Furious Scalia: Call It SCOTUScare

[DonViejo]

Justice Antonin Scalia demonstrated his signature flair Thursday as he delivered a blistering dissent to the Supreme Court ruling upholding subsidies for people who purchase health-care coverage through the federal exchange, calling the decision “absurd,” and that the ruling means “words no longer have meaning.” “You would think the answer would be obvious—so obvious there would hardly be a need for the Supreme Court to hear a case about it,” he wrote. “In order to receive any money under §36B, an individual must enroll in an insurance plan through an ‘Exchange established by the State.’ The Secretary of Health and Human Services is not a State.”

Read it at SupremeCourt.gov

###

http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2015/06/25/furious-scalia-call-it-scotuscare.html

[oldandhappy]

1. fluster and bluster

Scalia and Thomas and Alito. Too bad we have no way to hold them accountable.

[Agnosticsherbet]

3. We can only elect Democratic Presidents and replace them with someone better.

That is our only choice.

[LondonReign2]

24. Unfortunately the Cons have figured out that by appointing relatively

young justices they can continue their reign of terror for a long, long time.

[Malraiders]

2. and we should have called Bush Scotus Pres eom

[hifiguy]

17. Ouch. So true.

Stick that in your pipe and smoke it, Scalia.

[DisgustipatedinCA]

4. Where's msanthrope when you need her?

I'm looking for the proper legal language to communicate, "eat shit and die, Scalia".

[stevenleser]

7. JBerryHill is a good DU legal source too. PM both of them. I am curious as well. nt

[Bernie 2016]

13. Here's the equivalent Latin term..

Manducare stercore et mori

He'll probably think it's related to Obamacare.

[muntrv]

5. "The Secretary of Health and Human Services is not a State.”

And corporations are not people.

[DetlefK]

6. WTF??? Scalia's interpretation is anything but originalist.

"The text means today exactly what it meant to the people of the past when it was written. Except when I decide otherwise."

[ProfessorGAC]

9. Perfectly Stated!

He and he alone gets to decide what words mean what. At least in his world.

[hifiguy]

19. Richard Posner called him on that

Very publicly in a book review a few years back. Called him an unprincipled phony in a somewhat gentlemanly way.

[DetlefK]

22. Antonin "I'm-not-an-originalist-but-I-play-one-on-TV" Scalia

[bigdarryl]

8. What a piece of shit

[1StrongBlackMan]

10. LOL, scalia once again employs the age old lawyerly maxim ...

"When the law is on your side; pound the law. When the facts are on your side; pound the facts. When neither, the law, nor the facts, are on your side; pound the table and express as much outrage as you can summon!"

[unblock]

11. there's no such thing in the aca as a "federal" exchange

according to the definition, an "exchange" is for a state. there is no concept of a "federal exchange".

if a state doesn't establish an exchange, the secretary of health and human services can establish and operate "such exchange". it's still a state exchange within the definitions of the aca.

consequently, participants in all states are eligible for subsidies even if hhs establishes and operates the exchange for that state.


but of course, this kind of analysis requires reading and evaluating more that just the parts that appeal to you rather than finalizing your decision based on the parts you like while ignoring the rest.

scalia clearly made up his mind to find an excuse to strike deliver a partisan vote and later to find an excuse to rationalize it.

which is to say, he did what he usually does.

[MoonRiver]

12. He needs some serious help.

No one that unbalanced should sit on the SCOTUS.

[Bernie 2016]

14. We need to establish the delineation between sanity and insanity in terms of nominating

the justices. They must pass all psychological tests.

[DanTex]

15. This dissent was pretty high on the Scalia snark scale...

Some other highlights.

The Court holds that when the Patient Protection and
Affordable Care Act says “Exchange established by the
State” it means “Exchange established by the State or the
Federal Government.” That is of course quite absurd, and
the Court’s 21 pages of explanation make it no less so.

The Court interprets §36B to award tax credits on both
federal and state Exchanges. It accepts that the “most
natural sense” of the phrase “Exchange established by the
State” is an Exchange established by a State. Ante, at 11.
(Understatement, thy name is an opinion on the Affordable
Care Act!) Yet the opinion continues, with no semblance
of shame, that “it is also possible that the phrase
refers to all Exchanges—both State and Federal.” Ante, at
13. (Impossible possibility, thy name is an opinion on the
Affordable Care Act!)

The Court’s next bit of interpretive jiggery-pokery involves
other parts of the Act that purportedly presuppose
the availability of tax credits on both federal and state
Exchanges

[hifiguy]

20. I keep hoping that he just strokes out

while having one of his hissy-fit snits.

[JaneyVee]

16. Sorry, but SCOTUSCare is what YOU have, Scalia.

[EndElectoral]

18. As opposed to ScaliaCARE...

Ebenezer Scalia: I have been forced to support the establishments I have mentioned through taxation and God knows they cost more than they're worth. Those who are badly off must go there.

2nd Portly Gentleman: Many would rather die than go there.

Ebenezer Scalia: If they'd rather die, then they had better do it and decrease the surplus population. Good night, gentlemen.

[yellowcanine]

21. Poor baby.

[Buns_of_Fire]

23. Pretty good, Tony, but not good enough.

I want to see him get so mad in public that he's reduced to spitting and raving and screaming and throwing poo at the other justices -- just before he's removed by the nice young men in their clean white coats.

[Arugula Latte]

25. Is it wrong that I'm hoping his anger will cause him to pop a major vessel

and drop dead?

Do not resuscitate.

[Fresh_Start]

26. really annoy him....lets call it ScaliaCare in his honor

maybe he's be struck dumb for a year or so

[onecaliberal]

27. He seriously needs a psychological evaluation.