Once Again, That Pesky Constitution

By Semperpapa

After the House of Representatives repeal bill, Obamacare got a new rejection, this time coming from a U.S. District Judge in Florida on Monday.

Judge Roger Vinson, in Pensacola, issued a ruling stating that the health care bill passed by Congress is unconstitutional, as it violates the Commerce Clause of the Constitution.

More specific, the judge stated that the individual mandate requiring people to buy insurance or being fined, goes outside the founding document and that therefore the whole legislation should be scrapped.

Part of Vinson’s ruling states:

"I must reluctantly conclude that Congress exceeded the bounds of its authority in passing the act with the individual mandate. That is not to say, of course, that Congress is without power to address the problems and inequities in our health care system. The health care market is more than one-sixth of the national economy, and without doubt Congress has the power to reform and regulate this market. That has not been disputed in this case. The principal dispute has been about how Congress chose to exercise that power here,"

Of course the White House is disputing the ruling, seeking a stay, but in view of the rejection of the House, the rejection from the American people and the aligning of many states against the law, it is expected that the issue will be reaching the U.S. Supreme Court.

To complicate things for Obamacare, the news of so many organizations having succeeded in obtaining waivers from the government, over 700 so far, has generated popular suspicion, especially when many of these organizations are unions and others that historically have been supporters of progressive ideologies.

The hypocrisy of the waivers is not escaping the common sense of the American people, who are increasingly demanding explanations. As the campaigning for the 2012 elections is gearing up, this is certainly going to be a hot topic.

There is no doubt that some reform may be needed in the healthcare industry, but, as demonstrated by every other government controlled industry in every other country, the solution is definitely not a government take over of it.

Historically the bureaucracy of the federal government has proven to be the most inefficient way to provide services for the people (i.e. the United States Post Office), so the idea of shifting 1/6 of the American economy to government is preposterous and frightening.

Surely reform could come in small steps and always under the umbrella of private enterprise.

I know this is not the end of this controversy, that there is still battle in front of those opposed to that disastrous legislation, but I am hopeful we are on the right track.

Just my thoughts!