Obama's Problems Run Deeper Than a Simple Speech to Students

Not only is the honeymoon over—the in-laws are livid.

President Obama has a lot on his plate this week and he gets little sympathy from the people of Utah. His speech on Tuesday to the nation’s school children is ruffling more feathers than he anticipated, and nobody seems to be looking forward to what the U.S. Department of Education calls an "historic" event. Parents are angry. School administrators are nervous. Students are indifferent.

To its credit, the Obama administration released the text of the President’s speech. And from what I can see, it contains nothing overtly political or controversial. I actually liked it.

But to understand why so many Utahns mistrust Mr. Obama, one must recall the ‘Farmington Fiasco’. About ten days ago, the principal of an elementary school in Farmington, Utah was lambasted by incensed parents and teachers after showing the controversial (and creepy) “I Pledge” video to the students in her school. In the video, celebrities are shown pledging their service to President Obama along with a few controversial political causes. Perhaps movie stars don’t understand that the President serves the people? It’s not the other way around.

The video, created back in January, wasn’t sponsored by the Obama administration. And for some, it’s quite an inspiring message. But for many parents in Utah it was a palpable case of political propaganda. Orwellian, even.

The speech the President will give to schoolchildren on Tuesday has nothing to do with that video, but the Farmington Fiasco, combined with the now-retracted curriculum sent to teachers from the DOE encouraging students to write letters about “what they could do to help the President”, has left a sour taste in the mouths of Utah’s parents and teachers. They loathe the President’s alleged Big Government ‘socialist’ agenda. They don’t like that he hires people like Van Jones, a professed Marxist, to work in his administration. They can’t understand the moral justification for income redistribution or trillion-dollar government entitlements during a recession. They hate that he downplays or mocks conservative healthcare protesters. And they don’t trust him to speak to their children.

Is it all unwarranted hysteria? Probably. But Mr. Obama has brought this mess on himself.

The Debate: Mormonism and Healthcare Reform

I was on Facebook the other day and I saw something extremely unusual. A colleague of mine posted a note urging his friends to support the President’s pitch for healthcare reform. [Insert shock and whispers here.]

Why is that so unusual? Because 70% of my 520 Facebook friends live in Utah and 99% of those individuals are devout Mormons, including my note-posting friend. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are notoriously conservative, and the vast majority are opposed to President Obama’s healthcare reform policies. Traditional principles of self-sufficiency and individualism, fiscal prudence and suspicion of Big Government combine to deter most Mormons in Utah from supporting a large, federal takeover of the healthcare system.

But enter Steven Thatcher. Steven’s pro-Obama Facebook note got me thinking about those few Mormons in the area that are vocally supportive of the Democrats’ healthcare agenda (he’s the only one I know of—and I know a lot of people). Who are these political outsiders? Are they frustrated by Utah’s shameless conservatism? Does their Mormonism have anything to do with their liberal-leaning ideologies?

Well, Steven had answers to all those questions. He runs a blog at crownbrown.net where he often posts about his dedicated passion toward healthcare reform, frequently using his Mormon upbringing as the basis for many of his political views.

“Mormon theology is very interested in city and community-building—that we can’t get where we’re going without each other,” says Steven. “This principle underlies my belief that societies are richer and, in the long run, better off by healing the medically uninsured.”

Steven believes that a good Mormon is one that helps others in need, and that the 45 million or so Americans without health insurance are unquestionably in dire need. He insists it is society’s responsibility to care for those that cannot care for themselves, and that his Mormonism only augments his petition for universal healthcare. Steven’s background as a Special Ed teacher and his wife’s job as a nurse also contribute to his outlook, he says.

Steven doesn’t expect Obama’s original healthcare plan to pass easily in Congress, and neither to I. Town hall meetings and angry constituents are just the tip of this sizzling iceberg, especially here in Provo. Folks here are troubled with the idea that the government may play a larger, more expensive role in America’s healthcare system.

So do all those conservatives in Mormon Country chase Steven around with pitchforks and hymnals? Nah.

“I’m pleasantly surprised by how many of my LDS peers are friendly, if not supportive, of President Obama. Many seem unsure of their commitment, since Utah is the reddest state in the nation, and very likely the majority of them have conservative parents who do not support the President’s agenda. And though I’m sure I am still in the significant minority in Utah with a liberal leaning, I feel comfortable and open in expressing my views.”