Obamacare #FAIL: Day 3 at the Supreme Court

"If I was in the Obama administration, I would not be comfortable with how the last three days went."

Reason's Damon Root was in attendance for the third and final day of oral arguments before the Supreme Court on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), which focused primarily on the issue of severability, which brings into question whether the individual mandate be excised from the law, or if the law in its totality must be struck down.

Now that the case is in the hands of the Court and a decision isn't expected until late June, Root thinks the Obama administration has reason to be concerned not only because their Solicitor General's performance rated poorly, but because "their arguments were nowhere near as strong as they thought they were going to be."

Runs about 3 minutes.

Produced by Anthony L. Fisher, shot by Josh Swain and Fisher.

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Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

"We expect a ruling at the end of June, at the end of the term. This is typically what the Supreme Court does. They save the biggest, the blockbuster decisions for the last week, maybe the last day..."

It sounds like this one is going to be a showstopper.

[Gomer Pyle]

Surprise, surprise, surprise!

[Nancy Pelosi]

We'll just have to wait on the SCOTUS 'til June, to find out what's in the SCOTUS.

[WTF]

"their arguments were nowhere near as strong as they thought they were going to be."

You mean "fuck you, that's why" is not a strong argument?

[Suthenboy]

Damn, you beat me to it.

I would only add; consider what kind of person would consider that an argument in the first place.

[mr simple]

That is sweeps week.

[Hugh Akston]

I'm a little surprised/disappointed that they didn't call a Constitutional scholar like Nancy Pelosi or Ezra Klein in to testify.

[wef]

Or our own Tony, the daddy-worshiping power-apologist. He is putting up a pretty good rhetorical fight.

[Mr. FIFY]

Tony is a good example of why the Democratics need to be put out of power.

[Tony]

We make too much sense, and are thus dangerous? Better eliminate education too.

[Sevo]

Tony|3.28.12 @ 9:36PM|#
..."Better eliminate education too."

Well, shithead, one out of twenty (thirty? fifty? X^n?) isn't good, but you get props for this one.

[Libertarian, transg., bisexual]

In another thread, Tony was cited as being better able to articulate the legal case for Obamacare than the Solicitor General did today.

[Sevo]

Libertarian, transg., bisexual|3.28.12 @ 10:06PM|#
"In another thread, Tony was cited as being better able to articulate the legal case for Obamacare than the Solicitor General did today."

Ya know, I'm not sure what that says about either one, but I'm sure pretty sure no one would take it as a compliment.

[Ballpunch]

I don't know about eliminating education, but I WOULD support saturation bombing of whatever institution decided to give you a diploma.

[John C. Randolph]

Better eliminate education too.

Public schools have come pretty close to doing that, as you so frequently demonstrate.

-jcr

[rehaM lliB]

It'd be better to eliminate those Atheist madrassas we call public schools.

[Mr. FIFY]

Yes, you're dangerous, Tony... as dangerous, in many ways, as Team Red.

[Ezra Klein]

But the Constitution is, like, a hundred years old and junk. And it was written by rich old white guys who whipped their slaves for breakfast.

[New Black Panther Party]

If we had us a time machine, yo, we'd go back and whip those Founding Muthafuckas.

[Thomas Jefferson]

Hey, I stopped whipping Sally every time she used her safeword. How dare you judge our love?

[Fuck or Walk]

Oh yeah, I can't tell you how glad we white people are that our fore fathers brought African slaves to the new world. Think of how much America would have missed out on if there were no blacks in this country.

[Sevo]

"we"?
Got a turd in your pocket?

[DCLove]

We should have picked our own fucking cotton

[American Indians...]

...owned slaves, too.

[A fan]

EVERY black slave that came to America was first owned by another African back home. Just sayin.

[Suki]

And American Indians were owned as slaves, by other Indians and by the Spanish.

[hk]

We still hold ourselves to a higher standard.

We don't engage in that stuff.

[No Shit]

A policeman friend of mine loves to point out that our taxes would be pennies on the dollar of what they are now.

[C. S. P. Schofield]

Ragtime, Blues, Jazz, Rock, exciting basketball .....

Just sayin'

[Possum Dearie]

I could live without those since we got litter and hip hop in the bargain. Jazz and ragtime?

[sage]

Hey, say what you will, but slavery gets shit done.

http://www.tshirthell.com/funn.....-shit-done

[Suki]

I hope they keep your link up. They pulled mine last time.

[Mike Giles]

"Hey, say what you will, but slavery gets shit done."

Uh, you do realize the pyramids weren't built by slaves; but by a peasantry paid off in grain and beer? It was some sort of religious ritual having to do with the Pharaoh leading his people in the afterlife, or some such.

[Copernicus]

"I'm a little surprised/disappointed that they didn't call a Constitutional scholar like Nancy Pelosi or Ezra Klein in to testify."

I've heard the Solicitor General did a pretty poor job arguing his case, but I pity him a bit. What could he really say when confronted by the Constitution with a side order of logic and reason?

He was given a shit job by Pelosi/Obama. He could have made a great point by answering every question with the following: "Are you serious?" That would have hammered home to everyone how lame the Democratic Congress of 2008-09 was.

[Doctor Whom]

Or E. J. "The Constitution counts only when I say it does" Dionne.

[shrike]

Britain Deserves Better

[darius404]

On that topic, the EU has created a new way to introduce legislation: "EU to give citizens the right to initiate laws."
"The European Union will launch a program next week allowing citizens to propose legislation as long as they can get a million signatures on a petition, a democratic drive that some opponents have labeled a 'fig leaf'."

[Sevo]

"as long as they can get a million signatures on a petition, a democratic drive that some opponents have labeled a 'fig leaf'.""

I'd have to agree. And thank the FSM.
Can you imagine the 'free goodies' the Euros would vote themselves if it only took 50K names?

[Karl Hungus]

Can you imagine the 'free goodies' the Euros would vote themselves if it only took 50K names?

This is Europe we're talking about here. A million signatures versus 50 thousand? All they'd need would be an extra day or two to get them.

[Sevo]

So they circulate the petition in Greece, and hey, presto! Right?

[Aunt Jemima]

Britain deserves batter.

[shrike]

Why fiberterians can't pick up women

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOrD5kqyov0

[jacob the barbarian]

rectal, you wish you looked a tenth this good. What is your email again?

[fish]

It's amazing what they can do with gender reassignment surgery these days.

They should have inserted some musical talent when they had her opened up in the OR.

[neoteny]

:))

And the boat is stationary.

[db]

I don't understand why Obama himself didn't jump in and argue the case after Day One. I mean, he's the Constitutional Scholar! He could have stunned the Court with his argumentation and encyclopedic knowledge of our founding document.

[Mr. FIFY]

My cat can shit a better pro-Obamacare argument than any supporter of state-run health care.

[May Be ...]

... because the Court doesn't allow teleprompters.

[shrike]

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[shrike]

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[shrike]

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[shrike]

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[shrike]

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[shrike]

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[fish]

Shrike! Really?

C'mon rectal narrow your circle of spoofs or provide programs!

[anarch]

That exposed brick background that resembles a dungeon wall makes me uncomfortable.

[Colonel_Angus]

I thought they were just doing the commentary at Zanies before happy hour.

[Colonel_Angus]

Does anyone have an idea what the hell this stuff on South Park is?

[Mint Berry Crunch]

I'll watch it later, but it can't possibly be worse than "Cash for Gold," can it?

[RyanXXX]

Hmmm. They seem to be giving some very subtle support to Paul, since the cat didn't pander or any of that other shit

[Mary's Stacked]

This is like the worst chat room ever.

[Anthony's Weiner]

How ya doin'?

[sidebottom]

Q: How many lotus blossoms does it take to get to the center of an HnR thread these days?

A:weed!

"Also, in a rare double-whammy decision the court finds polygamy constitutional."

[Joe M]

"If I was in the Obama administration, I would not be comfortable with how the last three days went."

Oh please don't get our hopes up like that.

[DRM]

If I was in the Obama Administration, I'd feel great. Looks like Obama's going to get an unpopular law off from around his neck before the election and be able to rally the base around the need to have a Democrat in office to appoint justices.

[darius404]

Well, that's why you're NOT in the Obama Administration, I guess. If he was smart, he would have stuck with his previous position on insurance mandates.

[Sevo]

"If he was smart, he would have stuck with his previous position on insurance mandates."

Nor would he have that hag Pelosi 'hanging around his neck'; either he told her to do it, or she did it and got props from him.
Either way, if the court tosses it, he owns it and her.
And I don't think he's going to get away with FDR court-packing threats.

[offcuff]

I agree Obama should be hoping the law is struck down - maybe he is an evil genius of Constitutional law. This way voters will never know what a train wreck this law is. Instead the partisan Court prevented the Dems from fixing health care.

[califronian]

^ DING DING DING

[MikeP]

...the Obama administration has reason to be concerned not only because their Solicitor General's performance rated poorly, but because "their arguments were nowhere near as strong as they thought they were going to be."

I'm sorry I lost you your steak knives.

[Graphite]

Third prize is you're fired.

[A Serious Man]

Put that coffee down. Coffee is for closers only.

[bobby b]

I think the CW about the SG stumbling is overdone.

Granted, he stumbled at the start, but, heck, no pressure here, right? Who'd be nervous?

But he got over that quickly, and the Court has never considered that to be part of the merits anyway.

His problem was, his case tanked.

Social comfort bubbles are comforting. And blinding. I'm seeing a lot of surprise amongst Democrats that the Commerce Clause has (gasp!) import here. They ALL discounted that one back at the office.

But, from about the second moment, when it became apparent that the Justices didn't share this basic assumption - that "enumerated powers" didn't mean "we can do anything we want as long as we number the statutes" - you could see and hear the jaws drop.

Put Jose Batista up at the plate with a badminton racquet, and he's gonna stumble, too.

[Michael]

The administration SHOULD have had the "great constitutional law professor" argue the case
- just so he could intimidate the justices with his unfettered brilliance !
However, they seem to have fallen waaaaaaaay short with their argument, which seemed to be that
"policies we support MUST be constitutionally valid, because they are the policies WE SUPPORT,
and WE passed them into law."

[rather fart in a jar]

Luckily the Flatulent Air Retention Treaty has been ratified by Congress and will go into effect at the end of the year in all signatory countries. The treaty lays out the basis by which farts can be stored in jars for international trade, replacing the dollar as the world's reserve currency. The current exchange rate is $3.20 to the FIJ - a rate that will be adjusted monthly based on the profits of Taco Bell.

[Harvard]

Mock the flatus if you will, but it is God's gift to the common man. Costs nothing, relieves discomfort, always funny. Ease up man.

[Gracie]

This the one of the most smart-hilarious comment threads I have ever read.

[Rich]

Stick around, Gracie. Occasionally you'll see some *fantastic* stuff.

[Joan Wilder]

Gotta love that bought and paid for Kangaroo COurt lol.

http://www.Anon-Works.tk

[And]

[valwayne]

Obamacare and the Individual Mandate are clearly Unconstitutional, except to the extreme left. However, you would have thought with all the discussion of the very points the Justices brought up that Solicitor General Verrelli would have come up with something better than he gave. However, a weak case is a weak cases! Lets hope this will be the end of the Unconstitutional monstrosity that Obama has tried to shove down our throats!

[EBL]

http://evilbloggerlady.blogspo.....crats.html Panic at the White House!

[Playrighter]

And Obama's people are sending emails inviting supporters to be part of their 100,000 signature petition to deliver to the Supreme Court to save Obamacare. Influence peddling, anyone?

[Miss Grundy]

"If I was in the Obama administration...."

Sigh. Is it too much to ask of a supposedly literate blog to use the subjunctive mood when it's clearly called for?

Were. Not "was".

Or...whatev.

[k2000k]

I dunno, if Obamacare is going to be tossed out then why do I feel my sphincter puckering?

[All Love]

Man, this is the racist area

[han]

So you see, the O-Man has a plan to save the day after all.

[creativebiolabs]

Hence why I want to know what they're actually talking about. When they said "school systems" I assumed that to mean different districts, not just different schools. Cause, honestly, is going to 6 different schools really that out-of-the-ordinary? The Elementary-Middle-High path will give a student 3 schools. A family with school age kids that moves twice in a 12 year period will probably hit 6 schools. And is that really a huge deal?
Triple Body