Bobzhuman

Added response... below Mike's words!
We all know that we need health care that works. Very few liked the way the contested healthcare law was written with all the "value added" pet attachments and the 2500 pages of regulations. Adults with a clear view of necessity vs boondoggle need to comb over and alter what is needed... but enough from me.

Mike Walker, Col. USMC (retired)

The Supreme Court ruling on health care was a win-win-win.

First, three cheers to those who sought to find a solution to the nation's health care problems. It was the right thing to do.

Second, three cheers to those who sued to have the law overturned. It was and is badly flawed.

Third, three cheers to the Supreme Court that both rejected a cancerous "commerce clause" argument and rightly reframed the health care law 's individual mandate in more honest terms: a tax imposed on citizens by the Congress.

Here is what is left for the future.  All laws have unintended consequences. Big laws have really big unintended consequences. 

The health care law is a poster child for unintended consequences. The Orwellian inanity of Nancy Pelosi, who argued that Congress had to pass the law in order to see what was in it, is a major reason why she is no longer Speaker of the House. This is an election year. In the near term, therefore, the only goal is to fix any of the really fatal flaws that immediately arise before they do real harm to the American people. If John Boehner balks at that maybe he won't speaker for long either.

After that, hope always springs eternal. 

Just perhaps in 2013 the unintended consequences of the law can be fixed in a bipartisan manner. No major piece of legislation of this magnitude had succeed without bipartisan support in both crafting and passing the law. Until that happens, a responsibility of the leaders of BOTH parties to reach out, the health care law is going to continue to be unpopular and divisive. More importantly, we will have failed to correctly address our health care problem, the original goal of the law.

Mike
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A added note from Dr. Wayne Downing

Hi Mike,

 

The Supreme Court by upholding Obamacare under the taxing power has placed a huge burden on the Democratic Party in an election year. First of all, since this a tax and not an entitlement, Congress must pass legislation to raise enough money from the uninsured to pay for their health care. Such a tax would

certainly be over $10,000 a year. If you were a member of Congress would you want to be the one who voted for a $10,000 tax increase in an election year? Who will get re-elected (the first duty of every politician is to stay in office) with that on their record? This will re-energize the Tea Party and conservatism in general.

 

Democrats may be celebrating right now. Republicans will celebrate in November. This travesty of a law will be repealed when we get a Republican president and a Republican Congress. Thank you, Supreme Court for

such a well reasoned ruling.

 

Wayne

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A note added from EricK Erickson, Red State

Dear RedState Reader,

As you have no doubt heard by now, the Supreme Court largely upheld Obamacare with Chief Justice John Roberts writing the majority 5 to 4 decision.  Even Justice Kennedy called for the whole law to be thrown out, but John Roberts saved it.

Having gone through the opinion, I am not going to beat up on John Roberts. I am disappointed, but I want to make a few points. John Roberts is playing at a different game than the rest of us. We’re on poker. He’s on chess.

First, I get the strong sense from a few anecdotal stories about Roberts over the past few months and the way he has written this opinion that he very, very much was concerned about keeping the Supreme Court above the partisan fray and damaging the reputation of the Court long term. It seems to me the left was smart to make a full frontal assault on the Court as it persuaded Roberts.

Second, in writing his opinion, Roberts forces everyone to deal with the issue as a political, not a legal issue. In the past twenty years, Republicans have punted a number of issues to the Supreme Court asking the Court to save us from ourselves. They can’t do that with Roberts. They tried with McCain-Feingold, which was originally upheld. This case is a timely reminder to the GOP that five votes are not a sure thing.

Third, while Roberts has expanded the taxation power, which I don’t really think is a massive expansion from what it was, Roberts has curtailed the commerce clause as an avenue for Congressional overreach. In so doing, he has affirmed the Democrats are massive taxers. In fact, I would argue that this may prevent future mandates in that no one is going to go around campaigning on new massive tax increases. On the upside, I guess we can tax the hell out of abortion now. Likewise, in a 7 to 2 decision, the Court shows a strong majority still recognize the concept of federalism and the restrains of Congress in forcing states to adhere to the whims of the federal government.

Fourth, in forcing us to deal with this politically, the Democrats are going to have a hard time running to November claiming the American people need to vote for them to preserve Obamacare. It remains deeply, deeply unpopular with the American people. If they want to make a vote for them a vote for keeping a massive tax increase, let them try.

Fifth, the decision totally removes a growing left-wing talking point that suddenly they must vote for Obama because of judges. The Supreme Court as a November issue for the left is gone. For the right? That sound you hear is the marching of libertarians into Camp Romney, with noses held, knowing that the libertarian and conservative coalitions must unite to defeat Obama and Obamacare.

Finally, while I am not down on John Roberts like many of you are today, i will be very down on Congressional Republicans if they do not now try to shut down the individual mandate. Force the Democrats on the record about the mandate. Defund Obamacare. This now, by necessity, is a political fight and the GOP sure as hell should fight.

60% of Americans agree with them on the issue. And guess what? The Democrats have been saying for a while that individual pieces of Obamacare are quite popular. With John Roberts’ opinion, the repeal fight takes place on GOP turf, not Democrat turf. The all or nothing repeal has always been better ground for the GOP and now John Roberts has forced everyone onto that ground.

It seems very, very clear to me in reviewing John Roberts’ decision that he is playing a much longer game than us and can afford to with a life tenure. And he probably just handed Mitt Romney the White House.

*A friend points out one other thing — go back to 2009. Olympia Snowe was the deciding vote to get Obamacare out of the Senate Committee. Had she voted no, we’d not be here now.

Erick