Debunking the Myth that Conservatives Want "Small Government"
As Trump militarizes cities, understand the deeply racist past behind the myth of "small government"
As you read this Donald Trump has militarized Washington D.C., and is calling in more National Guard troops from Ohio, West Virginia, and South Carolina. It does not take a historian to recognize this is fascist (Spoiler: This is verbatim out of Hitler’s playbook).
In this piece I want to focus on the sheer hypocrisy of the MAGA movement, who continue to claim they’re the “party of small government.” This is a lie. A devastating lie that harms every person in this country. And the receipts I provide in this piece will be eye opening to many.
Conservatives love to champion themselves as the party of "small government,” arguing that people should learn to “pick themselves up by their bootstraps.” But history—and their own actions—tell a very different story. The truth is, Conservatives have never wanted smaller government. They’ve always wanted government that disproportionately benefits white Americans while cutting resources for Black and brown communities. This is not my opinion. And unless leaders on the left recognize this as the nature of the fight we are in, and respond effectively to counter its harmful impact, we will all continue suffer. Let’s Address This.
The History of Big Government for (Only) White Americans
Ronald Reagan popularized the famously racist welfare queen trope, alleging it was a Black woman who received multiple welfare checks for multiple children. The fact of course is that this was and remains false and racist projection. We know that 9 of the top 10 states that are the largest recipients of federal welfare are Red states, that white Americans receive more welfare benefits than does any other demographic, and that white opposition to welfare is largely due to racial resentment of Black and brown people also getting those benefits.
But none of this is new.
For centuries, white Americans have been the primary beneficiaries of big government policies that provided them exclusive economic security, land ownership, immigration, education, social welfare, and generational wealth. The myth that conservatives oppose government welfare spending ignores the fact that white Americans historically received—and continue to receive—massive government benefits, usually at the exclusion of Black and brown people. Receipts below.
For example:
The Homestead Act (1862): The U.S. government gave away 270 million acres of land almost exclusively to white settlers, laying the foundation for generational wealth in rural America. Meanwhile, formerly enslaved Black Americans were promised “40 acres and a mule”—a promise that was never fulfilled. And the Homestead Act isn’t some ancient piece of legislation, it was finally fully repealed only in 1987. No reparations to Indigenous Peoples, whose land was stolen, was ever paid. Nor were reparations paid to the formerly enslaved Black Americans who worked and toiled for nearly 300 years under slavery.
Open Borders Immigration for White Europeans: Until 1965, whites enjoyed near-exclusive and undocumented access to U.S. immigration. European immigrants were welcomed with open arms, while Asian, Latino, and Black immigrants were explicitly banned or severely restricted. Post Civil War, the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 restricted most east Asian immigration, while still allowing white European immigration. That included the 1916 undocumented immigration of a man with a criminal record, who was unable to speak English, yet was allowed to enter the United States anyway. His name was Freidrich Drumpf—grandfather of Donald Trump. A year later The Immigration Act of 1917 passed, which banned, Africans, Latinos, most Asians and other non-white people from entering the United States. Then, The Immigration Act of 1924 completely barred all Asian immigration while still prioritizing Europeans.
The GI Bill (1944): Designed to help WWII veterans reintegrate into society with home loans, tuition assistance, and job training, the GI Bill created America’s modern middle class. But due to racial discrimination in its implementation, Black veterans were almost entirely shut out. While white veterans used the GI Bill to build family wealth, start businesses, and invest in the booming post WWII US economy, the more than 1 million Black American soldiers who fought against fascism in WW2 were denied this economic promise they had earned. No reparations were ever paid to the families of those Black Americans, who absolutely are still alive today.
FHA Loans and Redlining: It wasn’t just Black soldiers to whom the US Government denied economic justice. In the mid-20th century, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) systematically denied home loans to all Black Americans, all while financing white homeownership in segregated suburbs. This practice, known as redlining, robbed Black families of the ability to build generational wealth. Meanwhile, white families passed down homes, equity, and financial stability, creating generational wealth. Those homes that sold for $10,000 in the 1940s-1960s, helped white families build hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars, of generational wealth to pay for college tuition for their children, buy newer homes, new cars, and give their children sizable inheritances. Again, all made possible by government programs denied to Black and brown Americans.
Legacy Admissions: Many of today’s elite universities were built on Jim Crow-era admissions policies, when Black students were largely barred from higher education. Now, the descendants of those white-only admissions receive preferential “legacy” status, ensuring the cycle of racial privilege continues. As I’ve researched and written before:
While conservatives protested the 8% Black students at Harvard, Legacy Admissions and sports admissions accounted for 43% of white students accepted to Harvard. And shockingly, 75% of those students would not have qualified or been accepted on merit.
Again, it was never about ensuring meritocracy, it was always about upholding white supremacy.
Education Funding Today: Even as you read this, a recent analysis by EdBuild concludes that today, more than a half century after schools were desegregated, white majority school districts receive $23 billion more in funding annually when compared with districts that serve mostly students of color. This means, as the report states, “that for every student enrolled, the average nonwhite school district receives $2,226 less than a white school district.” This is the legacy of how the systemic white supremacist policies described above continue to disparately impacting our children today due to the color of their skin.
Affirmative Action: And finally, if you’re surprised that Affirmative Action is on the list of government programs that disproportionately helped white people, don’t be. Why? First, because Affirmative Action was never about admitting unqualified Black people, it was always about ensuring qualified Black people also were considered for education and employment. And perhaps just as, if not more relevant to the point, a half century of data of applying Affirmative Action policies demonstrates that the single demographic that benefitted most from Affirmative Action—more than Black, Indigenous, Asian, and Latino people combined—are white women. So even the so-called “Black welfare” helped white people more than every other demographic combined.
This above list is by no means exhaustive, but it should paint a clear picture. Whether the subject is getting free land, enjoying undocumented immigration, getting funding via military benefits, procuring affordable housing, receiving top tier education, or getting welfare benefits for every day living expenses—the US Government has always led from the front to ensure access to all of the above and more to white Americans, while actively cutting out, restricting, and flat out criminalizing those same benefits for Black and brown immigrants and born Black and brown US Citizens.
Even now, Trump deploys the military to two cities led by Black mayors, who voted overwhelmingly against him in the Presidential election, and who did not request National Guard support. I have no doubt that he will target more Black and brown led cities next. He was never about national security—he is always about white supremacy.
The Complexion for Protection
The point I’m making, therefore, is not to cut social safety nets, but to ensure they include all people in this country—not just those with the complexion for protection. (Credit to the late great Paul Mooney for coining that phrase).
Unfortunately, the entire so-called “DOGE” and anti-DEI efforts aim to do one thing—return America to that era of overt systemic racism against non-white communities in America. That is what the “again” in MAGA has always meant. The folks who have had privilege throughout the entirety of American history, suddenly feel oppressed at the mere thought of equality, and are doing everything in their power to ensure they can maintain their economic, social, and power privilege.
If conservatives truly believed in “smaller government,” they would cut the tens of billions in subsidies for oil and gas corporations, refuse to bail out banks who destroy our economy, and eliminate corporate welfare for billionaire tech bros. But instead, they are laser-focused on dismantling programs that uplift Black and brown communities.
And now, MAGAs cut hundreds of billions in Medicaid and kick 17 million off healthcare, gut SNAP and doom tens of millions more to hunger, and gut housing assistance to exacerbate an already catastrophic housing crisis—that will also devastate rural white Americans—all while giving billionaires trillions more in tax cuts. Thus, the Southern Strategy becomes clear—pit working class people against one another while further enriching the already absurdly wealthy. This is why I have repeatedly stated that we cannot buy into conservative culture wars. We must recognize that with Trump and the entire MAGA movement, this is a class war of the billionaire elite against all working people. We must stand united to fight back.
How Do We Respond?
First, we must recognize that the conservative vision of “small government” isn’t about fiscal conservatism—it’s about racial control and class war. They want a government that funds white prosperity while cutting off economic opportunity for Black and brown people. This is not just political discrimination—it’s economic warfare. And it’s time we call it what it is: state-sponsored white supremacy.
Next, we must take action. Here are some clear steps you can take:
✅ Call your representatives. Demand that they protect funding for social safety nets that serve all Americans, not just rural white conservatives.
✅ Support unions and workers’ rights organizations. These groups are on the frontlines fighting against corporate greed and racial discrimination in federal funding. If your job doesn’t have a union, start one. Here are steps on how to start a union.
✅ Vote in every election. State and local policies often determine how federal funds are distributed—make sure you’re voting for candidates who will fight for fairness. I just voted in my local municipal elections and turnout is still embarrassingly low.
✅ Invest in the people working against injustice. Support Let’s Address This and look at the dozens of thought leaders I recommend in my Recommendations tab. Share this information widely. The more people understand the true intentions of powerful conservative politicians, the harder it becomes for them to push their racist policies under the guise of fiscal conservatism.
✅ Build community. When you take action, others will notice. Bring them along with you to your next city council meeting, school board meeting, or public protest. We need mass movements of people, and you can be a leader in your circle of influence.
None of the above is a quick fix to anything, but it is an important step to turn the tide.
Finally, we must be consistent and not lose hope. What we are seeing from MAGAs are the gasping breaths of a dying white supremacist ideology. It is no surprise to me that they are lashing out violently and belligerently. Their hate is unsustainable. But their mission is clear—not small government, but absolute power. Our resolve must be firm. The fight for racial and economic justice is ongoing, and we cannot afford to let white supremacist policies become the norm. The conservative war on social programs isn’t about helping all Americans—it’s about preserving white racial hierarchy at the expense of everyone else, while further enriching the billionaire class.
Let’s act with urgency and unity, and not allow history to repeat itself.
I am a 93year old white woman and I have known the truth of what you are saying, since in my 30's I was helped to expand my consciousness with the help of a Monk, Thomas Merton. I am afraid there were never enough of us to make a difference but at least I and my children have never stopped fighting for the justice required.
Was just arguing with my MAGA dad about all this. SMH our debt is sickening and he has no idea why.