Obama declares health insurance a right
I don’t think anyone actually listens to the president’s radio addresses (any president, not just this one), do they? What does reach people, however, are sound bites from those addresses.
This latest one is really a classic example of Obamaspeak. We’ve grown used to the drill. First, some empty words about how he’s going to help the economy. Then sanguine projections about what his program (in this case, Obamacare) will do for people to make things peachy-keen. Then the attack on the mean Republicans who are out to starve and murder widows and orphans or something like that, just out of the nastiness of their rotten hearts—oh, and out of their petty personal animosity (hint hint: racists?) for the august person of none other than Barack Obama:
A lot of Republicans seem to believe that if they can gum up the works and make this law fail, they’ll somehow be sticking it to me. But they’d just be sticking it to you.
Note the lofty nature of the rhetoric.
But the capstone of this particular speech was the following:
So I’m going to keep doing everything in my power to make sure [Obamacare] works as it’s supposed to. Because in the United States of America, health insurance isn’t a privilege ”“ it is your right. And we’re going to keep it that way.
Much commentary from conservatives focuses on the fact that Obama is positing a right where none exists. For example, PJ’s Rick Moran observes that “a president who decrees rights that are not stated or implied in the Constitution is treading on dangerous ground.”
Of course; such dangerous ground is the territory Obama staked out quite some time ago. And as a lawyer who once taught constitutional law, Obama knows the difference between a right and a privilege in the constitutional sense, and so his statement cannot be explained away as the result of ignorance. It must be a conscious effort to play upon the fact that he’s pretty sure that a majority of the American people these days do not know the difference and/or do not care about the difference because they want health insurance to be a right, and that the press is likewise either ignorant or complicit with him in keeping the truth about the difference between rights and privileges from being told.
Obama has repeatedly left the word “Creator” out of a recitation of the famous line about endowed rights from the Declaration of Independence, misquoting it as, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that each of us are endowed with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” One can only conclude that this is no inadvertent omission, but a signal that rights are fluid things, to be endowed by the executive fiat of President Obama himself.
It would be difficult to maintain the man hasn’t worked hard to earn his impeachment. Pity no one will simply give it to him.
There are way too many voters who believe this definition of a “right” to be something they want. I’m no fan of Obama, but in some ways, he’s a symptom, not an infection.
There is only one thing about President Three Putt that has surprised me. And that is how much of a nasty little pig of a man he is. He continually insults half of the country.
The message of the left is that the magical cornucopia of government shall provide all that you need and your rights belong to the state.
“… how much of a nasty little pig of a man he is.”
That is an insult to our porcine friends and species phobic.
“He continually insults half of the country.”
That half doesn’t count because they cling.
Insults are fine. It’s when they force that slave choker on you that things start getting interesting.
The Constitution doesn’t give us rights, it protects them, which is why the 9th Amendment is there. There are no rights to goods or services because a right like that would violate the natural rights we possess (among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.)
Tesh: “I’m no fan of Obama, but in some ways, he’s a symptom, not an infection.”
Yep. We have been headed this direction since Uncle Walter declared the Vietnam War lost and too may people bought it. The Fourth Estate has been carefully constructing their narrative over these many years. Now we have elected officials like Obama, Reid, Pelosi, Patty Murray, and many, many more. They are all symptoms of the disease of Statism or Progressivism.
For a thirty minute pep talk on how to fight back against this disease, get a cup of coffee or your preferred beverage and sit down to watch Bill Whittle.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8TgK0cJuyk&feature=player_embedded#at=1815
“Obama has repeatedly left the word “Creator” out of a recitation of the famous line about endowed rights from the Declaration of Independence, misquoting it as, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that each of us are endowed with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” One can only conclude that this is no inadvertent omission, but a signal that rights are fluid things, to be endowed by the executive fiat of President Obama himself.” neo
That is a profoundly important point. Obama is reinforcing the meme that rights are granted by consensus. God need not apply, we’ve got it covered. “If your government is big enough to give you everything you want, it is big enough to take away everything you have.” Gerald Ford 1954
Nothing said in a speech by Obama is unintentional or without purpose.
Obama would do more for my health if he resigned. My blood pressure must spike every time he opens his mouth or I see a golfing photo.
Geoffrey Britain – uh I disagree that NOTHING Obama says in a speech is unintentional. He’s said a lot of things that served no political purpose or other end that were just stupid, inaccurate, or ignorant.
This thing is of course deliberate, the implication being he’s the creator.
“[A]s a lawyer who once taught constitutional law, Obama knows the difference between a right and a privilege in the constitutional sense . . .”
And your evidence is?
Somewhat related, I read today that employers such as Penn State as well as CVS are requiring employees to provide personal health information such as weight, blood pressure, BMI, etc or they will face a surcharge of as much as $1200 per year. This seems to me to go far beyond the average “wellness” program. Why would anyone think it would remain confidential or couldn’t be used against them at some point in the future?
http://m.us.wsj.com/articles/a/SB10001424127887323455104579014653816536802?mg=reno64-wsj
Capn Rusty:
He had to have at least learned it.
And the fact that he said in his radio address, “Because in the United States of America, health insurance isn’t a privilege — it is your right,” indicates he knows the rights/privileges dichotomy and is trying to bestow a new right.
If is my contention that Obama is quite smart and almost always aware of what he’s doing, especially in the strategic political sense and the use of suggestive language (that’s what he’s doing here). It does no one any good to underestimate him.
Neo: only a fool would underestimate Obama. However, if he’s so smart why have his transcripts been kept secret? Don’t you think someone with a personality like his would want to trumpet his academic record?
Nancy Pelosi has already been down this road. At a 2012 press briefing, she said: “Here’s the thing: the American Affordable Care Act stands there with Social Security, Medicare, health care for all Americans as a right, not a privilege.” Obama went one step further and conflated health insurance with health care.
Obama’s taking this tack now, especially along with that “sticking it to me” stuff, is a clear indication, I think, that the 2014 Congressional elections are not going to be a cakewalk for the Republicans.
KLSmith:
“Smart” is not the same as “good grades,” especially political and manipulative smarts like Obama has.
I suspect, however, that his grades were pretty good. He might keep them secret because they are not brilliant enough to foster the legend. But I suspect they are quite good, especially by the time he was in law school.
I also suspect they are kept secret because they reveal that he took a lot of radical courses.
Neo: I will grant you that in his speech, he drew a distinction between rights and privileges. However, you’re assuming that just because he went to law school, he understands those terms to have the same meaning as you and I were taught in law school. Obama’s failure to understand the Constitution, the Rule of Law and the American political system have been on display in myriad ways ever since January 23, 2009, when he said in answer to Eric Cantor’s offer to negotiate, “I won.”
Neo: thanks for the reply. I bet you’re right on the courses. And he’s plenty manipulative. But we’ll have to disagree on the smart part. I think he was affirmative action all the way. A corpse-man told me so.
Obama on affirmative action, http://hlrecord.org/?p=11263
“I’d also like to add one personal note, in response to the letter from Mr. Jim Chen which was published in the October 26 issue of the RECORD, and which articulated broad objections to the Review’s general affirmative action policy. I respect Mr. Chen’s personal concern over the possible stigmatizing effects of affirmative action, and do not question the depth or sincerity of his feelings. I must say, however, that as someone who has undoubtedly benefited from affirmative action programs during my academic career, and as someone who may have benefited from the Law Review’s affirmative action policy when I was selected to join the Review last year, I have not personally felt stigmatized either within the broader law school community or as a staff member of the Review. Indeed, my election last year as President of the Review would seem to indicate that at least among Review staff, and hopefully for the majority of professors at Harvard, affirmative action in no way tarnishes the accomplishments of those who are members of historically underrepresented groups.”
Paul: Interesting post.
Not surprisingly, when I searched The Record for the October 26, 1990, letter by Jim Chen to which Obama responded, I could not find it. Did you, and if so, could you provide the link?
I saw a haiku at Ace of Spades this morning:
Quite pithy.
If you check in the dictionary you will find that health is a personal condition, not a commodity or service that you can buy therefore you can’t insure for it. You can buy medical insurance but not health insurance. Obama is just telling people they have a right to somebody else paying their medical bill. Lefties love to do good at somebody else’s expense and then brag about how compassionate they are.
“I’m going to keep doing everything in my power to make sure [Obamacare] works as it’s supposed to. Because in the United States of America, health insurance isn’t a privilege — it is your right. And we’re going to keep it that way.”
It is such a great law, he has to unilaterally defer another gob of it until after elections?
Freedom of worship, leaving out the Creator in quotes, and now intentionally creating new rights. If he’s a fool, he’s a damn good one.
I vote for knave all the way.
The Left will promote their knave into a tyrant. No worries on that matter. And if the knave falls and is captured or eliminated off the chess board, then they will bring in their own Caligula as a replacement.
You are mandated to purchase insurance or pay a penalty through the IRS
For your right 🙂
People who have skated without purchasing will find out!! Lazy skaters!@