Once again, social policy has made its way to center stage in the unproductive world of Washington D.C.
This time, a federal mandate that would force insurance companies to provide contraception for employees has distracted the country from the real issue and has dragged women’s rights groups, the Catholic Church, insurance companies and the federal government into a long game of emotional politics.
But, please do not be fooled. This is a fantastic opportunity to make easy emotional claims and win the support of anyone that will listen to the unproductive and irrelevant discourse taking place in D.C.
On one side, Republicans want to be seen as the champions of religious freedom, claiming that a mandate on health care is an “assault” on religion. The "small government" politicians deviate and choose to omit their efforts to further a government mandated definition of marriage, what you can put in your body, sodomy laws and yes, government health care.
It seems that Republicans are only fighting for the religious freedom of one group and only see the government's assault on laws they do not like.
Democrats on the other side of the debate seek to twist this into a women's rights issue, pointing the finger at Republicans and claiming they are careless about women's health.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., argued that contraceptives are part of a woman's basic rights. If contraceptives are essential to a woman's health and a human right, why are heart transplants, food and jobs not also on the list? Democrats know that calling this an attack on women is a political move to get more support in upcoming elections.
Once again, Washington has demonstrated its talent in the art of wasting time. Politicians are smart and know the best way to capitalize on issues is to appeal to emotions.
Government mandated coverage of contraceptives is not a religious or a women's rights issue at all. It is a property issue. Does the government have the authority to mandate what product a person or business provides?
It is easy to fall into the argument that government must have this authority to protect the consumer or promote healthy living. But has this happened? Most of the legislation that is proposed seems to benefit the companies that politicians are assigned to oversee. The authority given has turned against the people and created the opposite of a free market: crony capitalism.
The reality is that people run the government. It is an illusory belief that political power will create responsibility. We have experienced the opposite. When given political power over a certain industry, bureaucrats and politicians create an unfair and corrupt environment. Regardless of the intentions, power corrupts. This problem is an inherent attribute of government and has been illustrated throughout the history of civilization.
If the citizens of this country want to get rid of a crony capitalist system, they must take the power back from companies and politicians. If people want the power back, they cannot give it away to the government with hopes that it will be responsible and keep them safe. The answer is that there cannot be government mandated anything in the market place. Only then will the power lie with the people, not the government.
Reach the columnist at Calfaro2@asu.edu
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