AG Cuccinelli to sue over Obamacare
Is the ink on President Obama's new health-care bill dry? That's the question that will determine when Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli files suit to stop it as unconstitutional. The law comes with high hopes for creating a more equitable health system that doesn't bankrupt families if a health crisis strikes. But because the bill's backers–- who include 5th District Representative Tom Perriello–- typically invoke the commerce clause to satisfy Constitutional concerns over the bill's requirement that every American buy health insurance, Cuccinelli may have an opening. “Just being alive," Cuccinelli writes in a release, "is not interstate commerce."
Read more on: ken cuccinelliobamacare
58 comments
To the poster who calls himself "a friend":
You are the epitome of the compassionate left. Your compassion only extends to those who agree with you. That is a form of discrimination and prejudice, by the way. The sin that you condemn others so strongly for is also a sin of your own.
Hoolarious, public schools may do some things well. Educate children is not one of those things, however.
I wish more "conservatives" would come right out and say how they really feel (like storm27). Namely, that they would like to do away with many of the "Big Government" programs that most average Americans would not like to be without - Medicaid AND Medicare, the US Postal Service, public schools, etc...
Storm: Never mentioned that they where run efficiently, but that is the case with both the govt and private sector. Couple examples of both, I like how our military is run, we have a great feeling of safety which is there job. And in the private sector the auto makers are a good example of inefficiency And yes you do have a say this Nov, just as the Dems did last time. That's a great procedure our founding fathers gave us. We can always have a revolution at the ballot box!!
Is Cuccinelli going to claim that the bill signed by Obama isn't a law because Obama isn't a natural-born citizen and thus ineligible to be U.S. president?
'get over it' you are right that there are legitimate questions regarding the financing of future gov't obligations.
I think the thinking is that insuring a larger pool will serve to lower costs overall. So this is an important first step towards that goal. Lowering healthcare and health insurance costs will ease the fiscal pressures on the gov't and our economy in the years to come.
The house of cards that is the american economy didn't become rickety the moment this bill passed. It was already like that.
This bill is an attempt to build a firmer economic foundation in order to facilitate the payment of future health care expenses. Yes, it costs something and it could cause some short-term pain. The idea is that building a firmer foundation for our health care system will delay that inevitable day when the house of cards falls down.
Sure, improving the foundation of a multi-story building can cause the upper floors to sway.
Something needs to be done. This is step one.
Hey whiney, ineffectual, we had 8 years to do something real but all we did was make up a War, bribe tax payers with rebates that were unfunded, bribe people with Medicare D that was also not paid for, and continue to cause fear and lie. Now the Dems finally gave you a taste of what you have done to them for years. They finally manned up, and we will make sure they hand you defeat again in November. WOW you guys are so out of the cultural shift in America that you got the first black president elected, and HCR all in around 1 year. How does it feel to be that out of touch with your fear mongering platforms? To quote Shaq "Tell me how my A@% Taste." BAHAHAHA
Once again if you do not want socialism when you hit 65 turn back in your Medicare! Right....
Ontheroad, the things that you mentioned which are run by the government, Medicaid, Medicare, the Post Office,public schools, what stellar examples of government efficiency and waste and now most are on the road to bankruptcy. I'm not saying it was just Dems, Repubs contributed to this, but now people think the government has what, turned over a new leaf and is going to run health care efficiently and on budget? You've got to be kidding! All I'm saying is I can't wait until November, let's see how the members of congress like it when they are looking for jobs that aren't out there.
Free car insurance for poor people!
I grew up in West Virginia
I have lived in Virginia for 15 years.
I get tired of the haughty prideful attitude va displaces
But with the recent spate of politicians- I feel like I am back in WV
Grow Up Virginia!
All is said about the freedoms taken away by big govt. Lets look at what maybe big govt actually gives us in the way of freedoms. The military gives us the freedom of safety. Knowing that lets us be creative, to build, to sell, to buy, to explore and more. Social Security gives retiring folks the freedom to help to retire and not to have to work as hard, or not at all, in there golden years. Medicare gives them the same freedom not to worry as much about declining health. How many of you enjoyed the freedom as a kid to run to the mailbox and see what Grandma sent you for your birthday? And now the new health care laws. The freedom for an older worker who no longer wants to put up with natures fury of working outside but couldn't change jobs with pre-existing health conditions knowing he would lose his heath coverage. He has the freedom to dream about finding something a little less strenuous. The young girl with serious medical condition worrying what will happen as she becomes an adult and no one will insure her. Now she can dream about continuing her education and that health care will be there for her also. Give it a chance conservatives, you also like freedoms.
Premiums: will still go up.
Costs: will still go up.
Taxes: will still go up.
Unemployment: will still go up.
Number of pies the gov't finger's in: will still go up.
JUST THE FACTS, SIR!
turdburglar March 22nd, 2010 | 3:55 pm
You must not have a car. Otherwise you’d HAVE to buy car insurance.
No one is forcing you to have a car, and the main reason for the basic car insurance that you must have is to cover the person you hit.
Yes you can send and receive mail it should work, with it being over 2.8 BILLION in the red. That's enough money to have a personal mailman for everybody.
Its not left or right its simple economics, nothing is "free" put the numbers on paper and let it sink in.
While you do that Im going to the parking lot to make a list of employees with "hope and change" on the bumpers and start making my lay-off list.
Liberals can only attacon on things like spelling, i.e. look at the attacks on gman. They cannot debate on the issues, only what their leaders tell them they should do. They are highly educated, or I should say brained washed to obey and not think on their own.
And I have seen socialized healthcare. If you peon, you don't get any, or very poor. You are not considered "important" enough to cure.
A friend, if you like socailism move to a socialist country, oh I forget, we are socialist now, not a free country anymore. I would like to move to a free country, but there isn't one anymore. I guess we can take land of the free out of the Star Spangle Banner.
Buying a house is completely socialized: mortgage rates are being held low at 5%, there's foreclosure help and short sale help, and an $8k tax credit for new homebuyers and $6.5k for current buyers/sellers.
Big biz, Wall Street, and Banks control the government, which in turn socializes everything else.
gman, your comments would be more credible if you took a moment to spell or punctuate. This isn't an IM or Twitter.
Buying a house is further subsidized by the tax deduction for interest payments. Most people who have employer assisted health insurance plans also are subsidized by the federal government because the employee pays his share with pre-tax dollars.
I can't remember seeing anything in the Constitution about the Selective Service, but they drafted a lot of my friends to fight in a war that was not declared by Congress, and I can't remember any right wing nuts complaining about the constitutionality of that arrangement.
Gman: next time get your mom to help you with your English spelling and grammar. If you want to live in this country, you ought to be familiar with the local language. :)
HEY COOCH - I NEED this healthcare bill to survive. Lay off.
Medicare, medicaid, public schools, post office, state police force, Regan enlarged earned income credit and more. Little late for conservatives to say we don’t want socialist state, its been here. And thank you Republicans for putting George W Bush in office so there would be a complete uprising against his policies and have the Democrats win a unbeatable majority to pass health care reform. It should be called Wcare!!
If you use "will still" doesnt that represent future events. So in your great wisdom of future facts, give me the winning lottery numbers o great one!, LOL, More scare tactics, same thing over and over again.
62% of all personal bankruptcies are directly related to health care issues. And 78% of those had some form of insurance. Half of emergency care is uncompensated ie no health care. Health Care cost have seen double digit inflation even in this recessionary period. JUST THE FACTS MA'AM!!!
sounds familiar. a southern AG challenging a federal law as a violation of the the interstate commerce clause. wow, the Republicans in Virginia really are taking us back to the 60's when the same argument was used repeatedly to challenge any efforts to protect the civil rights of minorities.
While the Attorney General pursues this case he should refuse to accept the health care that the citizens of Virginia provide to him and his family. Health care, better that what they have, better than what they will ever have. But then again, the Haves never, ever, really, ever care about the Have Nots.
Let me get this straight. We're going to be gifted with a health care plan
written by a committee whose chairman says he doesn't understand it, passed
by a Congress that hasn't read it but exempts themselves from it, to be
signed by a president who also hasn't read it, is exempted from it and who
smokes, with funding administered by a treasury chief who didn't pay his
taxes, to be overseen by a surgeon general who is obese, and financed by a
country that's broke.
What the hell could possibly go wrong?
All this complaining about how much money it will cost to insure all is ignoring the story here. Cuccinelli is going to waste millions in state funds persuing a frivilous, unwinnable lawsuit, solely to advance his own political capital with the far right. Yet all comments from the right are only complaining about the health care bill. If you were really concerned with saving tax dollars your ire would be directed at Mr. Cuccinelli's misuse of his office.
The pool of healthy college kids paying jack will not balance out the pre existing conditions.... a cancer patient can easily spend 100k a year so that means there neeeds to be 25 healthy kids who don't see the doctor but pay anyway....
It is not unusual for a hospital visit to exceed 300k... thats another 75 healthy kids who never use the service but pay anyway... and you have to remeber they do not make big bucks so the essentially get it for free..... just because they CAN be on their parents till age 26 does not mean they HAVE to why would your parenets pay when the government will give you a subsidy because you have so little income?
The numbers do not crunch.
Where will the money come from? The rich are just not that rich.
1) medicare is at 5% managment because the amount of fraud is astronmical...if the insurance comopanies didn't have to worry about overpaying they could lay off people and be at 5% too.
2)When insurance companise are forced to accept all prexisting conditions you will see rates EXPLODE. Imagine what you car rates would be if your insurance company had to accept all comers even drunk drivers and speeders and could not charge them extra. The math is simple,, they pay out X and base premiumms on X plus a profit.. so if they are forced to pay out more than they will up the rates doh...
3) Now that they have soaked the rich where are they going to get the money for the next boondoggle? Thats right... back to the middle class they will go...
4) How are you going to feel about fairness when you realize that these bums on the downtown mall will be getting free health care and food stamps and living in their brothers basement while you work to pay for it? Where do you think the rich are going to get their money from? Thats right.. jacking up prices on the middle class who are their customer base.
5 Hidden in this bill is the takeover of the student loan industry by the Government and massive IRS rules where they can look at your bank accounts etc for auditing purposes. 16,500 new IRS agents to audit small businesses to make sure they are paying either health insurance or fines.
6)The CBO "scores" these bills with ONLY the info provided and does not factor in any "consequesnces" they ahve been of by 1000% many many times. Look it up.
We will all pay for this bill through increased prices. Businesses do not have the money to pay this without raising prices, You wished for it , you got it. Bend over ad take your free prostate exam.
@ #2: the whole point of the universal mandate is that insurance companies will get the pool of healthy younger people who might forgo insurance otherwise--that evens out the costs associated with accepting people with pre-existing conditions (otherwise known as American citizens who are in imperfect health).
@ #3: remind us how they "have soaked the rich"? the bill passed yesterday.
@ #4: don't the "bums on the downtown mall" who currently have no insurance at all still get treated, at my expense, when they go to the emergency room for their health care? I think I'm going to stop obsessing about "fairness" (like some toddlers I know) and focus instead on the pragmatism of the bill--society is paying for these folks no matter how you slice it, and this bill will cover their health care costs more cheaply.
@ #6: HUH? re-read your sentence, dude: you don't even make sense by the end of it.
it is unconstitutional to say the least, it can only be leagal according to the constitution if the government takes on the same plan for there familys, and just look how obama there leader did not answer the strait question of will you but your familiy on it, he choose to not even answer
Medicare, medicaid, public schools, post office, state police force, earned income credits.
Get RID OF IT ALL.
I voted for Obama because he was going to heal the rifts between my community and the rest of the country. He was going to heal the rifts between the US and the rest of the world. He was going to solve problems like peace in the middle east.
All we got was reckless spending.
let look at the facts.this so call socialism health care works in a dozen countries like uk,germany,japan,spain,tawian etc... why can it work here?obama is looking out for 30 million americans who don't have health including me!!!!republicans are for big business,and corporatin not the poeple.it is all about the dollar which right now is very weak.ok we're trillions of dollars in debt deal with it!!it is no such thing as a perfect bill,dems or replns,goverment.we can't satisfy everyone so once again deal with it!!!the rich and wealthy don't have to worry about health,jobs,money,family most americans do.power to the people U.S.A..the new world order runs all the goverments don't live in deny we are just pawn on a chess board.we're in this together as americans lets act like it.peace,love,health!!!!
Republicans cared more about the possibility of denying Obama a victory than they did about contributing in meaningful ways to health care reform. And now John McCain is warning that Republicans are so mad they won't cooperate with anything the rest of the year -- as if that's something new for them????????
37 states are considering suing...
Storm27, Medicare is no example of inefficiency and waste. Medicare (which is insurance, not actually "health care") has an overhead of around 5%. Your typical insurance company has an overhead of more like 17%. Also, Medicare's overhead compares favorably with similar programs in other countries.
Just in case you'd like to read up on the subject, I took 10 extra seconds to Google this for you:
http://masscare.org/health-care-costs/overhead-costs-of-health-care/
We really dont need to worry about this. the government is in control and something is in control of the government and it is not the american people. People are not going to keel over and die because of this. It'll be ok.
I'm sure all the conservatives who rail on about frivolous lawsuits and wasting taxpayers' money are swamping the AG's office with phone calls right now...
When I mail a letter, it arrives pretty quickly at its destination. When someone mails a letter to me, it arrives pretty quickly at my house. Packages, too. Doesn't cost all that much. The mailbox is right there on my property. I guess I'm the only one in the U.S. who thinks the postal service is doing a good job.
Public schools seem to do all right. They do some things well and some things poorly. I'm not aware of any evidence that supports the idea that a fully privatized system of schools would do a better job at educating the entire population (not just the cream of the crop as they currently do).
The government did a pretty good job building the interstate highway system. (Now, maintaining that system is a different matter: since people don't want to pay taxes, it's hard to fund the maintenance...).
Go here to see how the new law will effect your current situation.
You must not have a car. Otherwise you'd HAVE to buy car insurance.
Hurray! We have the freedom to HAVE to buy insurance. That sounds swell. And the freedom to pay higher taxes on existing policies as well as medical devices. Alright! And the freedom to have thousands of new IRS bureaucrats at your disposal to audit you! It's a regular liberty utopia!
Long live freedom!
Well, more large and small businesses will lay off, some will go under, due to exploding health care insurance costs. You may very well become that "bum" at the mall who can't find a job, gets food stamps, and gets free insurance.
downhill- Just who do you think pays now when the homeless end up in the ER?
Everything bad that happens from this point on is due to this bill!
Cooch is doing himself a huge favor by showing Virginians that he doesn't want to protect gay people from discrimination and that he wants to take the power of the AG's office and waste it on this dumb lawsuit.
Politically, those moves are big winners! All Virginians want an AG that is on the side of making cheap political points with his "base" by wasting the prestige of his office! Keep up the good work, Cooch!
Honestly, it's hard to know what Cooch is thinking politically. You don't achieve higher office by burning bridges. Maybe he's going to go the 'right-wing pundit' route? Maybe he'll pull a Palin and stop "milking" his elected position?
One thing is almost certain, by angering not only gays but anyone opposed to discriminating against gays and THEN angering anyone that supports the president, he's making his election to the governor's chair a very heavy lift. Bob McD spent the entire campaign trying to convince the public that he WASN'T some right-wing neanderthal. Cooch seems to be using the power of his highest public office to convince the public that he IS.
Might get a speaking gig on FoxNews, but he'll NEVER be governor of Virginia.
now there's a surprise. A birther and advocate of discrimination against homosexuals opposes the Democrats' plan for health care reform
i anxiously await the Hook's next lead story about a dog biting a man
we have really lost the focus of the whole thing...it is not the healthcare bill...this man is about to spend a nice some of money on a lawsuit that we will pay for....and like someone else said already...you need to read up because we pay the bill when someone with no insurance goes to the hospital...and give the president a chance he has only been in office since 2008...i think it will take a little longer to make things better...it took someone else 8 years to mess it up...get real!!the problem with us is that we arent willing to work together...we to busy pointing fingers!!GROW UP!!!
Voted Wrong in 2008, if you really DID vote for Obama because you thought "he was going to heal the rifts between my community and the rest of the country. He was going to heal the rifts between the US and the rest of the world. He was going to solve problems like peace in the middle east," and somehow you had no idea that he was interested in health care reform, then you were indeed a shockingly uninformed voter, and you should be ashamed of yourself. Anyone who was paying the slightest bit of attention knew that health care reform was very high on Obama's to-do list. The fact that he won the election, with 53% of the vote, seems to me to indicate that Americans wanted health care reform along with wanting Obama.
As someone once said, "elections have consequences."
Once The A.G. sue on behalf of the common wealth can I sue him because I don't agree with him suing the federal government ? Just shut the f@#k up! The Left won and the Right lost . That's it in a nut shell . Bunch of cry babies.
In case anybody didn't know...the entire concept of insurance is socialist...it's SUPPOSED TO BE...it's NOT SUPPOSED TO BE CAPITALIST. Socialism is not a curse word unless you also don't like roads and grade schools. I wish Cuccinelli would cram it with walnuts where the sun doesn't shine,...that homophobic tyrant!
By the way you right wing losers...I love SOOOO much how sad you are, not only that Obama won, but that so short into his FIRST time he has already passed a monumental legacy. Your tears sustain me.
So why is there so much of the Democrats vs. the Republicans here? Or anywhere in the US for a matter of fact...didn't our first president warn of creating polictial parties??? It's like we are fighting a political civil war! C'mon people...get over the rep vs. dem and argue about the issue....like if the devil himself were on the ticket you people would vote either dem or rep regardless...geeze.....
Washington Post
Virginia Politics
By Anita Kumar
March 22, 2010; 11:25 AM ET
Liberty University To File Suit On Health Care Overhaul
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/virginiapolitics/2010/03/post_652.html
Washington Post
Virginia Politics
By Anita Kumar
March 24, 2010; 2:29 PM ET
Virginia Delegate Joins Liberty University Lawsuit On Federal Health Care Bill
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/virginiapolitics/2010/03/post_654.html
I just want to know this. I am an employer who self insures my employees, just like Liberty University does. Am I going to be fined because I have healthy and safe employees?
Justbeinobjective- "The unwilling, lead by the untrained to do the unnecessary"- sounds familiar...........
HarryD
"I just want to know this. I am an employer who self insures my employees, just like Liberty University does. Am I going to be fined because I have healthy and safe employees?"
Thank you for your reply.
I'm sure you will find the answer you seek by reading the health care bill that was recently passed. You can find the bill and any amendments thereto at http://docs.house.gov
Considering you self insure your employees does your insurance coverage include catastrophic care? For example if a person is stricken with cancer or is in a horrific accident.
I'm sure we can both agree that a person of any age and regardless if they are healthy today does not mean that they are immune from future illness or accidents.
I have paid for a health insurance for myself since I was 18 years old and although I do respect people who choose not to carry health insurance on themselves for whatever reason I do not want to pay for their health care if and when something catastrophic happens to them.
Have you not listend to Dick Durbin? Have you not read the CBO reports? Have you not read the bill? Have you not paid attention at all? Everything I noted above has been laid out for you, but instead you are, what, closing your eyes and hoping for it all to miraculously turn into a unicorn that poops rainbow-flavored lollipops?
Good luck with that.
A few points of clarification:
1) The civil rights cases were about rights delineated in the Constitution - states violating individuals' rights that were afforded to them in the Constitution.
2) Yes, health care costs are out of control and lead to many personal bankruptcies and something has to be done about them.
3) However, that does not give Congress the right to require all Americans to buy a product. By not purchasing something you are effectively NOT engaging in commerce. To achieve the goals in point 2, we have to find something other than this mandate if it's going to pass the Constitutionality test.
4) Arguably, driving a car is a privilege, not a right, thus the mandates on car insurance - however, most of that is state driven I believe, not federally mandated (though I'm not 100% sure on that one). States have more latitude than the feds in that they are not limited by the interstate Commerce Clause - so where a federal mandate may not be ok, a state one might.
Not a friend, your claim is that public schools do not educate children well. Based on your phrasing, that means NO children are educated well in any public schools. None at all. There is no public school in the United States that educates any children well.
Probably lots of people agree with you. Probably lots of people can't name a single public school in the U.S. that is educating children well. Probably lots of people also can't name a single adult who was educated well by a public school. Here, too, I must be inhabiting an alternate universe where not only do I successfully mail things using the U.S. Postal Service, but where I also encounter first-year students at UVa who seem awfully well educated by the public schools they attended. By your reasoning, this is all a mirage.
NNATTY:
I believe the Feds threaten to eliminate highway funding if states do not pass certain highway laws.
As for the larger issue, have we figured out how to reduce our country's deficit? I would go back to Reagan, when we passed tax cuts but did not reduce spending (read Stockman's book). We had the peace dividend in the early 1990's, but we still ran deficits (Desert Storm). We charged a war in the early 2000's (post WTC attacks). I just wonder whether we will ever have the public will, without the hysteria on both sides of the aisle, to focus on deficit reduction as our next big issue.
We may will be engaged in a war with China as we speak. At some point, they will dictate USA policy, and as our biggest creditor, we may have to acced to their wishes.
Where were all of these "Constitutionalists" when the Patriot Act passed with flying colors?
In response to NNAtty 2nd and 3rd "points":
"2) Yes, health care costs are out of control and lead to many personal bankruptcies and something has to be done about them."
Like what? Suggest something... anything! We've been waiting YEARS for a right-wing solution, but it never comes. Oh you clowns pay lip service to things like tort reform and allowing insurance to be purchased across state lines, but even when the Dems try to accomodate, you refuse to be a part of the solution. All you are good at is giving reasons 'why not'."
"3) However, that does not give Congress the right to require all Americans to buy a product. By not purchasing something you are effectively NOT engaging in commerce. To achieve the goals in point 2, we have to find something other than this mandate if it’s going to pass the Constitutionality test."
Like what? You people soil your pants anytime somebody mentions a public option, so suggest something.