Why does Thoreau say that the best kind of government is one that "gets out of its own way"?"Civil Disobedience"

These words from Resistance to Civil
Goverment are reinforcement of the words of Thomas Jefferson, who
declared, "That government is best which governs least."  In a free society, if men
accept responsiblity for their lives, there is little need for big government which
hinders human progress. As Thoreau writes, the American people have prospered because
they have achieved on their own:

readability="6">

The character inherent in the American people has
done all that has been accomplished; and it would have done somewhat more if the
government had not sometimes got in its
way.

 A government that is
too large and too powerful, Thoreau points out, is susceptible to corruption, as it
is

equally
liable to be abused and perverted before the people can act through
it.

Thoreau uses the Mexican
War as an example, contending that the people would not have consented to this war if
they had been allowed their voice.  Instead, the war became the "work of comparatively a
few individuals using the standing government as their tool."