Obamacare : This Law Looks Like It's Going To Be Struck Down

Vodka Pundit:  This was a train wreck for the [Obama] Administration...
Bill Jacobson has more here...
I would not get overly excited about this (at least not yet).  Yes it is good news.  We should be cautiously optimistic.  But some reports express some doubts of Kennedy being as hostile as Toobin suggests.  If the Supreme Court does throw Obamacare out completely, wonderful.  But a compromise could happen (say the individual mandate being thrown out)--which could create a real mess.  Still, given the difficulties in trying to remove this monstrosity legislatively, if the Court does the heavy lifting that will be just fine by me (and no this is not judicial activism because the law is in fact unconstitutional--beyond being a fiscal policy disaster).  


Ann Althouse has been predicting that Obamacare being tossed helps Obama get re-elected. I am not so sure about that and I disagree with her reasoning.  I am sure Obama would try to spin a loss at the Supreme Court that way (vote for me or they will nominate radical religious conservatives to the Supreme Court and take all your rights away...).  Most people do not like Obamacare, so if the Court does tosses it it will only infuriate that segment of voters who were very much for this (and they were already voting for Obama anyway).  Most people would be relieved.  Paul Heroux at the Huffington Post has an article that Republicans might not as urgent on voting for a GOP candidate if Obamacare is off the table...


Here is Ann Althouse's reasoning:  

If the Court takes down the entire Act, it would do Obama a great favor, which is why I'm predicting the Court will do just that. That was my prediction a few weeks ago, reading, not the the existing doctrine, but "the political forces at play and assessing the Court's vulnerability to those forces."

If Thomas, Scalia, Roberts, Alito, and Kennedy vote to strike Obamacare down, does anyone (other than Ann) really think they are doing so to help Barack Obama?  And if this helps Barack Obama, why aren't his allies on the left of the Court going along with striking the law down?  Update II:  Sotomayor, et tu?  Well this is interesting (could Ann be right?)

Ann is also raising her conspiracy theory (which is Team Obama's Solicitor General is intentionally throwing this case).  I am skeptical.  Obama and his lefty backers do not want Obamacare to fail.  Update:  Yet if you go through her comments, they are suggesting the Court might strike the mandate, leaving us with a single payer monstrosity. There is, however, no severance clause in Obamacare.  I agree a partial strike down would be a giant mess.  Let's hope the Supremes do the right thing and kill this.

In the words of Joe Biden, however, Obamacare getting struck down would be a big F'n deal.  Here's hoping for good things to happen.

Update:
The Other McCain reminds us we are paying the SG to try to steal our liberty...
Hot Air:  Carville argues that Obama losing his "Big F'n Deal" would be his greatest victory evah...who does he think Obama is? Obi Wan Kenobi?  
Harry Reid has a Gollum quality too...

Prior EBL Posts:
Wickard and Obamacare...
The U.S. Economy and Medical Entitlements are like the Titanic and a big giant iceberg...