Still others interpreted “compassionate conservatism,” as the commentator Andrew Sullivan put it, as a “smokescreen...necessary for any vaguely successful retrenchment of government power in an insatiable entitlement state.” They expected tax cuts to be followed by a fangs-bared attack on social-welfare spending once deficits reemerged.
其它人则把理解的重点放在了“富于同情心”：他们希望布什的财政政策远离削减赋税，从总体上保留民主党的开支重点，包括加大联邦教育援助的投入，批准实行医药补贴，从而证明共和党人可以更为有效地掌管福利国家。正像新闻评论家安德鲁·苏利文（Andrew Sullivan）所说的那样，还有些人把“富于同情心的保守主义者”理解成一层“烟幕…必须借助它才能在贪得无厌的福利国家里成功地控制政府的权力。”他们期待着一旦赤字重新出现，政府会在降低税收的同时毫不留情地削减社会福利开支。