India, Sept. 28 -- Freebies have become political currency worldwide, and the currency keeps changing denomination. In India, what began with free electricity, water and bus travel has expanded into bicycles, scooters, mangalsutras, laptops and tablets - doled out by parties that once opposed such schemes on principle, all in the name of "public welfare." The habit has now crossed the Pacific. US President Donald Trump has proposed handing every American adult $5,000, contingent on his Republican Party retaining control of both the House and the Senate in the midterms.

Strip away the packaging, and the message to voters is blunt: back Trump's party, collect a cheque.

There is a bitter irony here. Agencies tied to the United States have ...