A group of Republican governors are standing together to reject the portion of the stimulus money dedicated to the working poor, recently unemployed and otherwise desperate as a part of their political campaign to gain prominence among fiscal conservatives. In short, they are sacrificing the nation’s most needy (and those most likely to immediately spend the money on necessities) for their own political motives.
Take South Carolina for instance, with the nation’s second highest unemployment rate, coming in at double-digit figures–Governor Sanford is planning to reject his state’s portion of the stimulus money that is dedicated toward the needy. Clearly this is a case where individual political motives run counter to the policies that promote broad social welfare, where personal agenda conflicts with what is socially optimal.