Health Care

After Rough Day In Court, An Optimistic View For Supporters Of 'Obamacare'

Brian Beutler | March 27, 2012, 2:23PM

The snap reactions to today's Supreme Court arguments about the constitutionality of the health care law's individual mandate gave reform supporters a collective case of heartburn. The conservative justices seemed broadly hostile to the law's requirement that everyone carry health insurance. President Obama's Solicitor General, Donald Verrilli, was widely panned by experienced court watchers for stumbling at key moments. Jeffery Toobin -- a seasoned vet of the high court -- called it a "train wreck" for the Obama administration.

Here's some antacid.

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Libya

Obama Administration Allies Criticize White House's Legal Process In Libya Decision

Brian Beutler | June 22, 2011, 4:05PM

Nominee for Office of Legal Counsel Dawn Johnsen

Critics across the ideological spectrum have criticized President Obama for overruling a determination by Attorney General Eric Holder and the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel that continued action in Libya is unlawful. But some of the White House's natural allies in the liberal legal community -- including those close to the administration -- are troubled by a separate, and in some ways more fundamental, part of this story.

In addition to overruling the OLC -- the Justice Department office tasked with establishing the bounds of lawful conduct for the executive branch -- the Obama administration also circumvented the basic process administrations typically follow in assuring its policies are legal.

"Here, if what's being reported is accurate, the White House counsel played the role of OLC, by soliciting the views of different agencies," said Dawn Johnsen, in an interview. "That's the big problem here. You're more likely to end up with bad legal decisions when you deviate from that process."

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Health Care

Heavy Hitters Rip Florida Federal Judge's Opinion Striking Health Care Law

Brian Beutler | January 31, 2011, 5:35PM

President Barack Obama

Legal experts who support President Obama's health care law spoke to reporters Monday afternoon to criticize a far-reaching opinion by Florida federal district court judge Roger Vinson that the individual insurance mandate is unconstitutional -- and that the entire law must therefore be voided.

"This is a decision that has such radical implications that I'm confident it will be overturned," said former Solicitor General Walter Dellinger.

In addition to declaring the mandate unconstitutional, Vinson declined to "sever" it from the rest of the law, and instead held that the entire law out should be thrown out. That goes far beyond standard practice, under which courts tend to defer to Congress and sever only the provisions of law that they find unconstitutional -- even if Congress didn't include a "severability clause" in the legislation.

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