Obamacare Going Down?

[Xiahou]

Whether it's a good bill or not (I think not) isn't at issue here. Whether we need single-payer or market based healthcare is also not at issue. The issue is does the federal government have the authority to compel people to buy health insurance?

Case law presents us with several twisted and strained abuses of the Commerce Clause (Wickard v. Filburn), but Obamacare, if upheld, would outdo them all. It would not prevent you from taking a certain action- it would compel you to take action under the guise of regulating interstate commerce. To paraphrase Justice Kennedy, it would be forcing you into a market so that the government can regulate you. This is frightening stuff. If the court were to uphold this, what could the government not force you to do under the fig leaf of the commerce clause?

Luckily for us, early indications are that this will be overturned. I welcome such a decision and hope it's just a beginning step in rolling back the power of the commerce clause to that which it was originally intended.