See I always interpreted it as a way to get "moderate republicans" on board; triangulation tells them that if they move their policies to the right, then moderates who are afraid of good polucy will vote for them. I remember Obama talking about how not free his healthcare plan was, repeating "skin in the game" dozens of times.

Where you get the funds is irrelevant to the conversation, I am trying to understand the mind of somebody who genuinely believes complicated, means-tested tax breaks is better policy than literally just giving people checks with your party's name on it.

I assumed this was like cable-news poisoned boomers who like free healthcare and not haulling their neighbors off to concentration camps and not blowing up school children in Iran, but had it drilled into their head that complicated, means-tested healthcare for the deserving is more feasible, and having ICE politely escorting their neighbors into a van out of view is more realistic, and waging the war more competently is electable.

But someone who genuinely wants the enshittifed-until-they-help-nobody versions of good policies is baffling to me.