Update on Virginia's Healthcare Lawsuit

Earlier this week, Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli provided the following update on the Commonwealth's legal challenge to President Obama's healthcare reform:

I am writing you tonight to make sure you know of an important development in Virginia's case against the federal healthcare law. Today, Virginia filed its brief in opposition to the federal government's attempt to dismiss Virginia's lawsuit against the new federal healthcare law.

While it's over two months since we first filed this suit - in legal terms, this case is moving at a lightning pace!

As I wrote all of you last week - the U.S. responded to our lawsuit with a motion to dismiss the case - which we fully expected.

What I didn't share with you was the in-depth legal reasoning behind their claims - and our opposition to their motion to dismiss. Below is a simple but thorough chart which explains our arguments in the case.  I would encourage all of you to take a look - and let me know your thoughts!

The U.S. has to file its reply brief by June 22, and then the oral arguments on the motion to dismiss will take place on July 1 at 10 a.m. - one hour for each side.

If Virginia's case is not dismissed and moves forward, a summary judgment hearing is scheduled for October 18.

The information below is a good preview; however, I hope all of you will sign up to attend our exciting webcast being held on June 16th - next Wednesday - to discuss the case and its foundation. Please sign up by clicking here today!

This case is fascinating, and I would encourage each of you to read our brief, as it is a spectacular mix of Constitutional law, American history and relevant commentary on the process the healthcare bill went through on its way to becoming law. To see a copy of Virginia's brief click here, but the first line gets right to a counter to the US's sickly view of federalism: "In the view of Secretary Sebelius, federalism is so withered and near death that States lack the power and right to go to federal court to test the validity of their own enactments when they conflict with federal law."

It's worth the time to read it, and you'll be better prepared to advocate on behalf of the first principles we're defending. And, by the way, that's also why we'd like you to join us for the webcast on the healthcare law and lawsuit - so you'll better understand why we are doing what we're doing, and you'll be able to educate others on our precious first principles. So, please sign up today! It requires pre-registration.

I hope you like the chart, I happen to think it's a pretty cool way to lay the whole case out at this stage.

Federal Government's Claim:  Virginia is not injured by the federal health care law.
Virginia's Response: 
Because the federal health care law purports to invalidate a Virginia law (the Health Care Freedom Act) under the Constitution's Supremacy Clause, Virginia's sovereign interests have been injured.

Federal Government's Claim:  Because the mandate doesn't take effect until 2014, the case is not "ripe".
Virginia's Response: 
1) Based on several previous Supreme Court decisions, if a dispute is certain to occur in the future, this does not prohibit the suit from being brought in the present.
2) Virginia has already been forced to make decisions regarding insurance exchanges under the act, as well as changes to Medicaid. One of those decisions made the commonwealth forego more than $100 million in federal money.

Federal Government's Claim:  Virginia's suit is barred by the Anti-Injunction Act.
Virginia's Response:  The act does not apply to states under these circumstances, because Virginia's action falls within an exception to the act that has been recognized by the Supreme Court.

Federal Government's Claim:  The government has the power under the Constitution's Commerce Clause to mandate the purchase of individual health insurance.
Virginia's Response: 
1) The federal government's argument is contrary to the text of the Constitution.
2) The federal government's argument is contrary to the meaning of the words of the Commerce Clause as understood by the Founders.
3) The federal government's argument is contrary to the historical context of the nation's founding. When Great Britain instituted a tax on tea, the colonists' response was to boycott and to not buy tea. Parliament had the power to regulate commerce, but even it did not attempt to force colonists to buy the taxed product.
4) The federal government's argument is contrary to the traditional uses of the Commerce Clause. The clause has always been used to regulate economic activity; never inactivity.
5) The federal government's argument is contrary to the precedent of the U.S. Supreme Court. The Court has set outer limits to the reaches of the Commerce Clause, including in cases such as Lopez and Morrison, saying that the clause must have principled limits, otherwise the federal government essentially would have unlimited power, rather than the limited powers enumerated in the Constitution.

Federal Government's Claim:  Even if refusing to buy insurance is not commerce, the government can still force people to buy health insurance using the Constitution's Necessary and Proper Clause.
Virginia's Response: 
1) Since 1819, the Supreme Court has held that any use of the Necessary and Proper Clause must be consistent with both "the letter and spirit" of the Constitution. Any interpretation that would destroy the federal form of government (where federal power is limited only to those powers enumerated in the Constitution, with remaining powers reserved to the states and the people) is not allowed under that standard.
2) In May, the Supreme Court decided Comstock.
The Court adopted a historical approach to the use of the Necessary and Proper Clause. Because the mandate is utterly unprecedented, it is unlikely to be upheld under a historical approach.

Federal Government's Claim:  Even if the government cannot win using the Commerce Clause and Necessary and Proper Clause arguments, the federal health insurance mandate can be justified under the government's taxing authority.
Virginia's Response:
1) The penalty for not buying insurance is not a tax. Congress called it a "penalty" and claimed authority to act only under the Commerce Clause. To argue otherwise now ignores what Congress actually did.
2) A penalty for inaction is not a tax of any kid known to the Constitution, when judged historically.

Strasburg Dominates In MLB Debut

Stephen Strasburg, making his MLB debut for the Washington Nationals tonight, struck out 14 Pittsburgh Pirates batters enroute to a 4-2 victory.  The 14 strikeouts were a team record. Strasburg, the 2009 No. 1 overall pick out of San Diego State, lived up to the billing as one of the greatest pitching prospects of the last half century.

Nationals Park was electric tonight as Strasburg pitched seven complete innings striking out the side in both the sixth and seventh innings.  Like all rookie, power pitchers, Strasburg will take his lumps during this rookie season, but with his progress and the selection earlier this week of Bryce Harper as the 2010 overall No. 1 pick, the future is looking bright for Nationals fans.  A few good free agent pickups over the next few off-seasons in terms of additional starting pitching and the Nationals will be contenders within 2-3 years.  RC Blog is looking forward to seeing Strasburg pitch in person during the season!

Administration Ignores Hay as Viable Option to Clean Oil Spill

We are at Day 49 of the Gulf Coast oil spill and there are a number of innovative ways to take control of cleaning up the spill, most of which are being ignored by the Obama Administration.  Just saw a company that has developed a spill cleanup option that uses regular old hay.  It picks up 80-90 percent of the oil spill quickly and effectively.  They tried contacting the Administration and were ignored.  Check out the video demonstration...

A Friday of Frustration, Fun, and Sadness...

It was quite a day yesterday -- one filled with frustration and fun, but ended with sadness...

Employment Numbers Released -- In the morning, the Obama Administration released the May employment numbers for the country and their policies and the impossible-to-fail stimulus bills have created a whopping 20,000 private-sector jobs.  The other 411,000 jobs created in May were ALL government jobs and mostly temporary Census-related jobs.  Absolutely incredible!  We added more than $1 trillion of debt with all the promises made about all the new jobs that would be created.  Hopefully, citizens will learn that government doesn't stimulate real jobs, only the private sector can do that.  Sadly, additional burdens on small businesses like Obamacare will make it even more difficult for job creation.

Nationals Win! -- Went to my first Nats game of the year last night and saw the rising Nationals beat the Cincinnati Reds 4-2.  There was definitely a different atmosphere in the stadium in terms of those coming out to the park.  It seems like the team's overall improvement and the anticipation of Stephen Strasburg's arrival next week has attracted the "20-30 somethings" in town.  There were fans tailgating near the public lots and just a different environment.  It was nice to see especially with the low crowds of the past few years.  The team has the No. 1 pick in Monday's draft so they are definitely on the right track.  Ryan Zimmerman continues to show why he is the best third baseman in the National League, both with the glove and the bat.

Legendary Coach John Wooden Passes Away at 99 -- Towards the end of last night's Nats game, I went to ESPN.com on the BlackBerry and saw the news flash that legendary UCLA coach John Wooden had passed away at 99.  Coach Wooden is not only recognized as the greatest sports coach in American history, he is also considered one of its greatest motivators.  His coaching record speaks for itself -- at UCLA, he won 620 games in 27 seasons and 10 NCAA titles during his last 12 seasons, including seven in a row from 1967 to 1973. His UCLA teams also had a record winning streak of 88 games and four perfect 30–0 seasons. They also won 38 straight games in NCAA Tournaments and a record 98 straight home game wins at Pauley Pavilion. Wooden was named NCAA College Basketball's "Coach of the Year" in 1964, 1967, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, and 1973.  He is in the basketball hall of fame as both a coach and a player (Purdue).  He was recognized as such a great coach and motivator that the Pittsburgh Pirates offered him the manager's job in the early 1970s, even though he had no substantial baseball experience.

What made him so successful?  It was his attention to detail.  The stories are legendary.  Each year, his team's first practice did not include basketballs.  All of his players spent the practice time working on putting on their socks properly.  Why?  Because if they didn't put their socks on properly, they would develop blisters and then the player would not be effective for the team.  The second day of practice, the players graduated to lacing shoes, making sure that they put an equal amount of tension on each set of eyelets.  These first two days of practice took place each and every year, even when UCLA was at the height of their dominance.  Can you imagine the look on the faces of 10 McDonald's All-Americans when they come to UCLA as freshmen and practice putting on socks and shoes?

His greatest impact to his players was off the court.  He remained close to all of his players after they graduated and many of them remained close to him even 40 years after graduating. 

I could go on and on about Coach Wooden -- his only love in life whom he met when he was a teenager, his wife Nellie who passed away 27 years ago (he wrote her love letters every month after her death); his "Pryamid of Success" (download here), which I keep next to my desk at work; and his strong sense of faith.

Here is ESPN's tribute to the great Coach John Wooden:



To learn more about Coach Wooden and his inspirational life, visit http://www.coachwooden.com/.

Liberty Central Off and Running!

The RC Blog is pleased to report on the many successes of Liberty Central since its official launch on May 25.  We have included a link to the LC site on our "Favorite Organizations and Web Sites" listing since early 2010 and the growth of the organization in just a few short months has been remarkable.  We encourage all RC Blog readers to take a few minutes to visit the Liberty Central web site and consider becoming a member. Here is a recap from Ginni on the many successes Liberty Central has recently enjoyed:

Dear Patriot –

I would like to introduce you to my brand new organization, Liberty Central. Please click here to watch my welcome message. Liberty Central launched this past week and generated fantastic results, thanks to our entire team. Many fellow citizens are embracing Liberty Central’s mission and we hope you will join us. We will listen, inspire, and activate so that together, we can secure the blessings of liberty.

During the course of this past launch week:

(1) We had over 45,000 visitors to Liberty Central and more than 160,000+ page views, with the average visitor spending an astounding 4:00+ on LibertyCentral.org.
(2) Close to 1,000 people called Congress to stop the EPA’s cap-and-trade style carbon permitting process, to repeal the healthcare bill, to tell Congress not to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, and to help prevent “stimulus 4,” or HR 4213, which includes more than $100 billion in new spending.
(3) 400+ people emailed us with questions and problems, and we responded to almost every one of them within 48 to 72 hours to help build the Liberty Central community and deliver on our promise to listen to the American people.
(4) We now have 29 “Friends of Liberty” Central, and 44 more organizations in queue, as we forge terrific working relationships with them to pursue our mission of listening, inspiring and activating the American people.
(5) We have appeared on national media outlets to promote Liberty Central’s mission, including Fox News, Conservative Outlooks blog, Smart Girl Politics, From the Right Radio, and a syndicated radio station broadcasting throughout the state of Wisconsin.

In response to our “Helping the Wounded Veterans” video salute, we received emails from members asking how they could support the wonderful efforts of Liberty Central! Cindy is expecting a few shipments of quality clothing to support her goal of providing quality clothing to the men and women who have sacrificed so much for our freedom!

So what does this all mean? It means our mission and our Pledge to Activism have struck a cord with Americans.

Liberty Central.org is America's Public Square. We will harness the power of citizen voices, inform everyday Americans with knowledge, and activate them to preserve liberty. When you visit our website, please 'Take the Pledge to Activism'. We hope to show you that activism can be easy...and fun. In just 3 to 5 minutes a day, you will find opportunities to help return our country to a government that adheres to our core founding principles of limited government, individual liberty, personal responsibility, free enterprise and national security.

We aim to become a part of the daily routine for all Americans, by providing three simple yet exciting ways for Americans to get involved:

1. Joining our vibrant, two-way conversation,
2. Being inspired by heartfelt stories from great Americans and
3. Easily contacting Congress to let them know your opinions on how they should vote on current legislation.

But why just read about us? Have you checked out our Introductory Video from Herman Cain? Please send your friends, too. Click here to view Liberty Central's Introductory Video and see what's ahead on LibertyCentral.org.

We thank you for taking an interest in Liberty Central and the support you’ve shown for the causes of Liberty. We hope you will join us to help return our country to a government that adheres to our core founding principles. I talk about this on my latest interview on NewsmaxTV (click here for NewsmaxTV interview) and on Fox News Sunday (click here to view Fox News Sunday segment).

We want to hear from you on how to continually make Liberty Central better and more effective. We are confident that our organization, in partnering with other like-minded groups and individuals like you, will play an important role in altering the course our country is currently traveling. NOW is the time to make a difference and Liberty Central wants to show you how. We look forward to having you explore our new website at LibertyCentral.org and hearing your feedback.

God Bless this Nation and its heritage,

Virginia “Ginni” Thomas and the Liberty Central Team