Stephen Breyer

How The Liberal-Leaning Justices Did A Better Job Defending 'Obamacare'

Sahil Kapur | March 27, 2012, 6:07PM

The Obama administration's top legal advocate was pilloried Tuesday for offering a less-than-eloquent constitutional defense of the health care reform law's individual mandate -- the provision at the heart of the challenge to "Obamacare." Thankfully for supporters of the law, some of the sharpest legal minds in the country unintentionally articulated his case better than he did -- the justices themselves. Liberal-leaning justices on the court each stepped in at various points to suggest arguments for the mandate's legitimacy.

Here are the four best arguments they made -- or at least hinted at -- that could sway their skeptical colleagues.

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Health Care

Alito, Breyer Call Out Obama Lawyer For Dubbing Mandate Both A 'Penalty' And 'Tax'

Sahil Kapur | March 26, 2012, 1:39PM

On the first day of health care reform arguments before the Supreme Court, two justices needled a top Obama lawyer for simultaneously calling the fine that will be paid under the law for not purchasing insurance a "penalty" and a "tax."

The confusion arises because of the administration's argument that the power to enforce the individual mandate is rooted in Congress' taxing power -- but that the mechanism itself is designed to be a penalty, not a revenue-generating policy.

The narrow but important distinction created a communication challenge for the lawyer representing the Obama administration.

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Supreme Court

Justices Skeptical That Health Care Mandate Is A 'Tax'

Sahil Kapur | March 26, 2012, 12:49PM

The Supreme Court kicked off oral arguments over President Obama's health care law Monday by dedicating 90 minutes to the one issue on which the White House and the Republican challengers agree: The justices should hand down a speedy ruling on the constitutionality of the law this summer, rather than punt it to 2015 or beyond.

Lawyers for the Obama Justice Department and for the 26 Republican-led states challenging the law agreed that an old statute called the Anti-Injunction Act -- which forbids people from challenging taxes in court unless they've already been assessed by the government -- does not apply in this case. The Supreme Court enlisted outside counsel to make the opposite case.

The justices appeared broadly skeptical that the law's fine imposed on Americans who fail to carry health insurance qualifies as a "tax."

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Sunday Shows

The Sunday Show Line-Ups

Eric Kleefeld | December 10, 2010, 5:29PM

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner

Here are the line-ups for the Sunday talk shows this weekend:

• ABC, This Week: Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, Israeli Opposition Leader Tzipi Livni.

• CBS, Face The Nation: Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, former DNC Chairman Howard Dean, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY).

• CNN, State Of The Union: Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD), Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA).

• Fox News Sunday: Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer.

• NBC, Meet The Press: New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg (I).

Health Care

Justice Breyer: Health Care Reform Could Appear Before Supreme Court (VIDEO)

Rachel Slajda | April 15, 2010, 12:14PM

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer said today that he thinks health care reform legislation may be a good candidate for review by the court.

Speaking to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice and Science about next year's funding, Breyer suggested the legislation could come before the court in the coming years.

Asked about the court's relatively light caseload, he said that will probably change.

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