Promote the General Welfare

By Ski Ingram

November 2026

Promote the General Welfare

The Preamble tells us that the purpose of our Constitution is “to form a more perfect Union.” It goes on to list five principles to help ensure that America becomes a “perfect Union.”  The fourth principle is “Promote the General Welfare.”

Promoting the general welfare in this country was something that everyone once took for granted. Today, I’m not so sure. When I look at the state of the country today, I see violent crime in our streets, youth dying every day from fentanyl and other drugs coming across the southern border, the high prices for goods in our stores, a crumbling infrastructure and the high cost of housing and fuel. These things and more are clear evidence to me that our government is failing to provide for our general welfare.

Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution lays out the powers of the government, which in part is “to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts (customs), and Excises (excise taxes), to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defense and General Welfare.”  So, what does general welfare mean?

Too many politicians are fighting to increase their power by seducing our citizens with cradle-to-grave welfare. This is their way of garnering votes, but it does nothing for the honest hard-working people who pay most of the country’s taxes.

I asked two of my loyal readers to give me their thoughts about what Promote the General Welfare means to them.

Terry wrote “I believe our forefathers wanted government to get out of our way by giving the people the freedom of choice. Every man, through his own work, should strive to be self-reliant and work with the community and support others to do the same. There will always be those who do not have the mental or physical capacity to provide for themselves; however, I believe the best way to help them is to first seek help from family, friends, and churches, and only then seek governmental help as a resource.”

David replied: “I feel that we should all embody that phrase “promote the general welfare.” It means we should look at solutions that benefit most people and hurt the least; and that we should put ego and selfishness aside at all levels of government in order to make the most impactful and productive decisions. In order words, strive to be Christ-like in our day-to-day activities.”

I agree with Terry and David that our government was established to promote the general welfare, not guarantee it.

The Trump administration is promoting our general welfare by stopping illegals from crossing our southern border, by removing the nuclear threat from Iran, and rooting out waste and fraud, just to name a few. This administration is also building up our military and getting rid of DEI, woke generals and transgender personnel.

We now have a competent Vice President in JD Vance who loves America. Marco Rubio, our Secretary of State, is promoting America First policies. Pete Hegseth, as the Secretary of War, is training the military to once again be the best in the world.

In a few days we will be voting in the mid-term election. It’s imperative that we vote for the candidates who will fight to keep America free. It may sound like hyperbole, but I believe this election will be the most important election since the Continental Congress voted to separate from England in 1776. I love my country and do not want to see it fail. Patriotic men and women have been sacrificing their lives to preserve our freedoms since 1776 and as President Reagan said years ago, “we owe them something.” That something is to preserve this nation for all who live here, even for those who do not appreciate or understand what they have. “We the people” still have the power and responsibility to elect representatives who will promote the general welfare of this great country.

Ski Ingram is a combat veteran and a patriot who can be reached at:  www.Skiingram.com