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Upholding ObamaCare requires a federal judge to find enormous elasticity in the Commerce Clause:

Judge Gladys Kessler of Federal District Court for the District of Columbia became the third appointee of President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, to reject a constitutional challenge to the Affordable Care Act. …
Judge Kessler added: “It is pure semantics to argue that an individual who makes a choice to forgo health insurance is not ‘acting,’ especially given the serious economic and health-related consequences to every individual of that choice. Making a choice is an affirmative action, whether one decides to do something or not do something.”

As Cornell Law Professor William Jacobson observes, Judge Kessler’s ruling theorized whether “mental activity, i.e. decision-making” might be governed by the Commerce Clause.

Well, the jig is finally up, folks. If anything you serve at the family dinner table involves “interstate commerce,” your kids can probably take you to court and get a federal judge to decide that they don’t have to eat their broccoli. Or to put it another way: “The Commerce Clause has proven voracious enough to swallow the rest of the Constitution. Any scraps left over will be devoured by the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses of the 14th Amendment.”

topics:
Constitution, Commerce Clause

View all comments (16) |

jharp| 2.23.11 @ 12:24PM

Just read the transcript of Wisconsin Governor Walker getting punked by the blogger posing as David Koch.

Too funny. Hilarious. Made my day, week, and year so far.

It's over. Even the teabagging dumbasses are going to be able to see through you frauds now.

Another nail in the coffin of the Whigs, er the GOP.

God you people are stupid.

Ken (Old Texican)| 2.23.11 @ 12:38PM

Jharp,
Coming from you, I take that as a deep compliment. Thank you!

Keep whistling by the graveyard, gimmy-person.

jharp| 2.23.11 @ 12:44PM

You're welcome.

I hope you enjoyed it as much as I.

jharp| 2.23.11 @ 12:52PM

Hey Ken (Old Texan),

If you liked my previous post you'll LOVE this.

"Ian Murphy, pretending to be Koch, talked to Walker's chief of staff, Keith Gilkes, and said he couldn't leave a return number because, "My goddamn maid, Maria, put my phone in the washer. I'd have her deported, but she works for next to nothing." This, oddly enough, led Gilkes to invite "Koch" to call back and speak directly to the governor."

Hilarious!

Jamie| 2.23.11 @ 8:04PM

No one cares, stupid.

Real American| 2.23.11 @ 1:14PM

bunch of sophomoric behavior by idiot leftards and there's nothing incriminating there. I guess you don't have anything to worry about when Congress regulates "mental activity."

David W| 2.23.11 @ 1:58PM

jharp (does "j" stand for jackwagon?), please refer to this:
http://spectator.org/blog/2011.....hat-scott.

Apaprently the transcript is somewhat "misleading". I've listened to prank calls that radio DJs do to unsuspecting people. They often are able to get away with a lot of crap because the object of the call is either too polite to tell the caller that they are full of crap OR because of the inanity of the caller the object is unable to properly follow the conversation - especially if the caller is doing a lot of "cross-talk" to even confuse the object even more. Of course, this doesn't matter to you - you still have to rant and rave. Oh, by the way, you probably need to tone down the homophobia comments (using teabagging as an insult - you do know what that term means, don't you?).

jharp| 2.23.11 @ 2:12PM

T.E.A. stands for Taxed. Enough. Already.

Which makes no sense since Obama cut taxes to make us less taxed than under Bush.

And the teabagging has something to do with sending teabags to the Congress.

The whole movement is a fraud and you know it. It simply a bunch of ignorant racist redneck republicans who are too ashamed to admit they are republicans.

And the transcript is misleading? You are an idiot. It is what it is. Read it and weep.

God you people are stupid.

Al Adab| 2.23.11 @ 2:15PM

My condolences on your loss. Poor sick puppy.

LiveFreeOrDie| 2.23.11 @ 2:17PM

"Even the teabagging dumbasses..."

The Tea Party is a single platform group who believes we pay too much in taxes and would like to see them reduced. This is not a controversial position, in fact, an overwhelming majority of Americans support that position. Agree or disagree but disrespect and name-calling is all you offer, sad.

A judge ruled that "doing nothing" is an "action" which can and should be governed at the federal level. This doesn't bother you at all, in fact you support it. A group of regular folks who think taxes are too high is not only unacceptable but ought to be referred to using vulgar and inappropriate language. Continued use of this deviant sexual phrase tells us all we need to know about your "opinions."

Chock full of willful ignorance and you call everyone stupid? Please keep posting, it affirms what "us people" already know.

jharp| 2.23.11 @ 3:56PM

"The Tea Party is a single platform group who believes we pay too much in taxes and would like to see them reduced."

Obama lowered your taxes you dumbf*ck.

He lowered them to less than you paid under Bush. Lowered them for 95% of us. The other 5% paid the same.

God you people are stupid.

LiveFreeOrDie| 2.23.11 @ 5:20PM

I never said anything about Obama or anything he did. You failed to address my point at all. I'd reiterate, but, as Ken says, "We can't fix stupid!"

Al Adab| 2.23.11 @ 12:36PM

All this time I thought people were free to choose. Are we not to defend a "Womens' right to choose"? What is now obvious is that only preselected choices are approved. Other choices being incorrect are denied by Government. Sounds a lot like "...get in line or we will bash your head in" to me.

Ken (Old Texican)| 2.23.11 @ 12:39PM

"...get in line or we will bash your head in,"...he explained.

Al Adab| 2.23.11 @ 1:05PM

Hi Ken,
From the Horst Wessel song, he explained.

Have you considered| 2.24.11 @ 6:17AM

I can extrapolate this decision as follows: Congress passes a law that states every family must purchase 1 each Chevy Volt every second calendar year. Under this judges ruling, that law would be completely constitutional. The logic being that; The federal government has a vast investment in GM, therefore the decision to Not purchase a Volt has "serious economic consequences"; therefore, shut thee up and do as you are ordered.

Do you really believe this is what our founders intended? Obviously this judge does.

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