Paul Ryan thinks that the Affordable Care Act needs to be repealed because our rights come from God and not from government:
“I think this at the end of the day is a big philosophy difference,” Ryan told ABC’s “This Week.” “We disagree with the notion that our rights come from government, that the government can now grant us and define our rights. Those are ours, they come from nature and God, according to the Declaration of Independence – a huge difference in philosophy.”
Well, Paul Ryan is right! The Declaration of Independence does actually say that our rights come from God:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
I’m pretty sure anyone reading this knew that line by heart. But did you know the very next sentence?
That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed
So, Paul Ryan thinks that the Government cannot grant us the right to healthcare, because that comes from God. Well, OK. But I don’t think “God said you can’t do that!” is going to work very well when an insurance company cancels your policy when you get sick. Luckily, we’ve instituted a government to secure these God given rights for ourselves!
If Paul Ryan wants to use the Declaration of Independence to shout down his opponents he can do that, but he really ought to read the damn thing.
520 Chestnut 
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