A Conservative Pundits Explanation For Robert's Decision On ACA

This explanation for Chief Justice Roberts decision to uphold ACA makes sense.  The Chief Justice has to be concerned about the legacy of his court.  The Supreme Court used to one of the country's most respected institutions.  That is no longer true.  The majority of Americans now believe that the decisions of the court are strongly influenced by political factors.  Some analysts, who have read the dissent written by Justice Scalia, believe that it was written as a majority opinion that included Roberts.  They believe that Roberts changed his opinion along the way.  He may very well have been concerned about the reputation of the Supreme Court which rarely declares a bill passed by Congress to be unconstitutional.

This article concludes that conservatives should respond by electing Republicans in 2012.  Certainly, many conservatives will respond to the decision at the polls.  Most would have voted Republican anyway. I believe that liberals, who wanted a single payer plan like that in Canada, will become more enthusiastic over time.  I also believe that the Democrats will do a better job of explaining the advantages of the bill, and defending it better against misrepresentations.  For example this article suggests that the ACA represents a loss of liberty because it penalizes those who do not want to purchase insurance.  Almost all of our states have laws that make the purchase of automobile insurance mandatory.  Some states also have laws that mandate homeowner insurance.  Apparently, it is only a loss of liberty when the federal government mandates the purchase of insurance. This is a strange notion of liberty.

It troubles me, however, when pundits and Republican's argue that they can repeal the bill by voting Republican.  Nobody expects that the GOP can win a majority in the Senate.  They certainly will not have enough votes to overcome a Democratic filibuster.   The ACA bill is the law of the land and steps are underway among healthcare providers and in most states to comply with the law.  Attempts to disrupt the implementation of the bill are harmful to the operation of the healthcare system and to state governments.  The GOP has to learn to accept that it can not always overturn the results of elections, and the implementation of bills passed by Congress.  They have spent the last 4 years in efforts to overturn the results of the 2008 election.  America would be better off if they would participate in running the country rather than fighting the results of lost elections.  There is a reason why we have more than one party in America.  They should learn to accept that.