I assume everyone has heard that the Supremes upheld the ACA insurance subsidies in a 6-3 vote. Chief Justice Roberts wrote for the majority and Justice Kennedy joined as well. Justice Scalia, continuing in his role as the court’s Crow T. Robot, claimed that this transforms Obamacare into SCOTUS care. I must apologize to Croow: Scalia is more like his evil twin. He does, however, give good sarcasm even if he rarely makes logical sense. Jiggery-pokery, my ass.
King v. Burwell was a picayune challenge to important legislation based on a goofily literal interpretation of the statutory language. The court’s ruling is a victory for common sense and true judicial conservatism as well as judicial modesty. We’ve gotten so used to activist right wing judges that we forget that classic judicial conservatism defers to the people’s branches of government whenever possible. I’d like to thank Slate’s Jordan Weismann for quickly posting the money quote from the Chief’s opinion:
That, in a nutshell, is true judicial conservatism. The alternative to this ruling was chaos and millions of people losing their health care coverage. It’s a day to praise the Roberts Court, especially since the majority reduced Scalia to the role of a kid sitting in the back row throwing spitballs at his colleagues.
I cannot await for the vituperative eruption on the right. Let the freak out begin.
“Let the freak out begin.” Led by Justice Scalia, the whackadoo right has not disappointed at all. I laugh at their whining, impotent rage.
The real irony is that, a decade or so from now, assuming the ACA continues to work at least as well as it’s working now…the wingers are as likely as not to claim credit.
Maybe they won’t call it SCOTUScare, but I’d give it a decent chance they’d pull out the “originated with the AEI” card or something similar…or, better yet, if there’s ever any addition, change, adjustment, whatever, no matter how slight, they’ll then insist it was the key change that saved us all from evil Kenyan usurper Obamacare.