Is there a little “redneck” in President Obama? His eloquence notwithstanding, it would appear that the sentiment of urging, encouraging or demanding associated with the expression “Git er done,” is embodied in his recent statements. Made famous by comedian “Larry the Cable Guy” (Daniel Lawrence Whitney) the use of this idiom, delivered in a guttural style, is similar to others in which the command is for action, while consequences are considered secondary: “Just do it!” “Damn the torpedoes!”

I refer to recent remarks Mr. Obama made to supporters in which he urged them to push Congress to pass legislation on health care “reform” before the August recess. He was heard to say, “If we don’t get it done this year, we’re not going to get it done.” (Emphasis added.) Implicit in the statement is that even lawmakers may see the flaws and consider the unintended consequences of the health care disaster to follow. There is also the fact that paying for this government’s spending binge is rapidly becoming an exercise in thaumaturgy.

Given the US central government’s interference in health care started in 1946 with hospitals and has incrementally increased to the point where taxpayers cover around 50 percent of total health care expenditures in the economy now, why does anyone think that more government intervention disguised as “reform” is the best thing to do? One need only look to the rationed care in Canada, Great Britain and Sweden to see where this inevitably leads.

Why does Obama want this? There are at least three possibilities. The first is that he really believes it when he says that increased spending is an investment in the future. He really believes that the government can deliver on an economic service. If that is the case, then all I can say is that he is hoping for some utopian ideal. Collectivists never tire of repeating the same old vain hopes for some kind of nirvana. With the best means yet found by man to address economic issues—the free market—collectivists mindlessly, and sometimes audaciously, hope that this time the government will succeed.

Secondly, and perhaps most likely, is that the President was addressing political supporters and therefore was simply reaffirming campaign promises. He was saying what they wanted to hear. He is a politician. If he is seen as urging Congress through “grass roots” support and Congress obliges, Obama will be the political and re-electable hero.

Finally, Barack Obama may simply be intoxicated with the power he possesses. He enjoys an exceptionally high approval rating in polls. The mainstream media has been shown to be supportive well before the election, and after the first 100 days of his administration, despite the inconsistencies of many of his statements and actions, he has not been seriously challenged or criticized. He engages media resources with campaign style speeches and refers unabashedly not to the next four years of his administration, but promises to cut the “inherited” deficit in half “by the end of his first term.” He is already confident in assuming there will be a second term. And, since he has embraced in the past the political mantra of “by any means necessary” and considers himself a pragmatist (“whatever works, regardless of consequences”) he will most likely, “Git er done.”

©Copyright 2009 Edward Podritske