Why do conservatives obsess about people on welfare?

[My America]

because i pay

for you being

a government dependent

[civil_av8r]

If the system wasn't corrupt then there would be a lot less complaining.

[Can I Haz Banana?]

We're concerned that 0bonehead is destroying the economy putting those pepole on welfare, and that so many never want to leave it.

[Melissa Me]

Because it helps distract their voters.

[mommanuke]

Jealousy. They think people on welfare are getting the easy life without having to work for it. They think if they take it away, private philanthropy would take care of the poor, despite facts that show that simply isn't possible. They think if they take it away, all those lazy people would go out and get a job. Don't ask them what job, because they can't tell you that. The fact that even with welfare keeping people off the job market, the ratio is one job for every three applicants doesn't matter.

[littlecrayon198]

Because they've been told to ignore corporate welfare and huge military budgets.

The poor don't write checks or hire lobbyists. Which means they're easy targets.

[ms manners]

I wasn't even thinking about people on welfare until you brought it up.

Why are you obssessing about it?

I am more concerned with the millionaires in congress and all the benefits they vote for themselves.

[duker918]

"providing social assistance to those who genuinely need it." Here is problem number one. The people who 'genuinely need it' are being screwed by the people gaming the system.

If you are a single mother with one child and need help, ok, fine, lets help BUT the mother's side of the bargain is to a) work and b) have no more children until she can take care of the ONE she has NOW. Break that bargain and you are no longer 'genuinely in need', you are a moocher.
That's just one example.

[Historyguy]

Conservatives seem to be very sensitive to the idea that someone is putting one over on them and scamming them. They tend to see welfare recipients as people who are scamming the system by getting "free" money for not working when really what they should be doing is working harder. This offends their notion that monetary reward should be connected to hard work and talent.

[Shaun Holt]

Conservatives don't like their money to go to feed people who are too lazy to provide for themselves. Teddy Roosevelt, a progressive, said that no man should live on the earnings of another. Granted, things go hard for some people, but there are over 45,000,000 Americans on food stamps. Imagine if we still had bread lines across the nation, with 45 million people waiting in line. And you'd have no problem with it? Conservatives don't like 45 million people being dependent upon government for FOOD. Now healthcare.