Obama Aide Rejects ‘Tax’ Label for Health Care Law (Obama believes Obamacare is unconstitutional)

ny times ^ | 7/1/2012 | ANNIE LOWREY

[tobyhill]

Jacob J. Lew, the White House chief of staff, on Sunday defended President Obama‘s health care law but rejected the “tax” label that the Supreme Court, in a ruling that mostly upheld the law last week, used to describe the penalty payment required for those who choose not to buy health insurance.

The Supreme Court affirmed the so-called individual mandate to buy health insurance on the ground that it might be “reasonably characterized as a tax.” Since the ruling, Republican leaders have denounced the White House for raising the tax burden on Americans with the law, and they have called for its full repeal.

The mandate is a central piece of the health care law and is enforceable with a penalty assessed through the tax system.

But Mr. Lew repeatedly declined to call the mandate a tax. “The law set it up as a penalty for the people who make” the choice not to purchase health insurance, he said in an interview with George Stephanopoulos on the ABC program “This Week.” “The court found it constitutional. Frankly, what you call it is not the issue.”

[Pearls Before Swine]

You left out "lying POS" and "dirtbag".

It was implied, LOL.

[Timocrat]

He can reject the label TAX until the earth stops turning - As a matter of LAW its a tax. End of debate.

Exactly. This isn't even up for debate. The Law of the Land is that this is a Tax he can can call it a green eyed Martian but the LAW now says its a tax.