JUDGE PROMISES DECISION WITHIN 30 DAYS
by Sharon Rondeau
(Jul. 1, 2010) — As previously reported by The Post & Email, a hearing was held today in the Federal Courthouse in the Eastern District of Virginia in regard to the federal health care bill (PPACA) signed by Obama on March 23, 2010.
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli represented the Commonwealth of Virginia, and Department of Justice lawyers represented the Obama regime. Cuccinelli had filed his lawsuit within minutes of the federal bill’s signing, claiming that it violated the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Health Care Freedom Act passed and signed by Governor Bob McDonnell prior to the passage of the federal law.
Each side had one hour to argue its case. At issue was whether or not the Interstate Commerce Clause in the U.S. Constitution could be interpreted to mandate the purchase of health insurance. Cuccinelli claims that it cannot be.
Judge Henry Hudson presided. An eyewitness reported that at one point, the judge asked the DOJ if the cost to citizens was considered a tax or a penalty. The DOJ attorneys reportedly answered that the two were synonymous.
The same eyewitness stated that Cuccinelli argued that if the federal law were upheld, it would be the “end of federalism.” The Department of Justice attorneys argued that there are 45,000,000 uninsured people in the country which necessitated the passage of the federal law and had filed a Motion to Dismiss Cuccinelli’s suit. When the judge asked the Department of Justice lawyers where the money collected from the states would go, they answered “Into the general fund.”
The judge stated that he would have a decision on the DOJ’s request to dismiss within 30 days.
An update from Virginia Attorney General Cuccinelli can be found here, including a conference call summarizing the reasons for the filing of Virginia’s lawsuit and the events of today’s hearing.
The first line of the Virginia Attorney General’s Brief gets right to a counter to the US’s sickly view of federalism: “In the view of Secretary Sebelius, federalism is so withered and near death that States lack the power and right to go to federal court to test the validity of their own enactments when they conflict with federal law.” Ending Federalism would be the Death to States and Sovereignty. Obama continues to ignore and trash our Constitution, until it is gone. He continues to attack State’s Rights in Arizona, Louisiana, Texas, and the entire Gulf region, including the States that filed suit against the Healthcare, such as Virginia.
The 45 million uninsured the Obama Administration banters around includes the illegal aliens. Who is paying for their insurance? Certainly not them. This is an unprecedented case that is already making history. President Obama denied that the healthcare bill was a tax. Well, today, during the first oral arguments on Virginia’s healthcare case – Judge Hudson asked the attorneys for the US Government if the healthcare bill was a tax bill or a healthcare bill. The answer they gave was both! If Virginia’s case survives the motion to dismiss, a summary judgment hearing is scheduled for October 18, 2010, at 9:00 a.m. to decide if the federal health care law is unconstitutional.
Just a minor correction, the hearing did not make standing moot, the case was to determine if Virginia HAS standing. The judge will make the determination within 30 days and only then, assuming he agrees Virginia has standing, can the case go foward to merits argument stage, provisionally scheduled for 18th Oct.
http://www2.wsls.com/sls/news/state_regional/govtpolitics/article/cuccinellis_health-care_suit_in_court_thursday/108890/
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-01/judge-to-rule-within-month-on-virginia-lawsuit-to-block-health-reform-bill.html
Actually, the 30 day decision rules on the DOJ motion to Dismiss. This is what Cuccinelli said in an email today:
Overall, we are pleased with how the case is proceeding, and we’ll continue to update you with its progress. If Virginia’s case survives the motion to dismiss, a summary judgment hearing is scheduled for October 18, 2010, at 9:00 a.m. to decide if the federal health care law is unconstitutional. Stay tuned.
Dear Friends,
Today marked an important landmark in Virginia’s case to overturn the individual mandate contained in the recent healthcare bill: the first oral arguments in the case. While most of the arguments are similar to those we have laid out for you in previous emails (link to those arguments here) – there was at least one very interesting development.
Some of you might remember a conversation between the President and George Stephanopoulos back in September of last year where President Obama denied that the healthcare bill was a tax. Here is a segment from that conversation (link to the video here):
STEPHANOPOULOS: I wanted to check for myself. But your critics say it is a tax increase.
OBAMA: My critics say everything is a tax increase. My critics say that I’m taking over every sector of the economy. You know that. Look, we can have a legitimate debate about whether or not we’re going to have an individual mandate or not, but…
STEPHANOPOULOS: But you reject that it’s a tax increase?
OBAMA: I absolutely reject that notion.
Well, today, during the first oral arguments on Virginia’s healthcare case – Judge Hudson asked the attorneys for the US Government if the healthcare bill was a tax bill or a healthcare bill. The answer they gave was both!
Ken Cuccinelli, II
Attorney General of Virginia
Does anyone or any organization have “standing” in today’s courts!?!?!? evidently not under the Obama regime!?!?? Could this be a first!?!?
“the judge asked the DOJ if the cost to citizens was considered a tax or a penalty. The DOJ attorneys reportedly answered that the two were synonymous.”
If that’s true, and the Govt. has called the mandate a ‘tax’, I don’t see how the get around the problem of it being a capitation.
If the mandate is a tax, then it is clearly a capitation – ie. a head tax, and capitations must be proportioned to the census. And since the law explicitly excludes illegal immigrants, yet the census does include illegal immigrants, there is no way for this proportioning!
I don’t see how this law can not be thrown out!