[stylin19a]

I still don't know why this doesn't go straight to the Supremes.

Articel III Sec. 2

In all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, and those in which a state shall be party, the Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction. In all the other cases before mentioned, the Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with such exceptions, and under such regulations as the Congress shall make.

[ForGod'sSake]

I still don't know why this doesn't go straight to the Supremes.

It's an excellent question that has been asked several times on these threads. I don't have an answer and I don't recall reading anything definitive. The most plausible answer(s) seems to deal with the venue and/or makeup of the respective courts involved. The speed with which it could make it to the SCOTUS in the case of Virginia's "rocket docket". I presume a sympathetic court in the panhandle of Florida could potentially yield some favorable results, not the least of which could be a preliminary injunction, stopping obamacare dead in its tracks. It could also be a matter of protocol, that is, don't bypass a potential friend in the lower courts. It could come back to bite 'em in the keister. OR, none of the above. ;^)