Part of the reason is that what most people care about is their relative standing (i.e. doing better than their neighbor). Handouts to the rich do not change th

Part of the reason is that what most people care about is their relative standing (i.e. doing better than their neighbor). Handouts to the rich do not change their relative social standing in society, whereas handouts to people like them (but not them directly), do. The relative standing matters so much because it affects your social capital (and since your genes are always trying to find/mate with the best possible partner, relative social standing feels a lot more important than absolute one) That is the reason behind a lot of the backlash to programs like this. It changes (in a small way) the relative standing of ordinary people. Same underlying reason as the NIMBY movement.