One of the important issues being raised in the race for the Republican presidential nomination is government spending. Most of the candidates and many conservative voters see the federal government as too large and in need of significant cuts. But when it comes to specifics, many see programs like Social Security disability insurance as too important to be cut.

With the South Carolina Republican primary on Jan. 21, it may be interesting to hear what residents of that state think about the possibility of cutting the SSDI program. One 54-year-old woman said she believes that the federal government wastes money on unproductive agencies. But as a former nurse unable to work anymore, she and her family depends in part on Social Security disability benefits, so it is unlikely she would favor cuts to that program.

According to a poll of Republicans in the state found that 73 percent of conservative residents do not want reductions to Social Security payments to make up for budget cuts. The number of people receiving Social Security benefits for disability or other reasons reached 7.6 percent in 2009, up from 3.8 percent in 1970, indicating that the benefits make a direct impact on many disabled peoples' lives in South Carolina.

It appears that many conservatives support cuts to government programs in theory but are reluctant to select programs like Social Security disability for reductions. One woman said that she believes government is "wasteful," but could not name any programs she wanted cuts to.

Source: Los Angeles Times, "In South Carolina, a discrepancy on federal spending," Alana Semuels, Jan. 14, 2012