A federal judge’s ruling that the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional is likely to be overturned on appeal and may boomerang politically on Republicans.
Judge Reed O’Connor ruled for some 20 state plaintiffs that the ACA’s individual mandate is no longer legal because Republicans repealed its financial penalty as part of the 2017 tax reform. Recall that Chief Justice John Roberts joined four justices to say Obamacare’s mandate was illegal as a command to individuals to buy insurance under the Commerce Clause. “The Framers gave Congress the power to regulate commerce, not to compel it,” he wrote.