Does The Individual Mandate Make People Dependent On Government?

Andrew Sullivan:

I think Daniel Henninger is onto something here:

Santorum's 35-minute speech in Cuyahoga Falls touched an array of subjects that drew applause. But at the halfway point, when he tore into ObamaCare, his mostly working-class audience exploded into applause and cries of "Rick! Rick! Rick!"
Mr. Santorum didn't get this response by discussing health-insurance exchanges and guaranteed issue. He told these people that ObamaCare "is usurping your rights. It is creating a culture of dependency. Every single American will be dependent on government, thanks to ObamaCare. There is no more important issue in this race. It magnifies all that is wrong with what this president is trying to do." (emphasis mine) His call for repeal produced the explosion.
He followed with an tight description of how he understands the terms of the election: "This race is coming down to the economy, the deficit and control of your life, which is ObamaCare." (There was no mention of contraception, gays or the role of women.)

He won't be able to avoid the contraception issue on healthcare which, as I've argued from the get-go, is a win-win for the Democrats (thanks to Rush and the Cardinals). But on the issue of the individual mandate, Santorum has, I think, a potential winner. Maybe this will be resolved by the Supreme Court and render the politics of this moot. But until then, Santorum's opposition to an individual mandate is a clear red line between him and Romney, resonates with the Tea Party, and obscures Santorum's own contempt for freedom when it leads to activities he regards as sins. If framed within an argument about government's more general over-reach because of the Great Recession, it's powerful way to rally the base. And God knows Romney has got nothing to counter it with.

Wait a second, in what way does the individual mandate make people dependent on government?  The law says people have to have health insurance, and if they can't afford it, or their employer doesn't provide it, the government will help them out.  Where does that make people dependent on the government?  Is it because it will expand Medicaid?  If a person already buys their own health insurance (like I do) or has it provided by their employer, like about 70% of folks, then the individual mandate doesn't affect anybody. 

Last time I checked, participation in Medicare is subsidized and mandated by the government, and yet it is extremely popular with most Americans.  Participants in Medicare have over their lifetimes in no way paid for all the benefits they receive under the program.  And yet, I hear of lots of people who are very relieved that they turned 65 and are eligible for a system that makes them dependent on government.

Santorum's argument may resonate with the base, but that is because the base rarely thinks rationally.