“The government is the only thing we all belong to…”
That is the takeaway line in a DNC video that aired last night in Charlotte. Belong to government? Wow! I am a proud citizen of this great republic, and, as such, I feel a kinship of purpose with other citizens. But “belong to government?”—well, there is something decidedly creepy about this.
The Democratic convention is showcasing the Democratic Party as the “we heart government” party. It becomes abundantly more clear with every speaker who addresses the convention. Time and again, speakers have extolled government programs (always careful to describe people who resort to them as hard-working folks who are simply down on their luck—no mention of long-term dependence on the government or worries about where the money to sustain such programs might be found).
This, of course, is the fault line in American society—do we passively belong to government, or are we, as Clint Eastwood said last week, citizens who own our government and have the power to hire and fire out leaders? I love my country, but I do not want to "belong" to government. I belong to a family and a church and I don't want the feds to supplant either.
In the just a durned minute vein:
Katie Pavlich, news editor at Townhall:
Reality check: The United States government is paid for by the people and the politicians who serve in the United States government are elected by the people.
And you silly rubes think the government belongs to us
The Romney campaign tweeted:
We don't belong to government, the government belongs to us.
I am a free individual owned by no one.
Michelle Malkin has a round-up.