A recurring theme of public policy — one leftists often ignore — is how people respond to incentives. If the federal government runs programs that give individuals carte blanche to steal, then some unscrupulous actors will exploit those weaknesses to do so.
But those incentives go beyond individuals and also extend to the fight against waste, fraud, and abuse. In many cases, states have taken little action to crack down on fraud and waste within government programs because the federal government provides the bulk of the funding for said programs. If Washington gives states a blank check regardless of whether they crack down on fraud, why shouldn’t those states embrace actions that bring their area more taxpayer dollars, even if those dollars come from illicit activity?
