Oct 10
20
Obama uses his “God is dead” routine again
CitizenLink – October 20, 2010
Third Time’s Not a Charm: Obama Omits ‘Creator’ From Declaration – Again
While speaking at a political fundraiser on Monday, President Obama omitted – for the third time – the word “Creator” when quoting the Declaration of Independence, a founding document of the United States.
During his speech, Obama said: “As wonderful as the land is here in the United States, as much as we have been blessed by the bounty of this magnificent continent that stretches from the Atlantic to the Pacific, what makes this place special is not something physical. It has to do with this idea that was started by 13 colonies that decided to throw off the yoke of an empire, and said, ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that each of us are endowed with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.’”
The other two occurrences took place on Sept. 15, during a speech to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, and again on Sept. 23, during a speech given to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
Ryan Messmore, Religion and Civil Society fellow at the Heritage Foundation, said that writing God out of the public discourse opens the door for Big Government: “[G]overnment power is inherently limited by the role of other social institutions, such as families, religious congregations, schools, and businesses. The rightful authority of these institutions helps to check the authority of the state. … As government claims responsibility for more tasks, it absorbs the allegiance that citizens once placed in other relationships and forms of association. When the federal government assumes more responsibility for fulfilling the moral obligations among citizens, it tends to undermine the perceived significance and authority of local institutions and communities.
“This encourages citizens, instead of looking to their families, churches, or local communities for guidance and assistance, to depend on the government for education, welfare, and various other services. As individuals begin to look more consistently to the government for support, the institutions that are able to generate virtues like trust and responsibility begin to lose their sway in the community. Excessive bureaucratic centralization thus sets in motion a dangerous cycle of dependence and social decay.”
David Barton, founder and president of Wallbuilders, said that America’s limited government was based on the recognition of a Creator. “We say certain things are ‘off limits’ to government because God put them off limits – that’s what our Declaration tells us,” he explained. “If you don’t believe that rights come from the Creator, then you believe they come from government. If they come from government you can regulate them, you can repeal them, you can do what you want.
“That’s the difference between limited government and unlimited government.”
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Watch the Sept. 15 speech to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute.
Read the Heritage Foundation’s “Morning Bell: What the Left Doesn’t Understand About America.”
Read the article that appeared in American Thinker, “Obama omits ‘Creator’ from Declaration rights language again.”
© 2010 CitizenLink.