Health care lawsuits

Health Care Lawsuits Splitting Govs And AGs Nationwide

Christina Bellantoni | March 30, 2010, 2:32PM

Clockwise, from top left: Gov. Ed Rendell (D-PA), Gov. Chris Gregoire (D-WA), Attorney General Bill McCollum (R-FL), Attorney General Tom Corbett (R-PA), Attorney General Rob McKenna (R-WA), Gov. Bill Ritter (D-CO) and a copy of the health care bill

Lawsuits challenging health care reform have popped up in several states and are drawn nearly entirely on partisan lines, in some cases fracturing top state government officials where the governor is a Democrat and attorney general is a Republican who joined the legal challenge. In Missouri, Lt. Gov Peter Kinder (R) so badly wanted to be part of the lawsuit that he bucked his Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon and the attorney general to say he'll be joining the other attorneys general on his own.

There are a handful of other splits across the country -- Michigan, Washington state, Pennsylvania and Colorado -- which create a tough political climate for anyone attempting to get something done at the state level. Louisiana is the one bipartisan example, with Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) and Attorney General Buddy Caldwell (D) agreeing to join the lawsuit.

The legal challenge has been the latest trend among Republicans, with GOPers trying to one-up each other on the question of whether health care should be repealed, deemed unconstitutional, or left alone. It's become a litmus test for conservatives.

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Rex Rammell

Idaho Candidate Who Joked About Hunting Obama Now Says God Can Save Constitution

Christina Bellantoni | January 4, 2010, 2:58PM

Idaho gov. candidate Rex Rammell

A Republican candidate for governor in Idaho who joked about hunting President Obama over the summer is calling for God to save the U.S. Constitution.

Rex Rammell said recently it is time for citizens to "rise up" and defend the Constitution. He said he will spread that message on the campaign trail.

"To think that we can save the Constitution without God's help when the government of the United States is corrupt is absurdity," he said. "We are in America's second Revolutionary War to save our freedom, which we paid for with blood. We need God's help and I'm not ashamed to ask for it."

The Idaho Statesman first reported the video where Rammell makes the remarks.

He and one other candidate are challenging Gov. Butch Otter in the May 26 Republican primary.

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