Title: Despite Ruling, White House Chief of Staff Refuses to Call Mandate a Tax (George Stephanopoulos) Source:
ABC News URL Source:http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politic ... refuses-to-call-mandate-a-tax/ Published:Jul 1, 2012 Author:George Stephanopoulos Post Date:2012-07-01 18:15:44 by Hondo68 Keywords:SCOTUS considered a tax, refused to acknowledge, whatever you call it Views:6380 Comments:20
White House chief of staff Jack Lew refused to call the individual mandate for health care a tax, continually referring to it as a penalty or charge, despite the Supreme Courts ruling that it should be considered a tax.
The Supreme Court looked at what the structure of the law was and they saw that one percent of the people would be paying this charge if they chose not to avail themselves of health insurance, Lew told me this morning on This Week. For that one percent who have chosen not to buy health insurance, and just to pass the burden on to others, theres this penalty.
On Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that the cornerstone of President Obamas health care legislation, the individual mandate, was indeed constitutional on the grounds that it acts as a tax.
Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the Supreme Courts four liberal members in the majority opinion, writing that The Affordable Care Acts requirement that certain individuals pay a financial penalty for not obtaining health insurance may reasonably characterized as a tax. Because the Constitution permits such a tax, it is not our role to forbid it, or to pass upon its wisdom or fairness.
But in my interview this morning on This Week, Lew refused to acknowledge that it was a tax, saying, The law set it up as a penalty for the people who make that choice. The court found it constitutional. Frankly what you call it is not the issue.
I pressed Lew on the penalty vs. tax issue, which was the center of Roberts decision. Heres part of our exchange:
LEW: For that one percent who have chosen not to buy health insurance, and just to pass the burden on to others, theres this penalty.
STEPHANOPOULOS: But you do concede - and you keep wanting to use the word penalty - you do concede that the law survived only because Justice Roberts found this to be a tax?
LEW: You know, I think, if you look at the decision, which is a very complicated one, there are arguments that support different theories. There was (crosstalk)
STEPHANOPOULOS: But the argument of Chief Justice Roberts is that its a tax.
LEW: He He went through the different powers that Congress has and found that there is a power, whatever you call it, to assess a penalty like this.
STEPAHNOPOULOS: He called it a tax.
LEW: (smiling, no response)
STEPHANOPOLOUS: So youre conceding that?
LEW: Im saying that it was set up as a penalty for people who choose not to buy insurance, even though they can afford it, and for that one percent, we call it fair.
STEPHANOPOULOS: And he calls it a tax. Im going to move on now at this point.
Lews argument is in line with what President Obama told me in a Sept. 2009 interview on This Week, when he insisted that to say that youve got to take a responsibility to get health insurance is absolutely not a tax increase.
White House chief of staff Jack Lew refused to call the individual mandate for health care a tax, continually referring to it as a penalty or charge,...
REALLY??
A "penalty" or "charge" for services NOT rendered NOR requested??
Why didn't Dem partisan HACK Stephanopoulus ask the WH HACK Lew how Commie HACK 0buma regards the mandate? Who cares what Trojan Horse statist HACK Roberts calls horsecrap?
The young pods out there out to be enraged at this decision AND 0buma since it's *they* as healthy young adults who'll be paying a "penalty" or "charge" for....*absolutely NADA*.
Lew told me this morning on This Week. For that one percent who have chosen not to buy health insurance, and just to pass the burden on to others, theres this penalty.
Not to put too fine a point on it, but didn't that cunning rogue Chief Justice John Roberts pour a jug of Karo syrup into the gas tank of America's twelve trillion cylinder engine? Or, put another way (forgive the metaphor juke), didn't he just give President Obama enough rope to hang himself? Out to dry, that is. Roberts must know exactly what he is doing: prompting x-million young and/or poor voters to an election year tea party tax revolt. The Obama health care reform will henceforth be defined as a tax against people too economically strapped to buy health insurance - in other words, a gross injustice, courtesy of Obama.
Of course, with or without the so-called reform, the American health care system remains a hostage racket. When you are sick, you will do anything to get better, and the system knows it. You will sign onto any agreement to keep yourself alive, even if the health care system ends up taking your house and your children's educations. It is a well-established fact that the chief cause of personal bankruptcy in the USA is unpayable medical bills on the part of people who have health insurance. It is considered bad manners to inquire of a surgeon what his fee might be for a life-saving operation. Anyway, you don't want to know because it will be a figure with no anchor in the reality of hours spent or services rendered.
I know a woman who went to the emergency room and hospital about two months ago for two and a half days. I believe her bill was $48,000. Her hubby has insurance and she expects to have to pay several thousand. They never figured out what was wrong with her. Psychosomatic is my guess. She makes about $1,200 a month.
Anyway, you don't want to know because it will be a figure with no anchor in the reality of hours spent or services rendered.
A friend fell recently and shattered her kneecap.
JUST the hospital bill, for a couple days and nights, not including the surgeon, was over $35k.
I can't wait to see the surgeon's bill.
"If men through fear, fraud or mistake, should in terms renounce and give up any essential natural right, the eternal law of reason and the great end of society, would absolutely vacate such renunciation; the right to freedom being the gift of God Almighty, it is not in the power of Man to alienate this gift, and voluntarily become a slave." Samuel Adams, Rights of the Colonists, 1772
"If men through fear, fraud or mistake, should in terms renounce and give up any essential natural right, the eternal law of reason and the great end of society, would absolutely vacate such renunciation; the right to freedom being the gift of God Almighty, it is not in the power of Man to alienate this gift, and voluntarily become a slave." Samuel Adams, Rights of the Colonists, 1772
White House chief of staff Jack Lew refused to call the individual mandate for health care a tax, continually referring to it as a penalty or charge, despite the Supreme Courts ruling that it should be considered a tax.
I don't get it. Isn't that akin to saying a woman is just for rent instead of saying she is a whore?
Since when have taxes NOT been penalties?
"It is impossible to talk reason with those who can only parrot Party Slogans." sneakypete Sept 2011
Stay Hungry...Stay Foolish --Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs,life-long Dim,and major Barry Soetoro supporter.
Not to put too fine a point on it, but didn't that cunning rogue Chief Justice John Roberts pour a jug of Karo syrup into the gas tank of America's twelve trillion cylinder engine? Or, put another way (forgive the metaphor juke), didn't he just give President Obama enough rope to hang himself? Out to dry, that is.
Roberts must know exactly what he is doing: prompting x-million young and/or poor voters to an election year tea party tax revolt. The Obama health care reform will henceforth be defined as a tax against people too economically strapped to buy health insurance - in other words, a gross injustice, courtesy of Obama.
I don't think Roberts knew anywhere NEAR what he was actually doing - except purposely helping 0buma's and the elites' 'Scorched Earth' plan for the US.
Given the utter destruction of America and record during his 3 1/2 year, 0buma SHOULD lose in a landslide to Mickey Mouse WITHOUT this dopey SC decision.
"Gross injustice" is what 0buma and his admin have been ALL ABOUT - nevermind just this one policy.