The political stakes imbued in the high court's 5-4 ruling allowing the Affordable Care Act to stand were starkly evident by midday Thursday in Washington, as Obama and Romney, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, laid out clearly different visions when it came to the law, "Obamacare."
The opinion, written by Chief Justice John Roberts, who joined the court's liberals, determined that the act's individual mandate -- the requirement that individuals purchase health insurance, or face a penalty -- was constitutional as a tax.
Sen. Dan Coats, R-Ind., discusses his surprise over the health care ruling and says the decision puts the law "back into the hands of the American people."
Advertise | AdChoices
"I know there will be a lot of discussion today about the politics of all this, about who won and who lost," Obama said in remarks at the White House, in which he emphasized many of the law's benefits. "That discussion completely misses the point. Whatever the politics, today's decision was a victory for people all over this country whose lives are more secure because of this law and the Supreme Court's decision to uphold it."
Sen. Ben Cardin says with the ruling, the government can now more forward and give people the type of health care they need. Cardin stresses his hopes that Democrats and Republicans will work together to improve the health care system.
Related: Supreme Court upholds health care law
A few minutes earlier, Romney renewed his promise to seek the full repeal of the law from his first day in office.
"What the court did not do on the last day of its session I will do on my first day as president," Romney said. He called the court's opinion both bad law and bad policy.
Each candidate's comments underscored, though, the political dividing lines that w
No comments:
Post a Comment