How small is too small?

I'm all for a small government with minimal red tape, but there are some that take this too far. While some bureaucracy is required, it's generally something that should be minimized. A government must, however, be large enough to ensure the necessary separation of powers. It is essential for our government's organization to ensure no one person, or group of people, for that matter, can exercise absolute power. After all, the smallest government is a single dictator.

I used to assume that the Republican party's push for small government was a sincere belief in decreasing unnecessary bureaucracy, but it's clear now that the party, at least the branch of it that is currently in power, is abusing this conception to centralize power in violation of the Constitution. Bush has labeled himself "The Decider", which is an obvious euphemism for a dictator. Of the three branches, the executive (headed by the president) has the least business deciding anything. The legislative branch decides on laws, and the judicial branch decides on the interpretation of those laws. The executive branch should only carry-out these decisions.

Conservatism is in direct conflict with democracy. Conservatives want the power of the few to dominate the many, and this is exactly what democracy is an attempt to prevent.