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WESTERN LEGAL GROUP: OBAMACARE IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL!April 4, 2011 - For Immediate Release
April 4, 2011 – DENVER, CO. A western, nonprofit, public-interest legal foundation with decades of experience addressing constitutional issues at the Supreme Court of the United States and the federal courts of appeals today informed the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, located in Richmond, Virginia, that the individual mandate in the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act,” often called ObamaCare, is unconstitutional. Mountain States Legal Foundation (MSLF) argued in its amicus curiae brief filed for its members across the country, including those in Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia, that the individual mandate set forth in the statute, which requires all Americans to purchase health care insurance or pay a penalty, is unconstitutional. MSLF asked the appellate court to uphold the December 2010 ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia that the mandate is unconstitutional. “We are pleased to support the lawsuit filed by the Commonwealth of Virginia and the victory that it enjoyed in the Virginia federal district court,” said William Perry Pendley, MSLF president. “If the Commerce Clause permits Congress to issue this individual mandate, then there are no limits as to what Congress may do pursuant to the Commerce Clause.” Since ObamaCare became law in March 2010, several lawsuits have been filed to challenge its constitutionality; most notable among them are the lawsuit filed by twenty States, as well as other plaintiffs, led by Florida, and the lawsuit filed by Virginia. All challenge the individual mandate, as well as other provisions, as conflicting with the Constitution. During the national debate regarding ObamaCare, Speaker Pelosi said memorably, regarding the 1,000 pages of legislation that nearly no one had read, “[W]e have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it . . . .” Over the last six months, a bill that the American people thought was bad (54% opposed its passage) has become the law that is worse than they had imagined (67% of “mainstream voters” today demand that it be repealed). Prior to its enactment, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) claimed that the statute would be revenue neutral; however, in the days and months since, the CBO is less sanguine about its impact on the economy. Moreover, recent responses of the marketplace and small businesses reflect a belief that ObamaCare spells disaster for the U.S. economy and for businesses. MSLF argues that America’s embrace of limited government of specific enumerated powers began in the pre-Revolutionary Days, continued through the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, and has been upheld by the federal judiciary, including the U.S. Supreme Court. Mountain States Legal Foundation, created in 1977, is a nonprofit, public-interest legal foundation dedicated to individual liberty, the right to own and use property, limited and ethical government, and the free enterprise system. Its offices are in suburban Denver, Colorado. |
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Mountain States Legal Foundation (MSLF) is a nonprofit,
public interest legal foundation dedicated to individual liberty, the right
to own and use property, limited and ethical government, and economic freedom. It is an Internal Revenue Code 501(c)(3) entity
incorporated in the State of Colorado. Csontributions
to Mountain States Legal Foundation are tax deductible. [Mission] [Press
Releases] [Legal Cases] [Legal
Assistance ] |
