Courts at Odds over Healthcare Law's Individual Mandate
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Congress passed healthcare reform and the states are putting it into effect, but the battle continues in the political arena and in the courts. Are President Bush's judicial appointees changing constitutional law? Will Republican challenges backfire in favor of the Democrats? Also, the US Senate passes the tax deal and sends the bill to the House, and luxury goods are being snapped up in the US and Europe by the People's Republic.
Banner image: US Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, who, it is believed ultimately may provide the decisive vote on the individual "mandate" portion of President Obama's healthcare bill. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Making News
US Senate Passes Tax Deal, Sends Bill to House ()
They said it would never happen, but today the US Senate passed a controversial bill on a bipartisan vote: 81 to 19 in favor of the tax-cut deal President Obama worked out with Republicans. The House may or may not go along. David Lightman is national correspondent for the McClatchy Newspapers.
Guests:
- David Lightman: National Correspondent, McClatchy Newspapers, @LightmanDavid
Main Topic
Healthcare, Politics and the Law ()
President Obama's healthcare reform is being implemented nationwide, even though federal judges disagree on a major provision. Two federal judges, appointed by Bill Clinton, have ruled that the so-called "mandate" is constitutional. This week a third, appointed by George W. Bush, ruled that it's not. Is it constitutional to require healthy people to buy insurance even if they don't want to? The issue probably will be resolved by a single justice of the US Supreme Court, but will it make any difference? Would healthcare reform still go into effect without the "mandate" Republicans hate? Would support grow for the "public option" Democrats love?
Guests:
- Dahlia Lithwick: Legal Correspondent, Slate, @Dahlialithwick
- Ezra Klein: Staff Writer, Washington Post, @ezraklein
- David Sirota: nationally syndicated columnist, @davidsirota
- Jonathan Adler: Professor of Law, Case Western Reserve University
Links:
Reporter's Notebook
Chinese Spending on Luxury Goods, Boosting Sales Worldwide ()
On Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, store owners are learning Chinese. When Bond Street in London runs out of pounds, shops accept Renminbi. The People's Republic is changing the luxury market worldwide. Karl Gerth is Professor of Chinese History at Oxford University and author of As China Goes, So Goes the World: How Chinese Consumers are Transforming Everything.
Guests:
- Karl Gerth: Professor of Chinese History, Oxford University
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