Democratic President Barack Obama:
“If you were successful, somebody along the line gave you some help. There was a great teacher somewhere in your life. Somebody helped to create this unbelievable American system that we have that allowed you to thrive. Somebody invested in roads and bridges. If you’ve got a business, you didn’t build that. Somebody else made that happen. The Internet didn’t get invented on its own. Government research created the Internet so that all the companies could make money off the Internet.
The point is, is that when we succeed, we succeed because of our individual initiative, but also because we do things together."
Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney:
"There are a lot of people in government who help us and allow us to have an economy that works and allow entrepenuers and business leaders of various kinds to start businesses and create jobs. We all recognize that. That's an important thing.
[...]
I know that you recognize that a lot of people help you in a business. Perhaps the banks, the investors. There's no question your mom and dad. Your school teachers. The people that provide roads, the fire, and the police. A lot of people help."
While many Republicans - including Mitt Romney - have
attacked President Obama for his comments (while using an out-of-context snippet of the full comments), Mitt Romney hasn't come under the same fire for his comments, which really express the same thoughts as President Obama.
Clearly Republicans are being overtaken by Obama Derangement Syndrome (ODS), because any rational person understands that without help from the government - help that comes in the form of infrastructure, fire & police protection, laws and regulations governing criminal behavior and appropriate business practices, and an educated workforce (just to name a few) businesses large and small wouldn't be able to thrive in our nation. The fact is, government has a role in our lives and our economy - and it's an important role at that.
(Originally published at Blogging Blue)