Caffeinated Thoughts

15 Reasons Why the Obamacare Decision Is a Mind Blowing Disaster for America
Eric Holder Held In Contempt of Congress
Is John Roberts an “Evil Genius”? The Silver Lining of the Health Care Reform Ruling
Steve King Responds to ObamaCare Ruling
Blown to Smithereens: Why We Conservatives Got the Health Care Ruling We Deserved
SCOTUS Upholds Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Updated)

15 Reasons Why the Obamacare Decision Is a Mind Blowing Disaster for America

Posted: 28 Jun 2012 11:30 PM PDT

You can almost always count on the Supreme Court to do the wrong thing. In fact, just about every major decision by the U.S. Supreme Court over the last 40 years has been bad for America. Many were hoping that the Supreme Court would strike down Obamacare, but the truth is that we all should have known better than to expect them to get something right. So now America is headed for a complete and total disaster as Obamacare is fully implemented over the next several years. Obamacare is going to absolutely shred the infrastructure of our medical system, it is going to send health insurance premiums soaring, it is going to dramatically expand the size and the scope of government, it is going to fundamentally alter the relationships between doctors and their patients and it is one of the largest tax increases in U.S. history. Not only that, it is also going to add about a trillion dollars to our national debt over the next decade. So no, the Obamacare decision is not good news. Obamacare was one of the worst pieces of legislation in American history, and now we are stuck with it.

It was a 5-4 decision to uphold Obamacare, and the swing vote was Chief Justice John Roberts who was appointed by George W. Bush.

After the vote yesterday, it is hard to have any faith in the U.S. Supreme Court. Many constitutional conservatives kept voting for Republicans in the hope that the direction of the Supreme Court would change, but it hasn’t.

Prior to the Obama administration, Republicans controlled the White House for 20 out of 28 years. If Republicans were going to fundamentally change the nature of the Supreme Court, that was their opportunity.

But it didn’t happen.

Instead, what we have is a Supreme Court that is dominated by judges that have very little respect for the U.S. Constitution. When I was in law school I got to study the Supreme Court pretty closely and I quickly realized that most of the time they simply do whatever they want to do and they make up whatever reasons they can to justify their decisions.
That sounds really bad, but that is the truth.

And thanks to the Supreme Court, we are stuck with Obamacare – at least for now.

The following are 15 reasons why the Obamacare decision is a mind blowing disaster for America….

#1 According to the U.S. Supreme Court, the federal government has the power to force you to buy private goods and services. Now that this door has been opened, what else will we be forced to buy in the future?

#2 Obamacare is another step away from individual liberty and another step toward a "nanny state" where the government dominates our lives from the cradle to the grave.

#3 The IRS is now going to be given the task of hunting down and penalizing millions of Americans that do not have any health insurance. In fact, the Obama administration has given the IRS 500 million extra dollars "outside the normal appropriations process" to help them enforce the provisions of Obamacare that they are in charge of overseeing.

#4 Obamacare imposes more than 20 new taxes on the American people. You can find a comprehensive list of Obamacare taxes right here. If you love paying higher taxes, then you are going to absolutely love Obamacare once it is fully implemented.

#5 In an attempt to "control costs" and "promote efficiency", Obamacare limits the treatment options that doctors and patients can consider. This is likely to result in a decrease in life expectancy in the United States.

#6 Obamacare is going to impose nightmarish paperwork burdens on doctors, hospitals and the rest of the healthcare system. This is going to significantly increase our healthcare costs as a nation.

#7 Obamacare is going to send health insurance premiums soaring. This is especially true for younger Americans.

#8 Many small businesses are going to be absolutely crushed by the provisions in Obamacare that require them to provide expensive health insurance coverage for their employees. This is going to make them even less competitive with companies in other countries where businesses are not required to provide healthcare for their workers. This is also going to make it even less attractive for businesses to hire new employees.

#9 Obamacare is going to make the emerging doctor shortage in America a lot worse. Surveys have found that we could potentially see hundreds of thousands of doctors leave the medical profession because of Obamacare.

#10 Obamacare has already forced the cancellation of dozens of doctor-owned hospitals.

#11 Obamacare is going to result in a much bigger federal government. In order to fully implement all of the provisions of Obamacare, hordes of new government bureaucrats will be required.

#12 Thanks to Obamacare, you are going to have to wait much longer to see a doctor. Just look at what happened once Romneycare was implemented in Massachusetts….

In fact, we have already seen the start of this process in Massachusetts, where Mitt Romney's health care reforms were nearly identical to President Obama's. Romney's reforms increased the demand for health care but did nothing to expand the supply of physicians. In fact, by cracking down on insurance premiums, Massachusetts pushed insurers to reduce their payments to providers, making it less worthwhile for doctors to expand their practices. As a result, the average wait to get an appointment with a doctor grew from 33 days to over 55 days.

#13 Obamacare contains all kinds of insidious little provisions that most people don’t even know about. The following is one example from the Alliance Defense Fund….

"Did you know that with ObamaCare you will have to pay for life-saving drugs, but life-ending drugs are free. One hundred percent free. If this plan were really about health care wouldn’t it be the other way around?"

#14 As if the U.S. government was not facing enough of a crisis with entitlement spending, it is being projected that Obamacare will add 16 million more Americans to the Medicaid rolls. You and I will be paying for all of this.

#15 The Congressional Budget Office estimates that Obamacare will add more than a trillion dollars to government spending over the next decade. Considering the fact that the U.S. government is already drowning in debt, how in the world can we afford this?

Cross-post

Eric Holder Held In Contempt of Congress

Posted: 28 Jun 2012 04:00 PM PDT

Today after 100 House Democrats, including Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD), walked out in protest the House overwhelmingly voted in favor of holding Attorney General Eric Holder in Contempt of Congress on a 255 to 67 vote. Seventeen Democrats voted with Republicans to find Holder in contempt. Two Republicans, Congressmen Steve LaTourette (R-OH) and Scott Rigell (R-VA) joined with the Democrats who stayed and voted against the measure.

Last week the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted in favor of the measure opening the door for the entire House to vote on the measure. Holder was charged after with contempt of Congress after refusing to release documents related to Operation Fast & Furious that were subpoenaed by the committee. Holder cited executive privilege which was vigorously argued against by Republicans.

The contempt charge is now referred to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia for enforcement of the subpoena. The question is will this charge actually be prosecuted? I'm not holding my breath. It is more likely that House Republicans will go forward with civil charges and sue the Department of Justice which could be more likely to succeed. Though I won't hold my breath on that either.

Is John Roberts an “Evil Genius”? The Silver Lining of the Health Care Reform Ruling

Posted: 28 Jun 2012 03:00 PM PDT

Yes I'm disappointed in the Supreme Court's ruling on the Patient Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and yes I am surprised that Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the liberal figures on the Court. I'm not up on the ledge and you shouldn't either. If you are it's time to step away.

God is still in control, and this battle is not over yet. Not even close. This places the fate of this atrocious health care law back into the hands of "We The People." November was important and now it is even more so. While every one is focused on the Presidential race I believe Congressional and Senate races are even more important. The Court basically said to Congress, "you made this mess and now you have to clean it up."

Now to look at the long game…

This is no longer a legal matter, but a political one.

Congressman Steve King this afternoon alluded to this in a conference call this afternoon. He believes that Iowa's First and Second Congressional District races are now in play. Conventional wisdom holds that those districts where Democrats lead Republicans in voter registrations would be difficult, if not impossible, to win. The key is the independent vote. The independent vote is key. On Sunday a Reuters/Ipsos poll came out showing 73% of independent voters oppose Obamacare… in other words less than quarter of those voters support it. Congressman King pointed out that Congressman Bruce Braley who represents Iowa's First Congressional District gave the closing arguments in favor of the health care law. Now that health care reform will be a top issue in these House races that helps Ben Lange, not Braley. It also helps out John Archer in Iowa's Second Congressional District. It puts Congressman Leonard Boswell (D-IA) in Iowa's Third Congressional District in hot water since he voted for it, and his challenger Congressman Tom Latham (R-IA) didn't. I believe it makes Congressman King's reelection pretty much certain in the Iowa Fourth Congressional District race with Christie Vilsack.

It just doesn't help. To be able to repeal Obamacare people who voted for it need to be replaced. The House GOP majority needs to be strengthened and the Senate not only needs to flip, but I believe it needs to be done preferably with a supermajority. I say this because the White House is no guarantee it would be great to have a veto-proof Congress.

I'm not as optimistic about the presidential race. If Republicans had another candidate other than Mitt Romney it would be a different story. Already the Obama campaign is working to box Romney in on the healthcare ruling. Not only did Mitt Romney help create the individual mandate in Massachusetts with RomneyCare, but he also supported a federal individual mandate back in 2009.

It's hard to campaign against Obamacare with a record like that. Yes he says he's for repeal and against the Supreme Court ruling now. The one thing we can count on is Romney's pragmatism. I doubt if Congress passed a repeal that he would veto it. Please don't read that as an endorsement, I don't trust Romney on this issue. I trust Obama even less. If Obama is in office a veto would be guaranteed. However, Romney's record makes it difficult (if not impossible) for people to believe what he says on the issue.

Ultimately I believe that this ruling helps those Congressional and Senate candidates campaigning for a repeal of Obamacare than it does Mitt Romney.

The scope of the Commerce Clause has now been limited by the Court.

I pointed that out this morning as did Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli in a press conference this morning. Cuccinelli said the Court had put an "outer limit" on the Commerce Clause. This is the first time since the New Deal that Supreme Court in their ruling on Medicaid have ever placed a limit on the power of Congress to compel state to act through its spending authority. Congressman King also conceded that if we had "lost the definition of the Commerce Clause it would have swallowed up the enumerated powers and the 9th and 10th Amendments." Cuccinelli points out that federalism was ultimately preserved, "if there had been five votes to compel us into commerce, federalism would have been dead."

The individual mandate is now linked to a tax, as will future mandates.

Yes there was an expansion of Congress' authority to tax or as Congressman King put it "coerce us through taxation." The flip side of this Cuccinelli notes is that it removes political cover for Democrats who voted for Obamacare:

By calling it a tax, he said, the Court (specifically the Chief Justice) removes the political cover for those legislators who claimed not to have voted for a tax increase. They can no longer go back to their home districts and say they did not vote for a tax, he said, and thus they will be subject to the judgment of voters on Election Day.

It actually links future mandates such as this to taxation, passing mandates like that that have to identified as a tax will be politically dangerous for those who vote in favor of them.

Erick Erickson of RedState agrees:

…while Roberts has expanded the taxation power, which I don't really think is a massive expansion from what it was, Roberts has curtailed the commerce clause as an avenue for Congressional overreach. In so doing, he has affirmed the Democrats are massive taxers. In fact, I would argue that this may prevent future mandates in that no one is going to go around campaigning on new massive tax increases. On the upside, I guess we can tax the hell out of abortion now. Likewise, in a 7 to 2 decision, the Court shows a strong majority still recognize the concept of federalism and the restrains of Congress in forcing states to adhere to the whims of the federal government.

While the fallout remains to be seen. A blogger friend, Emily Zanotti the editor of NakedDC.com, in an email to other bloggers mentioned that her constitutional law professor, who happens to be very conservative, said that Chief John Roberts is "an evil genius." Looking down the road he may very well be right.

Steve King Responds to ObamaCare Ruling

Posted: 28 Jun 2012 11:00 AM PDT

Congressman Steve King (R-IA), a leading critic of ObamaCare issued the following statement today:

Leading up to today, the lower courts were split on a handful of issues," said King. "One issue they were nearly unanimous on was that the individual mandate was not a tax therefore could not be upheld under Congress's power to tax. Today the Supreme Court disagrees with the vast majority of lower court decisions and contradicts President Obama himself, who vehemently denied that the individual mandate was a tax.

The fate of ObamaCare is not yet set. The House has voted to pass my language to repeal 100% of ObamaCare. Every Republican Senator has voted to do the same. On the other hand, President Obama and Democrats in Congress remain as committed as ever to forcing the unconstitutional law that bears the President's name upon an unwilling and disapproving public. The choice could not be clearer. The American people should be reminded that there is no force more powerful than their voice. After the passage of ObamaCare, the American people made their disapproval known in a powerful way. Today's decision should renew that call and spirit.

The Constitution lays out a government of limited, enumerated powers, and the size and scope of our current government, and specifically ObamaCare, are well beyond what our Founding Fathers ever intended. The American people will decide the fate of ObamaCare.

Updated

He also held a conference call with the press, you can listen to the entire thing above. Money quote: "It confers a power on Congress a power we didn't know existed when we woke up this morning and that is the ability to coerce activity by taxation."

He re-emphasized the need to repeal the bill and open the health care reform debate to suggestions from the American people. He said that the ability to pay for health insurance pre-tax should be address, as should the ability to purchase insurance across state lines. He said tort reform should also be addressed. When asked if there was anything within the current law that he would want to see salvaged he said there wasn't and that "Obamacare needs to be torn out by the roots." The silver lining of the ruling, if any, he said maybe that "they ruled the Commerce Clause isn't so broad that it encompasses a coercion, but they ruled that the taxation clause is." He said if we "lost the definition of the Commerce Clause it would have swallowed up the enumerated powers and the 9th and 10th Amendments." So the bright side is that "we can still point to the enumerated powers today, when I woke up this morning I wasn't sure I was going to be able to do that." He then emphasized his concern about the broadening of the taxation clause.

He also went on to say that he believes this will now be the number one issue for the 2012 elections, and that it puts all of the Congressional districts in Iowa in play for Republicans. He also believes that winning Iowa tips in Mitt Romney's favor and that four out of five election scenarios given by Obama political advisor, David Axelrod, listed Iowa as a must win state.

While he thinks this will help Republicans in November he didn't want that help to come at the expense of this ruling.

This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now

Blown to Smithereens: Why We Conservatives Got the Health Care Ruling We Deserved

Posted: 28 Jun 2012 08:58 AM PDT

We screamed and shouted from the roof tops that "we have our rights!" You can't make us—mandate us to!—buy something. That is unconstitutional! All the while we empowered that same government to MANDATE that insurance companies carry people with pre-existing conditions. This is like pulling the pin, throwing a hand grenade straight up in the air, then complaining a few seconds later when you blow yourself to smithereens. (Well, it is a bit too late to complain at that point!)

If you were one of those silent on the mandate that insurance cover the already sick, did you not realize that expecting insurance companies to carry sick folks who hadn't paid a dime for coverage in advance would destroy the whole original premise of insurance? The mandate that U.S. citizens buy insurance was the carrot that got the insurance companies on board with Obamacare. And now the (United States) U.S.Supreme Court has ruled, upholding both mandates, and was led by a conservative, John Roberts.

Don't get me wrong. The insurance companies will love this (for a while) while they get huge revenue increases (and why their execs largely supported Obamacare). This new law lines their pockets even more for now, because the government wants the insurance companies to survive the first new wave of socialized medicine. Watch some prices for insurance go down, but watch what they cover drop even faster. Government will mandate that insurance continue a move towards so-called preventative care and away from covering acute and chronic illnesses, eventually resulting in highly rationed care.

Within a couple of years watch whoever is president move in to abolish private insurance. The law will forbid people from buying medical care outside the "health care" system, which will be seen as bribing a public official. That is because every doctor, nurse and hospital will be considered government workers. People will flock to those industries (again, for a while) because they will get the kind of salaries and benefits usually only reserved for government union jobs. When that happens, watch the cost of medical care soar.

We can't ignore the moral component here, either. As a nation we had chosen to abide by the killing of unborn babies, in part motivated by personal ambition and lifestyle demands. We should not be surprised when a generation we killed half of and put the other half in daycare centers will now put us in government nursing homes (that is, the half who survive the coming gericaust).

Only widespread repentance will keep the country from being dumped on the ash heap of tyranny, perhaps preceded by a little anarchy first. Only the church is guaranteed to survive, but that not without great troubles:

Psalm 66:8-14 (Scottish Metrical Psalter)

Ye people, bless our God; aloud

the voice speak of his praise:

9 Our soul in life who safe preserves,

our foot from sliding stays.

10 For thou didst prove and try us, Lord,

as men do silver try;

11 Brought’st us into the net, and mad’st

bands on our loins to lie.

12 Thou hast caus’d men ride o’er our heads;

and though that we did pass

Through fire and water, yet thou brought’st

us to a wealthy place.

13 I’ll bring burnt off’rings to thy house;

to thee my vows I’ll pay,

14 Which my lips utter’d, my mouth spake,

when trouble on me lay.

For more on Obamacare and Romneycare, see the appendix in my book, With Christ in the Voting Booth: called Making Insurance Companies Cover Pre-Existing Medical Conditions and a more detailed description of the economics on this issue.

SCOTUS Upholds Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Updated)

Posted: 28 Jun 2012 08:30 AM PDT

The Supreme Court of the United States decided 5-4 to uphold the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The lynchpin of their decision surrounding the individual mandate which was the most likely aspect to be overturned is that while Congress doesn't have the authority to make people purchase health insurance under the commerce clause, but they do have the authority to tax people. Essentially the real disturbing fallout from this ruling is that there is now precedent that Congress apparently now has the authority to tax anything. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion, some key text from the summary:

The Constitution grants Congress the power to "regulate Commerce." Art. I, §8, cl. 3 (emphasis added). The power to regulate commerce presupposes the existence of commercial activity to be regulated. This Court's precedent reflects this understanding: As expansive as this Court's cases construing the scope of the commerce power have been, they uniformly describe the power as reaching "activity." E.g., United States v. Lopez, 514 U. S. 549, 560. The individual mandate, however, does not regulate existing commercial activity. It instead compels individuals to become active in commerce by purchasing a product, on the ground that their failure to do so affects interstate commerce.

Construing the Commerce Clause to permit Congress to regulate individuals precisely because they are doing nothing would open a new and potentially vast domain to congressional authority. Congress already possesses expansive power to regulate what people do. Upholding the Affordable Care Act under the Commerce Clause would give Congress the same license to regulate what people do not do. The Framers knew the difference between doing something and doing nothing. They gave Congress the power to regulate commerce, not to compel it…

…The payment is not so high that there is really no choice but to buy health insurance; the payment is not limited to willful violations, as penalties for unlawful acts often are; and the payment is collected solely by the IRS through the normal means of taxation. Cf. Bailey v. Drexel Furniture Co., 259 U. S. 20, 36–37. None of this is to say that payment is not intended to induce the purchase of health insurance. But the mandate need not be read to declare that failing to do so is unlawful. Neither the Affordable Care Act nor any other law attaches negative legal consequences to not buying health insurance, beyond requiring a payment to the IRS. And Congress's choice of language—stating that individuals "shall" obtain insurance or pay a "penalty"—does not require reading §5000A as punishing unlawful conduct. It may also be read as imposing a tax on those who go without insurance.

Obviously I'm shocked. I thought for certain that the individual mandate at the very least would be struck down. This makes November even more important than it already was.

Some Republican and conservative reactions. Statements from Iowa Governor Terry Branstad:

Today, the Supreme Court handed down a disastrous decision to uphold President Obama's destructive health care law, which means a future of higher costs, higher taxes, and increasing debt for Iowans. The current health care system is nothing but a federal takeover and continues to exceed its budgeted amount every day. But, as Governor Romney has said many times, no matter what may happen in Court, the American people must remain vigilant in their fight to repeal the law. Our goal is for Iowa to become the healthiest state in the country and to do so Iowans will need to take ownership of their own health to reduce health care costs and lead healthier lives.

Iowa Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds added:

America needs real health care reform and we need Governor Romney in Washington. Gov. Romney will enact real reforms to ensure that the future of Iowa and America as a whole can replace Obamacare with solutions that put Iowans in control of their own health care and preserve the economic future of Iowa's next generation.

I don't hold the same confidence in Governor Mitt Romney as they do, but we'll see. Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) weighed in:

Today's ruling underscores the urgency of repealing this harmful law in its entirety. "What Americans want is a common-sense, step-by-step approach to health care reform that will protect Americans' access to the care they need, from the doctor they choose, at a lower cost. Republicans stand ready to work with a president who will listen to the people and will not repeat the mistakes that gave our country ObamaCare.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said:

Today's decision makes one thing clear: Congress must act to repeal this misguided law. Obamacare has not only limited choices and increased health care costs for American families, it has made it harder for American businesses to hire. Today's decision does nothing to diminish the fact that Obamacare's mandates, tax hikes, and Medicare cuts should be repealed and replaced with common sense reforms that lower costs and that the American people actually want. It is my hope that with new leadership in the White House and Senate, we can enact these step-by-step solutions and prevent further damage from this terrible law.

The junior Senator from Kentucky, Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), also issued a statement:

Just because a couple people on the Supreme Court declare something to be 'constitutional' does not make it so. The whole thing remains unconstitutional. While the court may have erroneously come to the conclusion that the law is allowable, it certainly does nothing to make this mandate or government takeover of our health care right.

Obamacare is wrong for Americans. It will destroy our health care system. This now means we fight every hour, every day until November to elect a new President and a new Senate to repeal Obamacare.

Charmaine Yoest of Americans United for Life issued a statement focused on the impact this decision has on federal funding for abortions:

The Affordable Care Act forces an abortion agenda on the American people unlike anything seen since Roe v. Wade. Despite clear and continuing public opposition, President Obama's healthcare law contains numerous anti-life provisions and mandates. Congress must repeal these provisions and ensure that any healthcare law respects life.

Congressman Tom Price (R-GA), chairman of the Republican Policy committee who is also an orthopedic surgeon, wrote:

Today’s ruling by the Supreme Court has set a dangerous precedent by allowing this administration to continue pursuing its unbridled effort to erode personal freedom and undo the principles upon which this country was founded," said Chairman Price. "President Obama's health care law trumps personal health care choices in exchange for a more powerful Washington. It will force American citizens to endure diminished quality of care, increased insurance costs, health care rationing and excessive taxation brought on by an overzealous Washington bureaucracy. We have no choice but to exercise every possible legislative option to repeal this disastrous law, and the American people should know that House Republicans will continue to advocate on their behalf to restore personal control over health care decisions.

Since the beginning of this debate, Republicans have developed and promoted positive solutions that empower individuals and families to choose the health care coverage they want. We have done so because it is obvious the status quo in America’s health care system is broken and in need of reform. Our solutions would preserve the sacred doctor-patient relationship and keep unelected bureaucrats from denying access to care. Most importantly, these measures would expand access, address costs, assure quality and encourage innovation all without putting the government in control or imposing mandates.

I'll update as I receive more reactions.

Below is a copy of the ruling for you to read for yourself.

SCOTUS Health Care Reform Decision

Update 1:

Additional reaction from Marjorie Dannenfelser from Susan B. Anthony List:

From the outset, Obamacare is fundamentally flawed legislation because it makes American taxpayers complicit in the deaths of countless unborn children. Today's decision to uphold the individual mandate to force individuals to purchase health care plans that offend their conscience is incredibly disappointing.

Over the last four years, President Obama has revealed his loyalty to the abortion industry. At no time was this clearer than during the health care reform debate, when he fought tenaciously for the largest expansion of taxpayer funding of abortion on demand since Roe v. Wade. As the presidential race heats up, the Susan B. Anthony List will continue to remind American voters where the President's allegiance truly lies. We will not stop fighting until every U.S. taxpayer is freed from under-writing the abortion business.

Former Governor Mike Huckabee wrote:

The Supreme Court essentially just declared that Congress and the President can force upon the American people anything they want and call it a tax, we have to make sure that our Congress and the White House are in the RIGHT hands.

So it's come to this: the only way we will repeal Obamacare is to elect Mitt Romney, regain the Senate Majority and maintain control of the House.

Update 2:

Former Presidential Candidate Rick Santorum comments on the ruling:

Today’s outcome is the worst of all scenarios. Not only are our rights being taken away and Americans are being forced to do something we don’t want to do, but now we are being burdened with the biggest permanent tax increase in our nation’s history. This is a sad day.

I believe so strongly that if we do not defeat President Obama this November and elect more conservatives in the House and Senate, our country’s future prosperity is at risk. We saw the absolute disregard President Obama showed for the Supreme Court’s ruling on the Arizona immigration law, that I have no doubt that he sees today’s ruling in his favor as a mandate that he can now do whatever he chooses by any means possible.

President Obama believes he is above the law, entitled to abusing his power to get what he wants, and willing to violate the constitution and the oath he was sworn to uphold. He has proven to be a very dangerous person to have this kind of power, and if he is not stopped this November, I am fearful that the make-up of this country as established by our founders will never be the same.

Update 3:

A.J. Spiker, chairman of the Republican Party of Iowa, issued a statement:

President Obama clearly lied to the American people when he promised not to raise taxes on middle class Americans. Obamacare not only raises taxes on every single Iowan, but also guarantees higher health care costs and deficits in perpetuity. The winners today are big corporate health insurance companies who lobbied vigorously for this law and government bureaucrats, while patients have lost control over their personal heath care decisions.

The Supreme Court's decision today is a set back for believers of individual liberty and smaller government all across Iowa, but rest assured this will only energize us even further. The Republican Party of Iowa will be working tirelessly to send Mitt Romney to the White House along with a full Republican delegation to Congress in order to repeal Obamacare in its entirety and replace it with meaningful market-driven reforms that will reduce costs, protect patients and increase quality of care.

Congressman Steve King (R-IA) says the fate of Obamacare is not yet set.

Leading up to today, the lower courts were split on a handful of issues," said King. "One issue they were nearly unanimous on was that the individual mandate was not a tax therefore could not be upheld under Congress's power to tax. Today the Supreme Court disagrees with the vast majority of lower court decisions and contradicts President Obama himself, who vehemently denied that the individual mandate was a tax.

The fate of ObamaCare is not yet set. The House has voted to pass my language to repeal 100% of ObamaCare. Every Republican Senator has voted to do the same. On the other hand, President Obama and Democrats in Congress remain as committed as ever to forcing the unconstitutional law that bears the President's name upon an unwilling and disapproving public. The choice could not be clearer. The American people should be reminded that there is no force more powerful than their voice. After the passage of ObamaCare, the American people made their disapproval known in a powerful way. Today's decision should renew that call and spirit.

The Constitution lays out a government of limited, enumerated powers, and the size and scope of our current government, and specifically ObamaCare, are well beyond what our Founding Fathers ever intended. The American people will decide the fate of ObamaCare.

Update 4:

The Heritage Foundation and Senator Jim DeMint will respond live at 11:30a (CST)/12:30p (EST):

Watch live streaming video from thfvanandel at livestream.com

Update 5:

Congressman Tom Latham's statement:

While the Supreme Court has the duty to determine the constitutionality of the health care law, it does not have the authority to determine if it is good or bad policy for hardworking Americans. Thankfully, it is still the American people who ultimately have the power and the right to make that final judgment.

I opposed and voted against the health care law because it is bad policy that ignored the voices of the people. Congress must set its sights on completely replacing this bad law with measures that truly will lower health care costs for hardworking taxpayers. I have offered a solution made up of better ideas that offer better solutions that will produce the best results for everyone. My patient-centered approach empowers the American people, not Washington bureaucrats, to choose the best health care plan for themselves, and it puts them in control of their health care, not the government.

As we move forward, I continue to stand ready to work with any of my colleagues in Congress, regardless of political affiliation, who are willing to enact real solutions for the benefit of the American people.

Republican Presidential Nominee, Mitt Romney, said, "If we want to get rid of Obamacare, we're going to have to replace Obama." You can watch his reaction below: