According to a majority on the Supreme Court, Obamacare’s penalty for not buying medical insurance is constitutional because it’s a “tax,” not a “penalty.” Hmmm. All taxes may penalize, and penalties sure can be “taxing,” but this similarity doesn’t give us license to swap one for the other.
Chief Justice John Roberts reportedly flip-flopped about whether the Obamacare mandate is unconstitutional — perhaps in fear of left-leaning politicians and pundits. (“We’re not going to like you if you hinder our tyrannical medical regime by applying constitutional principles!”)
The chief’s formal opinion states that under the Constitution the wisdom of legislation is a “judgment … reserved to the people.” Whoa. Hasn’t Marbury been decided? Doesn’t the courts’ power of judicial review help ensure that constitutional restraints on government power continue to restrain?
Well, just because the Roberts Court refuses to do its job doesn’t mean we must twiddle our thumbs in response. We can fight for an anti-Obamacare majority in Congress and the White House in November.
We can also urge our state governments to decline to cooperate with Obamacare right now. As wretched as it is, the court’s ruling at least overrules the new law’s attempt to force states to massively expand Medicaid. Almost immediately after the ruling, Florida Governor Rick Scott, who had refused to cooperate with other aspects of the law, announced that Florida will not expand Medicaid eligibility. A dozen or so other governors have made similar commitments.
What about your governor? Do you need to make a phone call?
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.
6 replies on “Resistance Still Possible”
Line 77 of form 1040 is “tax penalty.”
Does that make it a “tax” or a “penalty”?
Call Jerry Brown???? Hahahahahahahahahaha!!!!
Sigh.…..
Paul,
I believe you’re neglecting a powerful tool: Nullification. http://www.tenthamendmentcenter.com. My information is: Missouri has nullified Obamacare in its entirety, Oklahoma is close, and many other states are on the road to enforcing the Constitution via what Jefferson termed ‘the rightful remedy.’
Werner — Sorry about your governor, though there are plenty worse. In fact, Democratic party Govs in CO, MO and WV have said they may not go along with Obamacare.
Brian — This is a form of nullification, though not precisely what you are talking about. My sense is that the courts will overrule state nullification of the sort you suggest under the supremacy clause.
Do we have a masterfully planned, simple and stable, yet flexible system which separates the powers? Yes we do.
It is time to stake all of our political future on the separation of the states from the Federal Gov’t, on the separation of the 3 brances, and on the separation of the citizen’s referendum process from the devices of local gov’t.
I trust in 100 people like Gov Scott to battle the expansion of the Fed. gov’t. I trust in the power of committed Governors, Senators and Representatives to fight the size and scope of the Fed Gov’t, which is now taking over the roles and powers reserved to the other branches and the states. It is that separation that we must use and preserve.
There can be no friendship or use for the Presidency until it is significantly reduced in power.
Every single penny spent by the federal government has to first be appropriated by the House of Representatives, according to the Constitution.
Which means, that despite all the posturing about “We’re doing all we can!” and “We are shut down by Harry Reid’s control of the Senate!”, the reality is that every smidgen of funding to run, administer, monitor, AND enforce Obamacare has to come from funds appropriated, approved and delineated for each specific purpose by the House of Representatives.
So if they only give out funds that are demarcated for every other specific purpose and specifically restricted from going into anyone’s coffers to make Obamacare happen, then there is no Obamacare. The government is not going to work on it without being paid. The amount of work is too massive. Even at the insistence of all of the few true-believers and the corrupt communists there, the majority of the federal government is NOT going to be giving away massive amounts of their personal time and their lives to make it happen. They don’t work for free and they don’t make huge surpluses of take-home funds that they can do without.
I have always maintained that the power/control mad monster that is our national government could be curtailed if the states were to institute nullification and interposition to take charge and restrict the tax dollars flowing to DC. To starve the beast.
Well, ladies and gents, waiting for the politicians in the states to realize that they still have cojones is not necessary. The beast of Obamacare can be starved at once by the folks currently in charge of the House of Representatives,(THE RINOS) any time they feel like it, despite all of the dog and pony shows and protestations of good intent and helplessness.
All they have to do is stop paying for it.