“What should the government tax?”, “How much should the government collect in taxes?”, and “What should the government spend money on?” are all distinct questio

“What should the government tax?”, “How much should the government collect in taxes?”, and “What should the government spend money on?” are all distinct questions. “You should tax what you want less of” is a statement related almost solely to the first question; helping those without is mostly related to the third question. No one in the US argues that taxing something reduces the amount of it that (legally) occurs.