Speaker Pelosi probably thinks this quote is some kind of joke. But the third president of the United States was not cackling when he said:
“The care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only object of good government.” –Thomas Jefferson
I wonder how “death panels” jibe with “the care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction.”
Jefferson's quote succinctly describes the Constitution. Sarah Palin's "death panels" was lifted from a section of the healthcare bill that allowed individuals to have a living will.
To Palin and other wing nutters, being allowed to have a living will was tantamount to a "death panel."
Jefferson's quote would have no bearing on Palin's death panels. Having the right to make a living will would come under "happiness."
Allowing a person to have a living will is what Republicans mean when they talk about "government intrusion or takeover of your healthcare."