"All right, there are 47 percent who are with [President Obama], who are
dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who
believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who
believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to
you-name-it. That that's an entitlement. And the government should give
it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what…These
are people who pay no income tax.…[M]y job is is not to worry about those people. I'll never convince
them they should take personal responsibility and care for their
lives."
Mitt Romney, left, and Paul Ryan, right
Originally published at 9:04 pm CDT 9-18-2012
Mother Jones broke the story of a surreptitious video made of a Mitt Romney fundraiser earlier this year, during which Romney makes the following statement:
There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That that's an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what…These are people who pay no income tax.…[M]y job is is not to worry about those people. I'll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives. [Emphasis added.]
Romney did not deny the accuracy of the video and simply said that he could have been more artful in expressing himself.
Please take a moment and think about what Romney said about almost 50% of Americans, the vast majority of whom work, pay payroll taxes and property taxes, and who live responsible lives. Many are veterans who receive veteran's benefits and seniors who receive Social Security and Medicare. Some are poor, some are in nursing homes. Some are disabled.
Note Romney's language. Note that he implies that eliminating Social Security and Medicare would be a benefit to Republicans because dependence on government programs creates a class of people who vote for politicians who promise to preserve and strengthen those programs.
And then note that Mitt Romney puts blame on the poor for being poor.
Is Romney's view of the poor and the disabled consistent with Judaism's view of them?
If it isn't, does that matter to you?
For those of you inclined to theodicy, do you see any import in this story breaking on the first day of Rosh Hashana?