Posted on 03/29/2012 1:50:01 PM PDT by Sybeck1
A handful of Senate Democrats sought to assure doubtful liberals that the Supreme Court justices aren’t ready to strike down their crowning achievement, standing before cameras and mics Wednesday in front of the court. One warned that doing so would ruin the court’s credibility.
“This court would not only have to stretch, it would have to abandon and completely overrule a lot of modern precedent, which would do grave damage to this court, in its credibility and power,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D), a former attorney general of Connecticut. “The court commands no armies, it has no money; it depends for its power on its credibility. The only reason people obey it is because it has that credibility. And the court risks grave damage if it strikes down a statute of this magnitude and importance, and stretches so dramatically and drastically to do it.”
Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) said the law has been thoroughly vetted.
“As a senior member of the Finance Committee,” he said, “I can tell you that we had one of the most rigorous and transparent legislative processes that I have witnessed in almost 3 decades here in the Congress. We worked with some of the brightest, most thoughtful and experienced constitutional lawyers in order to make sure that the law was constitutional.”
Kerry said the assumptions that tough questions from the justices will amount to striking down some or all of the Affordable Care Act are a fallacy — he predicted, as the final oral arguments were transpiring inside, that it would be upheld.
“Now I am glad — as I think any of us who’ve practiced law are — to see the intense questions from the justices. They’re engaged, and they are thoughtfully working through these issues,” Kerry said. “But questions are a legitimate way of probing the basis of their own thinking. They are not an indication of a judgment made, or a vote ready to be cast. They’re working through this process as they ought to, mindful of the fact that 30 courts below them have already made a judgment upholding it.”
Blumenthal and Kerry — who were joined by Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) — called the press conference one day after liberals and other court watchers expressed serious doubts that the justices would uphold the Affordable Care Act’s requirement to purchase insurance, a central pillar of the law. The firestorm was ignited by legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin, who called Tuesday’s arguments a “train wreck” for the White House and predicted that “Obamacare” would be struck down.
Pushing back, Blumenthal said that there’s a “heavy burden” on the challengers.
“Everybody learns in the first year of law school that the law that’s challenged is presumed to be constitutional,” Blumenthal said. “That is a heavy burden for anyone challenging the constitutionality of a law to overcome. When in doubt, uphold the law. There is a lot of room for doubt here, and there is a lot of clear precedent that requires this court to uphold this law.”
The Democrats’ level of confidence has diminished since the days when they dismissed a constitutional challenge to the Affordable Care Act as frivolous. Indeed, the tough questioning from swing Justices John Roberts and Anthony Kennedy about the limits of federal power at least rattled liberals enough to require the nerve-soothing press conference. But Democrats are seeking to quell liberal fears that the game is already over.
Experts say it’s too difficult to predict how the court will rule.
Affordable Care Act, HCR/SCOTUS, Supreme Court
Barf! What rubbish!! The RATS did everything they could to ram this down our throats, illegally using the reconcilation procedure, excluding the Republicans, and then now claim it is the most constitutionally protected bill ever put forth! The Rats are smoking weed!
Read the comments if you want to see some brazenly stupid thoughts from liberals.
I think this time we will have justice and the thing will be killed by the SCOTUS 5-4. Should be slam dunk 9-0 but that is not possible with the leftards we have now on the SCOTUS.
“If like Kerry says this has been totally vetted, why did they exclude Republicans completely from participating?”
If like Kerry says this has been totally vetted, why did they not allow the American people and Congress time to read the bill before it was voted on?
Mannnn... You're not supposed to ask questions like that!
You've got to TRUST AND BELIIIEVVVEEE!!!
Of course they think that way. It is just another example, one in a never ending stream, of the defective thought process of communist agenda democrats.
It goes like this...
“This is what I just thought up, therefore everyone must accept it as reality. If they do not the only possible reasons are they are “haters” or bigoted/racist right wing extremists. I am the “progressive liberal” here, therefore my statements must be correct.”
In the mean time everyone with a shred of ordinary common sense is laughing at these idiots for standing on their heads screaming that “everybody they see is upside down.”
I have posted this a few times, looks like it has come around again...
They are beyond help, they do not have the capacity to be educated out of communism disguised as "liberalism and progressiveness." They can not or refuse to see the destructive nature of the communism disguised as "liberalism and progressiveness" they promote.
What the supporters of communist "liberalism and progressiveness" will destroy is the very nation that gave them their freedom. They will complain, demonize, belittle and protest when opposed but only preserving this Republic in it’s original context will continue to give them their freedom to complain and protest against it.
They will not stop destroying this nation of their own accord.
The only way to preserve freedom for American Citizens in this Republic is suppression of the communist supporters. "Taking the high road" is rapidly becoming something to be put on the shelf for a while. It is now time to step up, get in their face and refuse any other narrative other than they are worthless communist agenda bastards undeserving of a place in this Republic.
Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) said the law has been thoroughly vetted.
“
How can you vet legislation you never read? “
Folks, we have a WINNER!!
Looks like White House Insider is right again.
After that shameful thing Obozo did during the last “State of the Union” speech where he made negative comments about the Court. I believe I’d be very careful about any challenges or implied threats to or about the Court. Be they Big Time judges, they are still human and can respond, in their own way, to what might be said or done!
” Logic would lead you to believe that it is difficult to vet something that you have not read and need to pass to see what it says.”
Kerry and the rest of the liars wouldn’t get away with this, if we conservatives had ANY leadership WHATSOEVER!!
There's a lot of truth to that statement. (BTW when referring to SCOTUS court is always Court.) The Court from the beginning feared being rendered irrelevant if their rulings were ignored. And since they have "no armies" they cannot force their rulings. Thus they have a long history of splitting the baby.
"And the court risks grave damage if it strikes down a statute of this magnitude and importance, and stretches so dramatically and drastically to do it.”
That is the scary part. It sounds like a threat that if the Court does not rule their way, they will ignore the ruling.
Are these fools threatening the SCOTUS!!???
Your right. Their hubris is unbelievable.
They might as well be standing on a hilltop, wearing copper armor, during a lightning storm, shaking their fists at the sky and yelling “All the gods are bastards!”
/Pratchett reference
Uh Johnny boy, given that nobody had even read this bill, just what does that tell us about the rest of what goes on inside the crapitol?
That’s because they’re never in doubt about those kinds of laws.
Don’t bet the farm on it just so you can play MegaMillions.
As Rush said yesterday, be wary of the justices’ words and their possible actions.
They will be striking down the most major accomplishment of Obama’s presidency, if they do.
I would be leary of thinking they would subject the first black president to such a humiliation. They will find some way to salvage a major part of the bill.
I understand why they're sweating bullets.
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