States across the nation rely on poor suckers to fund their spending. No, we’re not talking about taxpayers – we’re talking about lottery ticket purchasers. According to new studies, households earning $13,000 per year spend almost $1,170 per year on lottery tickets – 9 percent of total income. As it turns out, many people living in poverty make poor financial decisions.

Yet states rely more and more on measures that target those people. Taxes on cigarettes and alcohol disproportionately affect the poor; lotteries target the poor. None of this makes the economy any better. In fact, it impoverishes the poor even more, making them more dependent on government. Those who are spending over a thousand dollars a year on lottery tickets are likely receiving at least that much in government assistance to make up the difference.

President Obama’s entire economic plan is predicated on the bizarre notion that taking away money from those who are most likely to invest it well and handing it to those who are likely to invest it poorly will help the economy. It’s idiocy. And it’s gambling with America’s future.