Texas Gov. Rick Perry Invokes the 10th Amendment

Government-run health care may be inevitable, but Texas Gov. Rick Perry says his state still will have none of it. When asked recently about President Obama's plan for the nation's health care system, Perry had this to say:

I think you'll hear states and governors standing up and saying 'no' to this type of encroachment on the states with their healthcare. So my hope is that we never have to have that stand-up. But I'm certainly willing and ready for the fight if this administration continues to try to force their very expansive government philosophy down our collective throats. It really is a state issue, and if there was ever an argument for the 10th Amendment and for letting the states find a solution to their problems, this may be at the top of the class. A government-run healthcare system is financially unstable. It's not the solution.

Perry's states' rights argument, while predictable (and reminiscent of the Mark Sanford era of stimulus money refusal), is one that other states should consider looking into as well—although it might be a little too late for Massachusetts.

But I'm guessing that like Sanford, Perry will be forced into accepting whatever health care change Obama and Congress deem wise.

Refresh your memory of the 10th Amendment here. 

Reason's entire archive on Rick Perry here. 

Comments

[TallDave]

Don't underestimate how much people will hate this health-care bill. It's built on so much dishonesty and coercion it may face armed rebellion.

[hmm]

Isn't this the typical state rights charade for the out of power party.

I'm glad we are seeing a surge in state rights/control issues, but I don't think it is genuine. I'd take the gun bill in MT more seriously.

[James Anderson Merritt]

On the other hand, State-run health programs aren't a panacea, either. Indeed, in some cases, they are the polar opposite of panacea.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,392962,00.html

[Elemenope]

It's built on so much dishonesty and coercion it may face armed rebellion.

ROFL. Yes, the people will rise up in defense of insurer-rationed health care.

[Mister DNA]

Say what you will about Governor Perry, he was awesome as TV's Mannix.

[Paul]

ROFL. Yes, the people will rise up in defense of insurer-rationed health care.

Which I would take any day over government rationed healthcare.

[Cabeza de Vaca]

"Don't underestimate how much people will hate this health-care bill. It's built on so much dishonesty and coercion it may face armed rebellion."

You'll have to take my HMO insurance card from my cold dead hands.

[Pug]

Texas leads the nation, at 25%, in those without health insurance.

Perry couldn't care less.

[Tricky Prickears]

...and reminiscent of the Mark Sanford era of stimulus money refusal...

Yeah, look what happened to him. Coincidence? I think not.

[+]

Government-run health care may be inevitable...

That's the spirit, Amanda. Who said libertarians are defeatists?

[+]

By the way, we already have some government-run health care. It's called Medicare & Medicaid. The issue here is whether that government, not content in owning the bodies of the poor and elderly, will succeed in owning the rest of us as well.

[HeadTater]

As much as it pains me to consider this: I may have to move to Texas. I'm thinking somewhere in the 14th Congressional District.

Maybe I am being over-simplistic in looking at this thing, but Medicare and Medicaid do not work. Most of us (con and lib) agree on that. However, the Democrats (Blue Dogs not included) don't seem to realize that expanding a failed institution does not make it work better.

[Don Mynack]

Let's see...we already have Medicare for the old people, Medicaid for disabled people, and SCHIP for poor kids. And we haven't even included charity hospitals and clinics. It costs $35 to visit a nurse prac at Wal-Mart or Walgreens, and $4 for generic drugs. Seriously, who the fuck is "national health care" for?

[qwerty]

The good news is that a major politician is actually talking about the 10th amendment.

[Jeffersonian]

Which I would take any day over government rationed healthcare.

Same here. The cool thing about insurer-rationed healthcare is that I can choose, before the fact, how I'd like to have my rationing configured and at what price. And if my insurer fails to deliver, I can demand that the government enforce the legal contract we have in place.

Now, with government-rationed healthcare, I don't get to choose, I don't get to pick my price point and I don't have any recourse if the government doesn't deliver.

Funk dat.

[Liberty Lover]

10th Amendment Invocation = O.K.
Forced vaccinations (benefiting the pharmaceutical cos. selling them for a profit) on ANYONE, yet alone school girls = BAD Gov. Perry. Wonder if Gov Perry or his other party politicians accept campaign contributions or benefit from the pharmaceutical companies campaign handouts.

[Constitutional Fan]

Perry supports 10th Amendment only if to do so is counter to the desires of the majority of the people. If a pretend Christian favors the idea of protesting any actual Christian behavior then Perry stands on the 10th.
Is there a clearly written process for recall or impeachment of an inept or mentally incompetent Governor? If so maybe it is time for the Gov. to be a guest at Huntsville.

[Constitutional Fan]

Dear Jeffersonian, Health care is already rationed. If you can afford it you can have it. As for over riding an insurance company decision to deny service, the average person would be dead before any legal solution could be put in place.

[Susan]

Well, governor, if it's a state responsibility, I would say that you are failing Texans, wouldn't you? If a state can run it, why don't they? If the current system works SO well, why are costs out of control, and so many people off the rolls?
Something must be done, and soon. And fear-mongering about what the plan will or will not do doesn't help advance the discussion. Read the plan, and THEN comment.

[The Libertarian Guy]

"Perry will be forced into accepting whatever health care change Obama and Congress deem wise."

I'd make Benito send in the troops to my state, if I were a governor.

Fuck the Fed.

[The Libertarian Guy]

"...fear-mongering about what the plan will or will not do doesn't help advance the discussion. Read the plan, and THEN comment."

The plan IS fearmongering. Or, at least, it's being SOLD WITH fearmongering.

[robc]

and so many people off the rolls?

Why is this considered a failure? Health care does not require insurance, just buy it with cash.

[robc]

Perry's states' rights argument

Actually, it is a states' powers argument. The 10th reserves powers to the states, not rights.

States dont have rights, only people have rights. Governments have powers that are granted to them by the people.

[Miklen]

What happens when Obamacare meets the "War on Drugs"? Will there be mandatory drug testing anytime you go to the Doctor?

Or am I just being paranoid?

[Ebeneezer Scrooge]

Never fear, Drugs will win the war.

[Ebeneezer Scrooge]

Meanwhile, the idea that Texas could opt out of Obamacare is really really funny.

Or are we really going to fight Civil War II over this? Somehow I don't think so.

[Texas Toast]

Texas is full of people used to ignoring government, both out of tradition and out of necessity. I think some of you underestimate the power of the black market.

[Mike]

Another silly attempt to assert the 10th amendment. What Perry should try to do is work under the McCarran-Ferguson Act to avoid Obama care. Of course congress could repeal McCarran-Ferguson, but they would be then taking on not just health insurers, but auto, life, home and the states, which under that act have the almost exclusive right to regulate insurance in their particular states.

[Anonymous]

Another silly attempt to assert the 10th amendment. What Perry should try to do is work under the McCarran-Ferguson Act to avoid Obama care.

The McCarran-Ferguson Act, 15 U.S.C. ? 1011, is a United States federal law. The McCarran-Ferguson Act was passed by Congress in 1945 after the Supreme Court ruled in U.S. v. South-Eastern Underwriters that insurance could be regulated by the federal government via the Commerce Clause (the overturned case stated that the federal government had this power), or, in other words, that insurance was interstate commerce.

Both are unconstitutional. I don't see how appealing to either one to fight the other avoids even more socialism.

[Kilo]

Jeffersonian | July 24, 2009, 10:11pm | #
"And if my insurer fails to deliver, I can demand that the government enforce the legal contract we have in place."

LOL WTF ? So you get cancer and your insurer says that failing to disclose an acne treatment means you're not covered. Who exactly in the government are you placing that call to now ?

[Kilo]

Don Mynack | July 24, 2009, 9:48pm | #
" It costs $35 to visit a nurse prac at Wal-Mart or Walgreens, and $4 for generic drugs. Seriously, who the fuck is "national health care" for?"

Clearly, for those who need coverage against any illness costing more than $35 at Wal-Mart to treat. Seriously, what the fuck do you think all other health insurance is for, you fool ?

[starboard]

Tax the rich
Feed the poor
Till there are no
Rich no more

[Art-P.O.G.]

I'm sorry, not to threadjack, but how awesome would it be if Steve Perry was the governor of Texas instead of Rick Perry?

[ed]

Just when you thought the music in Texas couldn't get any worse...

[James Ard]

Alvin Lee's worst line.

[Art-P.O.G.]

What? What are you talking about ed? :::chorused piano intro begins:::

[John]

James,

I always thought that line could just as easily mean the oppostie of what he intended. If you tax the rich until there are no rich anymore, everyone is poor, which pretty much describes socialism and communism. No doubt hippy dippy Alvin Lee didn't mean it that way. But if you took that song and put it over videos of depressing scenes of old Eastern Block life, it would make the point.

[James Ard]

John, Hopefully Lee eventually realized that. I'd be curious to see what kind of digs he's living in these days.

[J.L. Smith]

It's apparent the news media live in a bubble and the 4 big networks have hardly mentioned this announcement by Governor Perry. Even the writer of this article skewed the information and gave it a left-wing bias. Let's see who has the last laugh.

[Jon]

Anyone with a legal education knows that the 10th Amendment argument is a loser--just like challenging federal legislation under the Commerce Clause. There have been a couple of isolated victories here and there, but Perry isn't on firm ground here. Federalism has been chipped away at for a long time with the Supreme Court's blessing.

[Jon]

BTW: Alvin Lee is leaving the job of changing the World up to you.

[ken]

If the feds wont let us run our own state we can always secede.No payroll tax no gas tax no gasoline or drilling regulations, no epa regulations. Just freedom.

[MNG]

Art, don't stop believing.

[TallDave]

It's built on so much dishonesty and coercion it may face armed rebellion.
...
ROFL. Yes, the people will rise up in defense of insurer-rationed health care.

It won't be quite as funny when heavily armed government agents start showing up at people's doors with warrants for refusing to carry health insurance, enroll in a gov't program, or pay federal fines.

Well, not in the "haha" sense anyway, more in the "Hey that's funny, I think that happened in an Orwell book" sort of funny.

[efgoldman]

@ken

Also: no federal defense bucks, no federal highway bucks, medicare/medicaid bucks, education bucks, etc etc...

Now you may think none of that is the fed's affair, and you're welcome to argue it, but the fact is TX (and all Southern states) get way more in federal expenditure $$ than they send to DC in federal taxes.

Don't let the door hit you on the *ss.

[Chuck]

I'm starting to like the Gov more and more. The states need to fight back from the horrible plan.

[Libertarian Classical Liberal]

Rick Perry is the man. I love this guy.

[Spoonman]

Now you may think none of that is the fed's affair, and you're welcome to argue it, but the fact is TX (and all Southern states) get way more in federal expenditure $$ than they send to DC in federal taxes.

False. Texas is one of the few tax-negative red states.

[R C Dean]

What Perry is really worried about here is a potential shell game in the federal legislation that will take care of some uninsured by expanding Medicaid, which means states already struggling to pay their current Medicaid bills will be hit with a massive new expense.

[????? ??????]

Thanks