Posted on 03/27/2012 4:36:28 PM PDT by Clintonfatigued
Paul Clement has been receiving rave reviews for his performance during the second day of oral arguments over health-care reform before the Supreme Court. ([T]he best argument Ive ever heard, SCOTUSblog Tom Goldstein raved on Twitter). But Clements finest moment may have come when he was completely silent.
A little more than two minutes into Solicitor General Donald Verillis turn at the bar, Justice Anthony Kennedy interrupted him: Can you create commerce in order to regulate it?
Kennedys query was an almost verbatim recital of Clements own talking point, part of the fundamental argument he has made against the individual mandate. In his brief to the Court, and later during his oral argument, he said Obamas health-care law represents an unprecedented effort by Congress to compel individuals to enter commerce in order to better regulate commerce.
Its a recasting of the original argument used by opponents of the mandate: that Congress has overstepped its constitutional authority by regulating inactivity rather than activity.
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Seen through that lens, Clement has to be feeling pretty good about his experience at the Court earlier today. While he faced tough, bordering-on-hostile questions from the four liberal justices most notably from Justice Steven Breyer, who seemed to be lecturing more than asking the two justices who seem most open to persuasion by either side, Kennedy and Chief Justice John Roberts, were far tougher on Verilli. And when they did have questions for Clement, he handled them with aplomb.
(Excerpt) Read more at nymag.com ...
I wish I shared Mr. Zengelre’s confidence in the integrity of SCOTUS...but I do not.
(you'll prolly get tired of this before it's over ;-)
Amen
Even supporters of Obamacare are privately admitting that Paul Clement is doing an effective job. Remember that name. If Obama is defeated for reelection, Clement may be headed for the Supreme Court again, this time as a member.
Me neither!
“Clement may be headed for the Supreme Court again, this time as a member.”
unfortunately Romney has no record of nominating or supporting conservatives for any court anywhere so I wouldn’t hold your breath..
As others have suggested the Individual Mandate was always a throwaway to get the heavy taxes inside the bill enacted. The goal here is to keep the rest of the Bill alive even though there is no sever ability clause in it.
I forgot to ping you to Posting #5.
The lawyer that argued against the government yesterday was similarly excellent...Greg Katsos. I enjoyed listening to him make his argument.
The lawyer that argued against the government yesterday was similarly excellent...Greg Katsos. I enjoyed listening to him make his argument.
And that’s one of my many concerns with Romney getting the nomination.
In my 60-plus years the government has been ever-expanding. I’ll be very surprised if this expansion is not allowed.
cboldt says:
I think it is pretty clear that the "activity" "inactivity" distinction is a diversion from the text of the constitution.Does Congress have the power to compel commerce?
He didn’t win; whoever wrote the law lost. Perry Mason couldn’t defend the mandate. Lionel Hutz couldn’t fail to argue it down.
That’s an interesting way of looking at it.
New Gummint Business Model:
1. Do nothing until it becomes a crisis
2. Create gummint solution
3. Pass and/or deem it passed by partisan hack legislature
4. Stack the bench to be sure it’s upheld in court
5. Lose money by failing to implement cost controls
6. Make it up in volume (add 25 million to the free HC dole)
There is no temporal limitation in the Commerce Clause. Everyone subject to this regulation is in or will be in the health care market. They are just being regulated in advance.
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