I think the pundits are missing this one.
Most are saying that Obama wins if the court rules the individual mandate (and assorted ObamaCare junk) is constitutional …. and, he loses if the court rules that it’s unconstitutional.
I don’t see it that way.
Sure, it’s a win if the law gets a pass. Obama can crow about how it’s time to move on.
Here’s the twist.
If it’s ruled unconstitutional, the GOP loses one of its major campaign issues. They can’t go around beating a dead horse, right?
But, Obama can rail about the conservative justices legislating from the bench … and, he can argue that he needs to be re-elected – with a large majority – in order to craft a cleaner replacement for ObamaCare and, more important, to control appointments to the SCOTUS to make it more reasonable and objective.
Obama can also reap the economic benefits the laws demise. For sure, hiring will pick up a bit when the bill is buried.
See, heads he wind, tails he wins, too.
Nuts.
The Homa Files 
November 16, 2011 at 7:15 am |
Kind of depends how they rule on severability of the individual mandate. If they rule it is severable, leaving the rest of Obamacare intact, then repeal becomes even more urgent, and the court will only have highlighted that the slipshod monstrosity is not only bad policy, but includes unconstitutional provisions.
If they toss the entire law, then it does disappear as an issue to some extent, but it also adds to the case that Obama is a failure who wasted an enormous amount of time on a law that not only didn’t address any of America’s most pressing problems, but, in the end, did absolutely nothing at all.
November 16, 2011 at 12:02 pm |
Great points by Ken and Tim. If SCOTUS upholds I am afraid it may really be the beginning of the end as I think it signals that there are no limits on Congress.