Regardless, it is somewhat heartening to hear of the Administration's Top Legal Dog getting his ass handed to him by one of his own.
My prediction:
The court will decide the mandate is not enforceable but not unconstitutional. No penalties will be able to be legally collected.
A collective WTF will follow.
Didn’t they get the Pelosi memo about the “ironclad” constitutionality of Obamacare?
Do not be mislead by such dialogue. The Court must do this; however, it is no indication of the final decision.
I have been commenting on these hearings and have heavily cautioned against becoming overconfident.
The real game play of all plays, the real play that determines the winner is severability.
I do not believe the SCOTUS will deny severability outright.
But it would be a beautiful thing if SCOTUS sent the law back to Congress to vote on severability. And I wonder if SCOTUS could send something back to Congress to reconsider, before SCOTUS made a ruling.
Because a revote on severability would be a stake through the malicious heart of Obamacare. The House would vote against severability, so if SCOTUS ruled against say the individual mandate, without implied severability the whole Law would go down and cease to exist.
According to CNN’s legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin, the arguments were “a train wreck for the Obama administration.”
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And here’s to many, many more.
Audio and transcripts of todays arguments are up.
http://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_audio_detail.aspx?argument=11-398-Tuesday
Audio and transcripts of todays arguments are up.
http://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/argument_audio_detail.aspx?argument=11-398-Tuesday