CASH, POLITICIANS, and VOTING. Politicians are dividing Americans into two classes — those who work for a living and those who vote for a living, by James Bovard.

In the same way that King Henry VIII cemented his power by distributing seized monasteries to his supporters in the early 1500s, contemporary politicians buttress their power by showering hundreds of billions of dollars on likely voters.

Like medieval kings who distributed land to any favored lackey, today’s politicians feel entitled to redistribute income to any group they please. Nowadays, there is no property title half as sacrosanct as a politician’s decree that some group deserves more handouts. But every new benefit program increases political control over recipients and over the people forced to finance the benefits.

Big-picture article, not too heavy.