This approach is fraught with difficulties. Whether a constitutional way around those problems can be found isn't known. Many faith communities have long had their own programs for helping the poor, the hungry, the homeless. People receiving this private help often are asked, in turn, to consider the claims of the religion behind the work, even to convert to that particular faith. This is how the system should work.
Religious groups are free to give with strings attached.
But when the dollars spent on assistance are public, the constitutional dynamic changes dramatically. The state, above all, may not promote any particular religion. But if the Bush plan becomes law, religious groups may get tax dollars to do work they're already doing. It seems an almost impossible task. There also are many reasons for religious groups to be wary of accepting public dollars to do their work.