Thursday, June 28, 2012
High court upholds key part of Obama health law
AP "The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the individual insurance requirement at the heart of President Barack Obama's historic health care overhaul.
What Happened to John Roberts? "It does not have the force power, but the four judges, justices who dissented -- Scalia, Alito, Thomas, Kennedy -- made it plain in their dissent that this was nothing constitutional about this act. They found nothing in it. They plainly said, in their dissent, the whole thing should have been tossed out. You can't have a greater divide than what we had. You've got the four libs, who, it's never even considered that they might change their tune. And the chief justice, who we know now I think is a creature of the Washington establishment, a creature of the notion that government is the center of the universe. It's pretty obvious. But the four justices who dissented, they didn't even want to get into the idiosyncrasies of the majority opinion. They found the whole thing tossable." Rush Limbaugh
"The decision means the huge overhaul, still only partly in effect, will proceed and pick up momentum over the next several years, affecting the way that countless Americans receive and pay for their personal medical care. The ruling also hands Obama a campaign-season victory in rejecting arguments that Congress went too far in requiring most Americans to have health insurance or pay a penalty."
What Happened to John Roberts? "It does not have the force power, but the four judges, justices who dissented -- Scalia, Alito, Thomas, Kennedy -- made it plain in their dissent that this was nothing constitutional about this act. They found nothing in it. They plainly said, in their dissent, the whole thing should have been tossed out. You can't have a greater divide than what we had. You've got the four libs, who, it's never even considered that they might change their tune. And the chief justice, who we know now I think is a creature of the Washington establishment, a creature of the notion that government is the center of the universe. It's pretty obvious. But the four justices who dissented, they didn't even want to get into the idiosyncrasies of the majority opinion. They found the whole thing tossable." Rush Limbaugh
More from Rush: Our Only Choice: Win Elections "Ladies and gentlemen, we are not, as a people, as free as we were at 10:15 this morning. We didn't lose a war. No foreign enemy is taking away our liberties. Our own government did this. We're not nearly as free as we were five hours ago."
The politics of the ObamaCare decision (repeatedly updated with dissents)
Thomas Lifson "It looks to me that there are some sweet lemons for conservatives in the ObamaCare decision. Before we burn the chief justice in effigy, let's read the decision and think about the implications.
"First of all, upholding ObamaCare is going to energize opposition to Obama, and the determination to elect a Congress that can repeal and replace it. Just a day ago, the MSM was telling us it would be a plus for Obama if the act were held unconstitutional because it would take the issue off the table and weaken his opposition.
Rosslyn Smith: Back to We the People
"The promises Roberts made during his confirmation hearings cut both ways. If Roberts doesn't believe in legislating from the bench, as the Warren court did in the face of legislative inaction, he made clear today that he also doesn't believe in using the Court to overturn ill conceived or simply unworkable laws if there are any arguments under which they can be upheld -- at least in cases that do not directly involve the Bill of Rights. As I look at the opinion I suspect Justice Roberts may be playing long ball here."
"First of all, upholding ObamaCare is going to energize opposition to Obama, and the determination to elect a Congress that can repeal and replace it. Just a day ago, the MSM was telling us it would be a plus for Obama if the act were held unconstitutional because it would take the issue off the table and weaken his opposition.
"On the other hand, as Rick Moran points out, "it gives Obama a big boost; everyone likes a winner."
"The promises Roberts made during his confirmation hearings cut both ways. If Roberts doesn't believe in legislating from the bench, as the Warren court did in the face of legislative inaction, he made clear today that he also doesn't believe in using the Court to overturn ill conceived or simply unworkable laws if there are any arguments under which they can be upheld -- at least in cases that do not directly involve the Bill of Rights. As I look at the opinion I suspect Justice Roberts may be playing long ball here."
More from American Thinker:
Hard Questions for Conservatives In the Wake of SCOTUS Ruling "Obviously, hitching conservative fortunes to Republican judicial appointees, and the Republican Party generally, has been a failure. Is it time for a conservative third party?"
The Power to Tax is the Power to Destroy "This interpretation is a splash of acid in the face for limited government libertarians. If any activity mandated by Congress accompanied by a money transaction can be construed as a tax, despite its commerce clause proscriptions, there is no limit to the power of the federal government over our lives."
Big Government: Did Roberts Give in to Obama's Bullying? Many speculate "that Chief Justice John Roberts switched his vote at a late stage. If so, it would appear that the Chief Justice may have succumbed to the bullying meted out by President Barack Obama, who attacked the Court in the aftermath of oral arguments in March, when Obamacare seemed headed for certain defeat."
The Power to Tax is the Power to Destroy "This interpretation is a splash of acid in the face for limited government libertarians. If any activity mandated by Congress accompanied by a money transaction can be construed as a tax, despite its commerce clause proscriptions, there is no limit to the power of the federal government over our lives."
Big Government: Did Roberts Give in to Obama's Bullying? Many speculate "that Chief Justice John Roberts switched his vote at a late stage. If so, it would appear that the Chief Justice may have succumbed to the bullying meted out by President Barack Obama, who attacked the Court in the aftermath of oral arguments in March, when Obamacare seemed headed for certain defeat."
What Just Happened to the Rule of Law?
Warning Signs
"Following the Obamacare decision, The Heartland Institute’s Maureen Martin, a Senior Fellow for Legal Affairs, said, “Today’s decision will go down in infamy. It marks the moment when we all lost our freedom because the Supreme Court drew a road map to guide those dedicated to imposing a totalitarian, statist government on the American people.” "
"A Heartland colleague, Peter Ferrara, a member of the bar of the Supreme Court and a Senior Fellow for Entitlement and Budget Policy, said “The Supreme Court of the United States just endorsed the most fundamental dishonesty of our politics today. The President intimidated Chief Justice John Roberts like Hugo Chavez intimidates the Venezuelan Supreme Court. The rule of law is now dead. The American people have only one more chance now to save their country.”"Heartland is a non-profit, free market think tank."
Obamacare After the Court/ Reading List on the Obamacare Decision
Morning Bell
"The policy landscape will change dramatically after 10 a.m. today. If the Supreme Court does not strike down Obamacare in its entirety, Congress should move to repeal it. Americans support repeal of the health care law, as they have demonstrated in more than 100 polls since it passed in 2010. The infamous individual mandate is only the beginning of the problems Americans face under this law. Most importantly, Americans need real health care reform, and we need to begin moving toward a patient-friendly system where people have the freedom to choose the care that is best for them.
"They wrote:
"Beyond the Individual Mandate"....
1. The Taxes. It is often forgotten that in addition to being a massive federal power grab, Obamacare contains one of the largest tax increases ever imposed on the American economy—at a time when job growth should be the nation's number one priority.2. Deficits and Debt.....3. The HHS Mandate.....4. The Bureaucratic Micromanagement of American Health Care.....Alan Caruba: The Liars Have Triumphed "As Politico.com reported: On the losing end of a 5-4 decision, Justices Anthony Kennedy, Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito said that the entire health care reform law should have been struck down.
"They wrote:
The Act before us here exceeds federal power both in mandating the purchase of health insurance and in denying non-consenting states all Medicaid funding. These parts of the Act are central to its design and operation, and all the Act's other provisions would not have been enacted without them. In our view it must follow that the entire statute is inoperative.
"Obamacare is a blow to state's rights as sovereign republics."
Legal Insurrection: How right I was: “IRS The New Health Care Enforcer”
Meet your government's new healthcare enforcer here.
Volokh Conspiracy: Supreme Court Majority Endorses Activity-Inactivity Distinction
"Although the Supreme Court upheld the individual mandate as an exercise of the Tax Power, a majority of the justices also ruled that it is not a legitimate exercise of Congress’ powers under the Commerce Clause. In doing so, they endorsed the plaintiffs’ argument that the individual mandate exceeds the scope of the Commerce power because it does not regulate “economic activity,” but instead targets inactivity. Chief Justice Roberts also noted that upholding the mandate on this basis would lead to unconstrained congressional authority to enact other mandates:"....
"The problem is that Roberts then proceeds to “empower Congress to make those decisions” for us under the guise of imposing taxes. More on that point soon." Watch here.
WSJ: The ObamaCare Tax "...what is certain is that what saved the law was the "ObamaCare tax." The Court ruled that the individual mandate to purchase health care or face a fine is a tax, not a requirement.
"In other words, the Court said that Congress can impose a "tax" on people if they don't buy health insurance."
Courting Disaster "Chuck" posted this comment:
"It is offical. The Constitution is dead. Next up:- You will buy a Chevy Volt … or pay a special tax.- You will have a specific, healthy, body-mass index … or pay a special tax.- You will have a cholesterol level below 190 … or pay a special tax.- You will vote democrat … or pay a special tax.- You will renounce your religious beliefs and worship the government … or pay a special tax.- You will work at the job we give you for the salary we dictate … or pay a special tax."Okay, maybe some of it is extreme, but I can sure see some of it actually happening, and this is just the tip of the iceberg. No, the government can force us to do anything they want us to do … or pay a special tax."
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