a patronage system. Most of us would immediately recognize such a scheme as dangerous and question the legitimacy of any so-called democratic government whose majority was bought in such a manner. Do you agree that this would be a problem?
Why would this cease to be a problem if the kickbacks were paid in-kind, and only made available to the poor?
This is generally true, but there is a line beyond which this becomes problematic.
Surely you wouldn't support explicit vote buying, where a politician promised to repay voters with public cash after the election! If such a scheme were permitted, democracy would quickly cease to become a marketplace for ideas. It would devolve into a patronage system. Most of us would immediately recognize such a scheme as dangerous and question the legitimacy of any so-called democratic government whose majority was bought in such a manner. Do you agree that this would be a problem?
Why would this cease to be a problem if the kickbacks were paid in-kind, and only made available to the poor?