Politicians React to Supreme Court Ruling on Health Care Reform - WMBB News 13 - The Panhandle's News Leader

Politicians React to Supreme Court Ruling on Health Care Reform

Area politicians react to the Supreme Court decision on health care reform.

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SENATOR BILL NELSON

"A lot of us feel the health-care law wasn't perfect.  But it was needed.  Our system was broken and we had to do something.  Insurance companies were refusing to cover people or dropping those who got sick.  So, we passed legislation to prevent insurers from running roughshod over people.  And today, the Supreme Court upheld most of these reforms.  Now, I think it's time we finish the job of fixing our economy and creating more jobs."

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SENATOR MARCO RUBIO

"My friends, this is a middle class tax increase. And millions of Americans now have an IRS problem. … I guarantee you that's not good for small business. I guarantee you that's not good for the middle class. I guarantee you that's not good for economic growth."

"And so, apart from everything else, this is a terrible idea because it hurts our ability to grow our economy. This is the real life impact of this bill. This is the impact this is going to have, and you're going to see it. You're going to see it in a further downturn in our economy, in more slowing in economic growth. This is going to have a real impact. This is a big deal. People across this country and across Florida have every right and every reason to be worried about the impact that this is going to have on them. My friends, this is a middle class tax increase. And millions of Americans now have an IRS problem. You will now have to, for the first time in American history, prove that you have health insurance, or you're going to have to deal with the IRS. I guarantee you that's not good for small business. I guarantee you that's not good for the middle class. I guarantee you that's not good for economic growth. That's where we're at today.

"And if there's anything I hope we can do here, I wasn't here when the health care bill passed, but I hope that some of my colleagues who voted for this will think to themselves, ‘This is never what we intended. We want to help people that are uninsured, but not like this. This is never what we wanted to do.'  I hope that enough reasonable minds will come together to either suspend or repeal this, and let's start from scratch. Let's come up with a real plan to deal with the health insurance crisis in America."

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CONGRESSMAN STEVE SOUTHERLAND

"Today's ruling by the Supreme Court is disappointing to say the least. The President promised us that his health care law would not raise taxes. Now we know he wasn't telling us the truth.  In fact, ObamaCare amounts to the largest tax increase in American history. This decision will allow the liberals in Congress to tax at will."

"In a 2009 ABC News interview with George Stephanopoulos, President Obama stated numerous times that his healthcare law was not a tax:

"STEPHANOPOULOS:  But you reject that it's a tax increase?

OBAMA:  I absolutely reject that notion."

"Our country is a critical crossroads. I have pledged to you that I would do all I can to achieve a full repeal of ObamaCare, and today's decision only strengthens my commitment to do so.

"Florida's Second Congressional District can not afford to send a liberal ally to Congress who will stand with Obama and Nancy Pelosi and continue to chip away at our freedoms one by one.

"We need to fight for common sense reforms that empower patients and doctors, increasing access to affordable, quality care without increasing government bureaucracy."

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REPUBLICAN PARTY OF BAY COUNTY

"The decision today by the Supreme Court to up-hold ObamaCare is both astonishing and disappointing. By ruling the individual mandate is a tax where the federal government can compel any American citizen to buy any product or service from a business, the constitutional limits on the power of the federal government have effectively been removed. This is indeed a sad day for a country founded on the ideal of individual liberty and freedom from the tyranny of government. I would encourage all citizens who are likewise alarmed by this decision to exercise one of the few remaining means we have to control the government, please vote this November to elect a Republican congress and President that can stop this madness."