As far as I'm concerned, the more power we push back to the

In this statement, Bill Cassidy speaks of the sacred balance between power and freedom, especially in the realm of health and governance. He declares that the more power is pushed back to the patient, the individual, the American citizen, the more responsive and just the system becomes. His words echo the ancient truth that those who live under a system should have the greatest say in how it serves them. When power is concentrated in distant hands, compassion fades and bureaucracy grows cold. To Cassidy, centralized systems such as Obamacare act not as healers, but as instruments of control, indifferent to the human beings they were meant to serve.

His comparison — “Obamacare is responsive like a hammer is responsive to a piece of glass” — is striking and vivid. A hammer cannot nurture or mend; it can only shatter. In the same way, Cassidy argues that a rigid, top-down health care system does not respond gently to the needs of individuals but instead crushes them beneath its weight. This image reminds us that systems of governance, if not built with humility and flexibility, can become blunt tools of destruction rather than instruments of service.

History provides many lessons of this kind. In the days of the Roman Republic, the Senate was meant to represent the people, but as power grew centralized in the hands of emperors, the voices of ordinary citizens were silenced. This led to decadence, rebellion, and ultimately the empire’s fall. Similarly, during the founding of the United States, the framers of the Constitution sought to limit centralized power, ensuring through checks and balances that no single force could dominate the people. Cassidy’s words stand firmly in this tradition, calling for a return to local control and personal responsibility.

By emphasizing the patient as the heart of the system, Cassidy speaks to a deeper philosophical truth: health care is not merely a matter of policy, but of human dignity. A patient is not a statistic or a number on a form; she is a living soul, with unique needs and fears. When decisions about her health are made far away, by those who do not know her, the system fails its most sacred purpose. Power, therefore, must flow outward — from the halls of government to the hands of the people.

Thus, this reflection becomes a teaching for future generations. Whether in health care or any other realm, freedom and responsiveness are born when power resides closest to the individual. Systems must be built like healing hands, not crushing hammers — flexible, compassionate, and deeply human. Cassidy’s warning is a call to vigilance: to guard against the arrogance of centralized authority, and to remember that the strength of a nation lies not in its institutions alone, but in the dignity and empowerment of its citizens.