Obama’s 'Academically Approved' Approach to Health Care

From the president’s interview with Katie Couric prior to the Super Bowl:

Look, I would have loved nothing better than to simply come up with some very elegant, you know, academically approved approach to health care. And didn’t have any kinds of legislative fingerprints on it. And just go ahead and have that passed. But that’s not how it works in our democracy.

As you can clearly see, this man’s genius is being terribly underutilized here. All of these brilliant solutions to all of these great problems, but the delivery system is unfortunately quite antiquated. And as a result we have a terrifically wise and benevolent leader who is at the moment a bit hamstrung by a process that could certainly use some streamlining.

Sure, he’s done a pretty masterful job given the restraints that the American system of government have placed on him, but this health care thing has really highlighted the regrettable fact that the Founders really only left him with so much room to maneuver. If only someone as gifted and righteous as The One were able to work freely on behalf of the common good, all would be well. After all, how could America go wrong pinning its destiny to a man that uses the word “elegant” and the phrase “academically approved” in the same sentence? You certainly weren’t going to get that from George Bush.

So you can see where a man of Obama’s brilliance would be a bit frustrated at having to get involved in such a messy legislative process. But you do have to admire his willingness to do so. As he said in his State of the Union address, he “never suggested that change would be easy” or that he could “do it alone.” He knew full well that with the checks and balances the Framers had put in place and with America’s traditional reliance on the rule of law, it was going to take some time to remake this country. Kingdoms simply aren’t created in a day, you know.

In all seriousness, though, this is really quite a statement. First off, Obama puts his freakish arrogance on display, yet again, for those on the left and right to marvel at — albeit for very different reasons. Because, you know, if left to his own devices, our president could come up with a splendid approach to health care, it would receive that all-important academic approval, and it really wouldn’t be all that difficult.

Of course, the ridiculousness of this statement, as is the case with many of the gems that come from this president, goes beyond simply its epic grandiosity. Notice he uses the word “approach” instead of “plan.” Isn’t this precisely what he tried to do in the first place: approach Congress without an actual plan? And I don’t think you can get an “approach” passed. But then, I’m not The One. Although I do know that America is a republic, not a democracy.

But alas, the president is not left to his own devices and the good doctor is instead restrained from being able to liberally apply that miraculous Obama salve to the wound inflicted on America by those awful insurance companies. And this brings us to what I believe is the most disconcerting aspect of this statement. Yet again, Obama is making it abundantly clear that he does not hold our form of government in the highest regard.

While on the surface it may seem that this is simply a candid statement by a person who is confident that he has the best “approach” to fix America’s health care system and that he would obviously like to see his ideas enacted, there is on closer examination a whole lot more going on here than that.

There are Americans everywhere that feel they have better ideas than this president does with respect to improving America. But I doubt too many of them would “love nothing better” than for the Constitution to be discarded in order for these ideas to be implemented. I know I certainly wouldn’t. While I personally would love to see an America freed from a crushing regulatory structure, an America utilizing its natural resources to their fullest potential, an America with a much different tax code, etc., I certainly don’t want the Constitution circumvented in order to accomplish these things.

But then this statement makes perfect sense if you consider it within the context of what we know about Barack Obama. He has said the Constitution “reflected the fundamental flaw of this country that continues to this day.” He has bemoaned the fact that the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Constitution is that it is “generally a charter of negative liberties” that doesn’t “say what the federal government or the state government must do on your behalf.” He has talked to Joe the Plumber about the merit in spreading the wealth. And the list goes on.

Oh, if only The One could be freed from those constitutional chains that bind.