Obama's "you didn't build that" continues to resonate -- far
more than a political gaffe. There is a reason: the implications
are far bigger than his attempt to discredit the successful. He
didn't simply go from "it takes a village" to "it takes a
government." His statement challenges the fundamental relationship
between America and its government.
In his recent Roanoke, VA, remarks, Obama attempted to unmake the ideal of the self-made man: "…[L]ook, if you've been successful, you didn't get there on your own…. If you've got a business -- you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen." He overshot. In an effort to exalt the government, he not only denigrated the individual, he inverted America's historical view of their relationship.
Many liberals may think this, but few -- even in their most unguarded moments -- would dare say it publicly. Over our nation's two-plus centuries, we have so exalted the independent pioneer spirit that it is virtually synonymous with being an American. We as a people are imbued with that sense, even if some do not share in the sentiment.
Savvy politicians of all stripes know this, and at the very least pay lipservice to it. Still, Obama said it.
Read more: http://spectator.org/archives/2012/08/07/it-takes-a-government
In his recent Roanoke, VA, remarks, Obama attempted to unmake the ideal of the self-made man: "…[L]ook, if you've been successful, you didn't get there on your own…. If you've got a business -- you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen." He overshot. In an effort to exalt the government, he not only denigrated the individual, he inverted America's historical view of their relationship.
Many liberals may think this, but few -- even in their most unguarded moments -- would dare say it publicly. Over our nation's two-plus centuries, we have so exalted the independent pioneer spirit that it is virtually synonymous with being an American. We as a people are imbued with that sense, even if some do not share in the sentiment.
Savvy politicians of all stripes know this, and at the very least pay lipservice to it. Still, Obama said it.
Read more: http://spectator.org/archives/2012/08/07/it-takes-a-government
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