I’d also add here that there are always government jobs that need to get done that go unfunded, because of the constant pressure to keep local taxes low (nonpartisan pressure, I’d add).

I mean, what school couldn’t use a few more teacher’s aids, what public hospital couldn’t use a few more orderlies, and what parks department a few more landscapers?

And if you design these programs right, you can create them so they act as job training programs, which give people without skills or experience those skills and/or experience.