i think liberals would like a big government so that the wealth is redistrubuted to the populations that need it. Right now wealth is concentrated to the rich and thats not fair.
The rich used fast and savvy gimmicks to get where they are, yes they worked hard, but they worked hard immorally to get where they are.
They might want a big government that will give reparations to the poor and all those who have been oppressed as they do now with social security, food stamps, and welfare.
There are ways of redistributing wealth without massive government. For example, co-determination laws give workers more power to negotiate fair wages with their employers. This obviously helps redistribute wealth but not necessarily through more government taxation.
Other examples could include requiring people to give a certain percentage of their income towards helping the poor, or to a local school, or to the government to do that for them. Doing it that way, people would not be obliged to give their income to the government if they did not want to, and could give directly to a charity instead, thus circumventing government bureaucracy in the process.
Resource taxes are another way to influence change without massive government. Those who don't want to pay too much in resource taxes have the option of consuming fewer resources, leading to smaller government but also less traffic, etc. thus reducing the need for government to build more highways for example.
In other words, it is possible for the government to promote progress without necessarily having to expand itself, but rather simply by manipulating the flow of money in the private sector itself. Requiring people to save a percentage of their income in good times for a rainy day would be another example of the government manipulating the free market without necessarily growing itself.
