Liberals are often unwittingly honest about how they see
America. These revelations can be as illuminating to the rest of
us, as they are unintended by the liberals making them. We just
have to listen a little, to learn a lot.
Late last week, liberal commentator Chris Matthews of MSNBC was
playing apologist for attempts to blame the current economy on the
past presidency. Seeking to justify a “blame Bush” approach,
Matthews said: “If you bought a house and you discovered it had
termites and you found out the electricity didn’t work, and every
time you plugged the toaster in, you got a short, and by the way,
there was a fire because of the bad electrical system. And
everything was wrong with that house. Wouldn’t you blame the guy
you bought the house from?… That’s what we’re doing!”
There are several problems, and several unintended insights,
with Matthews’ unguarded moment.
First, “the house” to which Matthews refers is presumably
America’s economy. If so, Obama did not buy “the house,” as
Matthews asserts. He did not even rent “the house.” Writing in
Federalist Paper #69, Hamilton described the
founders’ vision of America’s government: “…[A] government, the
whole power of which would be in the hands of the elective and
periodical servants of the people…”
The President, and every other civil servant, just works at “the
house” Chris Matthews is so eager to give him. And even then,
they are only “periodical servants” — i.e., they work there
temporarily. While Chris is so eager to turn the keys over
to the President and government, the American people still own “the
house.” At least that was the original intent, and how most of us
still see it.
Second, following along with Matthews’ biased assertion that the
house “had termites and you found out the electricity didn’t work,
and every time you plugged the toaster in, you got a short, and by
the way, there was a fire because of the bad electrical system,”
didn’t Obama seek and get the job to fix “the house’s” problems? He
was not drafted into some thankless assignment.
As those outside of MSNBC might recall, he spent a considerable
amount of time and a considerable sum of money — roughly three
times more than the other “bidder,” John McCain — to get the job.
Now he has it… temporarily and at the pleasure of the real
homeowners.
As homeowners, isn’t there a point in time where — regardless
of who caused the problems — you have a right to expect that the
person you brought in to fix “the house” — the person who said he
could fix “the house,” the person who labored long and hard to land
the job to fix “the house” — actually fixed it? Isn’t that part of
any work contract — that “the house” actually gets
fixed?
At some point, even assuming the homeowners accept that the
problems were someone else’s fault, don’t they start to look in the
Yellow Pages for another termite exterminator and another
electrician, if the problems are still there? Even the most patient
homeowner’s tolerance starts to wear a little thin after a
reasonable period of time — such as after almost four years, for
example?
The implicit part of what Matthews said is as damning as his
explicit assertions.
For one thing, Matthews apparently agrees that “the house” is in
pretty bad shape. Still. You don’t need his kind of histrionic
hyperbole to explain success. The Administration isn’t likely to be
thanking him for that observation anytime soon.
Of course, none of this matters if Presidents actually “own” the
house, as Matthews asserts. Apparently, it’s theirs to do with as
they please for the time in which they are there. We tenants can
just shut up, until new homeowners move in.
Matthews has inadvertently revealed his reverse view of what the
government’s relationship to its citizens should be. When most of
us say “the president owns the economy,” we mean it figuratively —
that it’s a political liability. Matthews seems to mean it
literally — that it’s a government asset — and is quite
comfortable with that ownership.
Admittedly, liberals just see things differently than the rest
of us do. Rarely, though, do they admit so clearly just how
differently they see them. Thanks nonetheless Chris, for explaining
more than you meant to. And for helping the rest of us understand
what the liberal vision of government is. If it’s alright with you,
we’ll just keep the keys to “the house.”
