When full-time employees at large corporations still qualify for government aid like SNAP, taxpayers are effectively subsidizing the company's payroll. This allows the private entity to maintain higher profits by paying wages that are too low to live on, with the government covering the gap.

By leveraging bulk purchasing, Gavi vaccinates children in developing countries for just $24 (compared to $1,300 in the US). This small investment saves one life for every 50-60 children vaccinated, yielding a cost-benefit ratio unmatched in healthcare or philanthropy.

Arguing to redirect inefficient government spending towards populist policies like free buses is a trap. It doubles down on a broken system by replacing one form of poor allocation with another, ultimately accelerating economic decline rather than fixing the fundamental problems.

The government's standard procedure is to disburse funds and attempt to recover improper payments later—a highly inefficient process that costs hundreds of billions annually. A more effective system would require real-time prepayment verification, defaulting to "no pay" if eligibility cannot be confirmed, preventing fraud before it occurs.

Private capital is more efficient for defense R&D than government grants, which involve burdensome oversight. Startups thrive when the government commits to buying finished products rather than funding prototypes, allowing VCs to manage the risk and de-burdening small companies.

Treat government programs as experiments. Define success metrics upfront and set a firm deadline. If the program fails to achieve its stated goals by that date, it should be automatically disbanded rather than being given more funding. This enforces accountability.

Unlike typical government welfare, aid money in Argentina, even from international sources, is channeled through Peronist party operatives who hand it out physically. This frames the aid as a personal gift from the party, creating a powerful system of dependency and political obligation.

Instead of ineffective grants to incumbents, the US should leverage its world-leading capital markets. By providing lightweight government backstops for private bank loans—absorbing partial default risk—it can de-risk private investment and unlock the massive capital needed for new factories without distorting market incentives.

Jada McKenna debunks the myth that billionaires or foundations can replace large-scale government funding. She explains that while helpful, private donors rightfully see systemic support as a government responsibility and are unwilling to fill massive, structural funding gaps themselves, sticking instead to their own strategies.