Chief Justice Roberts saves Obamacare!

[Tupac Shakur]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...-john-roberts/

That piece is spot on. Hopefully Ezra Klein will continue to be as thoughtful now that he doesn't have to fret about his beloved Obamacare being overturned.

[Tupac Shakur]

I am giving a thumbs up to the article's primary observation that Roberts was motivated by political considerations about his court's legitimacy, which I think is accurate ...

QFT

[Ben Kenobi]

True. Obamacare was unconstitutional as written and sold to the public, however. Roberts was being extremely generous to Congress and the White House by treating the mandate penalty as a tax despite the legislative and executive branches' consistent denial that it was.

Robert's opinion was complete and total crap. He can dance all around about how he believes it is legal if it were passed under 1920 laws, but we aren't in 1920 anymore Kansas.

He just gave a blank check to the administration.

[Ben Kenobi]

It wasn't just advertising; Congress never referred to the mandate penalty as a "tax" in the entirety of the PPACA, and the Solicitor General actually argued that it both was (with regards to the individual mandate) and wasn't (with regards to the Anti-Injunction Act) a tax at oral arguments. Roberts basically had to invent a new test that allowed him to treat the penalty as a tax (but not one for Anti-Injunction Act purposes!) even though Congress didn't agree that it was one. It's a very clever loophole.

He'll be about as well regarded as Taney is now. Terrible decision and incoherent law. Everyone else was coherent, save Roberts.

[Tupac Shakur]

Your views on this issue do not matter.

[Ben Kenobi]

If they'd tried to advertise a tax increase as a return to slavery so they could appeal to Klansmen living in Benland, would that make the tax increase unconstitutional?

So I'm a Klansman for opposing the free **** brigade? You can't make other people pay for what you want. You want healthcare, pay for it.

[Ben Kenobi]

Your views on this issue do not matter.

Sure they do. I'm paying for it, so yeah my views do matter. If they didn't matter, then I should be allowed to opt out freely.

[Tupac Shakur]

If you don't want to pay American taxes, go back to ****ing Canada.

[Ben Kenobi]

Ben is right for the wrong reason. Romney will not remove Obamacare because of the political liabilities. If he wins the election, the issue will be swept under rug and not talked about by either party. And this is how a bill becomes a law.

And I'm sure that Taney thought that slavery was a settled issue too.

[Ben Kenobi]

If you don't want to pay American taxes, go back to ****ing Canada.

I'm happy to pay for American taxes, just not for abortion and contraception.

[Tupac Shakur]

You don't get to put conditions on the taxes you pay. If you don't like it, then get out.

[Propaganda]

Did anyone read Justice Roberts' full opinion? Apparently, it also states that the U.S. Congress has the right to impose and enforce new tax laws in other countries too!

[notyoueither]

You don't get to put conditions on the taxes you pay. If you don't like it, then get out.

No, please.

[giblets]

So I'm a Klansman for opposing the free **** brigade? You can't make other people pay for what you want. You want healthcare, pay for it.

Actually, you can make other people pay for things if you have a majority. I can't say, "you want to occupy Iraq, pay for it yourself because I'm not paying for it."

[giblets]

And I'm sure that Taney thought that slavery was a settled issue too.

It was, until the south flipped its lid and committed treason.