Political cultures describe the people’s expectations of their government
Political cultures describe the people’s expectations of their government. Moralistic political cultures support an increased government role in the society (Lumen). Proponents of moralistic political culture attribute social inequality to economic and institutional policies. They argue that social inequality is beyond the control of the individuals. Thus, political moralists support progressive taxation, which involves taxing the rich more than the poor (Elazar 3). They believe that this approach is fair, and will allow the low-income households to afford basic needs including, food, rent, and healthcare. Those who subscribe to moralistic political culture argue that higher rates do not hurt the rich since they can afford basic needs even after tax. Also, moralistic states advocate for increasing taxes, which would then be used to provide fund social programs and reduce inequality. Thus, moralistic political culture favours higher taxes, particularly for the affluent.
Conversely, traditionalistic culture advances the ideology that government policies should represent the belief of those in power (Lumen). Traditionalistic states have low taxes since the governments allocate less funds to public services (Elazar 6). Residents in these states also believe the government’s role is to promote business. In this regard, proponents of traditionalistic political culture may support tax breaks and government subsidies to spur economic growth (Elazar 2). Also, they are more likely to advocate for tax cuts for corporations and the rich. For instance, Traditionalistic states supported the 2017 the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) (Steverman et al.) that the Trump administration passed. The legislation decreased the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% (Steverman et al.). These figures are an indication that proponents of traditionalistic political culture favour low taxes, particularly for businesses and corporations, to promote business investments.
Assistance to the Poor
States with moralistic political cultures tend to have an expanded role of government. Residents in these states expect their government to promote welfare by funding programs that will help the poor (Lumen Learning). Typically, proponents of moralistic political culture expects the government to use its power to promote quality of life for the low-income and the middle class (Elazar 3). Resident’s in moralistic states expect their government to implement measures that prevent discrimination of ethnic minorities (Elazar 3). California is among the moralistic states, and spend up to 35% of its budget to assists needy families, which is more than the national average expenditure of 21% (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities [CBPP]). These figures are an indication that Moralistic states are more likely to spend more on supporting the poor.
Traditionalistic states have the least spending on assisting the poor. Residents in these states believe that social inequality is a foreseeable outcome of free-market capitalism (Elazar 3). In this regard, traditionalistic states have allocated limited funds to public services compared to the moralistic ones. For instance, in 2018, the state of Texas spends roughly 6% of its budget for necessary assistance to the needy families, which was less than the national average spending of 21% (CBPP). As a result, the rates of poverty in these traditionalistic states, such as Texas, remains high. According to the 2014 statistics, states with traditionalistic culture had a poverty rate of over 40%, while those of individualistic and moralistic were less than 20% (Lumen). The limited government support for the poor in traditionalistic states has led to a high prevalence in chronic illnesses, such as obesity (Lumen). These figures challenge to state legislatures to consider the overall cost of poverty on the society when allocating funds to support the needy.