After three days of arguments and 136 amicus briefs filed with the Supreme Court, the key question comes down to this:
Can the Congress go beyond its power to tax us and actually compel us to spend our own personal money on a private product, under penalty of federal law?
The government argued that this is a natural extension its ability to regulate commerce since we will all need health care at some point in our lives. So why can’t Congress require us to purchase health insurance as a means of paying for those future bills. “It’s just a matter of timing,” Justice Elena Kagan said during the questioning.
But the Obama administration was unable to come up with any “limiting principle” that would tell the federal government where would it have to stop if it could compel us to enter into a private contract to purchase private health insurance with our private money.
Surely the next mandate purchase would be to tell us we must purchase long-term care insurance. Remember that program? The Obama administration pulled the plug on the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) program last fall after admitting there was no way it could assure its financial solvency as long as participation in the program was voluntary.
The House voted to strike the CLASS program from ObamaCare in January, but President Obama threatened a veto. The reason has to be this: If the individual mandate were upheld, then the next mandate would be to compel us to purchase long-term care insurance to assure the program’s solvency.
And the flood gates would open.
It’s no wonder that the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll shows that only 39% of Americans now support the health overhaul law, the lowest point ever. After three days of coverage of the Supreme Court arguments, people know even more about what’s in the law. And the more they know, they less they like it.
The Supreme Court would do the country – and freedom – a huge service by striking the entire law so Congress can get to work passing legislation that fits the will of the American people and the Constitution.