Atty Gen. Eric Holder Held In Contempt Of Congress, Democrats Walk Out Of Vote

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by Meenal Vamburkar | 4:54 pm, June 28th, 2012

» 226 comments

The House of Representatives — including 17 Democratic members — voted today to hold Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over subpoenaed documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, the botched gun-running project that’s been under investigation by the House Oversight Committee (led by Rep. Darrell Issa). The vote was 255-67-1. In protest, many Democrats walked out of the House, including Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and members of the Congressional Black Caucus.
This marks the first time in the history of Congress that a sitting U.S. attorney general has been found in contempt of Congress. Two Republicans — Reps. Steve LaTourette (OH) and Scott Rigell (VA) — voted against holding him in contempt.
The White House released the following statement: “Republicans pushed for political theater rather than legitimate Congressional oversight.”
Republicans argued they have to hold him in contempt because of his refusal to hand over documents related to the Fast and Furious investigation. On the House floor on Thursday, Pelosi called the contempt proceedings “appalling” and “shameful.” It’s Holder today, she said, and somebody else the next.
You’ll recall there was also a bit of a frenzy last week when President Barack Obama, per the Justice Department’s request, invoked executive privilege, allowing the documents to be withheld. Issa called the move “untimely” at the time. In these proceedings, Issa has accused Holder of stonewalling the investigation.
The botched gun-running program is blamed for eventually resulting in shooting of a U.S. border agent, Brian Terry. Some details and background, via CNN:

Issa has accused the attorney general of stonewalling an investigation into Fast and Furious and how the Justice Department provided Congress with erroneous information about it. The department says it already has handed over more than 7,000 pages of records to House investigators, and that the remaining material Issa wants could jeopardize criminal prosecutions.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives launched Operation Fast and Furious out of Arizona to track weapon purchases by Mexican drug cartels. However, it lost track of more than 1,000 firearms that the agency had allowed straw buyers to carry across the border, and two of the lost weapons turned up at the scene of the killing of U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry.

A similar incident occurred in 2008 when President George W. Bush‘s White House Counsel Harriet Miers and Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten were held in contempt of Congress — despite Bush’s asserting executive privilege. A large number of Republicans walked out of that vote (video below), perceiving it as a partisan ordeal. Per CNN:

Miers and Bolten were accused of failing to cooperate in a congressional investigation into the mass firings of U.S. attorneys and allegations that the White House was using the Justice Department for political aims. Their citations marked the first time White House officials had been found in contempt of Congress.

Here’s Democrats walking out of the vote today, via CNN:



 Here’s the 2008 vote, during which Republicans walked out:

Ann Curry Says Good-Bye On Today: ‘I Love You And I Wanted To Give You The World’

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by Alex Alvarez | 8:56 am, June 28th, 2012

» 52 comments
On Thursday morning’s Today, anchor Ann Curry addressed her departure from the show, bidding viewers good-bye after 15 years on the morning program. She had been co-host of the show alongside Matt Lauer for the past year.
A tearful Curry admitted that this is not how she “expected to leave this couch after 15 years,” but that she is “grateful” to have been there. Her viewers, she said, are the reason she’s traveled to remote and dangerous places to report on what is happening around the world.
“I love you and I wanted to give you the world,” she said. “And I still do.”
“Thank you, from the bottom of my heart,” she told viewers, apologizing for her tears.
“You have the biggest heart in the business,” Lauer told Curry as she wiped her eyes, looking down.
Al Roker recalled Curry’s excellent, heartfelt reporting on the tsunami, later joking that she is the “Queen of Tweets.”
Natalie Morales, her voice quaking, held Curry’s hand as she commended all she has done for military families.
“Can I just say… It’s not good-bye,” added Lauer. “Not by a long shot.”
Curry recently told USA Today that it “hurt deeply” to see leaks about her departure from the show, adding that “I know I am not to blame for the ratings worries.”
RELATED: A ‘Deeply Sad’ Ann Curry Tells USA Today She Is Leaving The Today Show
Earlier this month, the New York Times reported that a plan to replace Curry had been “taking place in secret and has not been finalized,” adding that Curry might shift to a foreign correspondent position, “reflecting her strengths in reporting from disasters both man-made, like the ethnic killings in Darfur, and natural, like the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.”
In March, speculation rose that Lauer’s renewed contract with the show included booting Curry as co-host. Reports indicate that Savannah Guthrie has been offered the position in Curry’s stead.
Update:
Below is an internal email obtained by Mediaite. In it, NBC News president Steve Capus details Curry’s new role at the network and across its media platforms, describing her as “the absolute best person for his job:”

Ann Curry announced this morning on “TODAY” she is moving into a new role as NBC News National & International Correspondent and “TODAY” Anchor at Large. She will be reporting for all platforms of the news division including “TODAY,” “Nightly News,” “Rock Center with Brian Williams,” “Dateline,” MSNBC, MSNBC.com and all of our digital properties.
As everyone here in the news division knows, Ann is a gifted journalist with a strong sense of service to her colleagues, peers and especially our viewers. In her new role, Ann will report on the global and domestic humanitarian stories that our viewers need to know and care about.
Having known Ann since our early days together at “NBC News at Sunrise,” I can assure you, she will pursue these efforts with dedication, empathy and tenacity. NBC News is in much better shape with Ann Curry out there reporting these stories.
This is not a farewell from “TODAY.” Ann’s reporting will be showcased on “TODAY” as well as all other NBC News broadcasts. Outside of the confines of the studio, she’ll have more freedom for those pursuits.
Please join me in congratulating Ann on this terrific new role. Simply put, she is the absolute best person for this job.

Here is video of Curry’s good-bye, via NBC:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Glenn Beck On Health Care Decision: The GOP Are ‘Full of Crap’ ‘Cowards’ And ‘This Destroys Bush’s Legacy’

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by Jon Bershad 

 2:59 pm, June 28th, 2012

Anyone hoping for any fiery rants on, say, Fox News, following the Supreme Court decision this morning have probably been disappointed. If anything, they’ll have to wait until the opinion shows begin tonight. However, reactions have been much blunter and louder on conservative talk radion. Like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck made no attempt to hide his feelings. In fact, he launched into an absolutely epic rant, furiously condemning not just the Supreme Court, but also the Republican Party and the entire mainstream conservative movement.
Beck promoted the upcoming FreePAC event, saying that today’s result just furthered his frustration with regular conservative groups. He told listeners that he was sick of going to CPAC where he can speak out against progressives, get applause from the crowds, and then be betrayed by the “cowards” in charge who are “won’t come out and tell you what they really are”; “covert progressives.”
One such person who got called out was former President George W. Bush, the president who appointed Chief Justice John Roberts. He discussed Bush with co-hosts Stu Burguiere and Pat Gray.

BURGUIERE: This destroys Bush’s legacy amongst conservatives.
BECK: Oh, it’s done. Done. How are you feeling, Mr. Bush? You know, I’ve gotten some heat for saying George Bush was a progressive. Screw you. George Bush was a progressive. He was a progressive. Progressive light. He wasn’t as bad as Barack Obama. He was a progressive. Admit it. And if you don’t admit that you have a problem, you’re never going to be able to cure it.

Beck went on to mock the notion that there is no litmus test for appointing Supreme Court justices, imagining a scenario where he’d ask potentials if they, for example, were ok with abortion and, if they didn’t answer instantly, he’d send them right out the door. He also talked about Mitt Romney, warning the presidential hopeful that he “wouldn’t have jack support” in the country if he got into the White House and dared try to be “Mr. Bail Out” or have “a little RomneyCare.”
As angry as he was though, Beck promised he wouldn’t stop fighting. Brandishing a bracelet with Nelson Mandela’s prison number (although he admitted Mandela was a Communist with Gray reminding listeners to hate the man’s politics but love his character), Beck gave a passionate speech to his fans.

“These things make you stronger. They either kill you or they make you stronger. They’re not killing me. I’m going to keep fighting till my dying breath. Freedom will not be extinguished in my lifetime. Not under my watch. I’ll do everything I can. And I’ll go down swinging.”

UPDATE: In response to the ruling, Glenn Beck is making all GBTV coverage available for free tonight. I imagine you will get some more awesome rants like this one. Also, he’s already selling these:





Nice.

Watch the clip from GBTV below:

O’Reilly Responds To ‘Outrageous’ Supreme Court Ruling: ‘Now The Government Calls The Shots’

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by Frances Martel 

 8:29 pm, June 28th, 2012

 


Bill O’Reilly may be on vacation this week, but he phoned into The Factor today to weigh in on today’s Supreme Court ruling, and had no good words for Chief Justice John Roberts today. O’Reilly told host Laura Ingraham the decision made even clearer that “Americans have to decide what kind of country they want,” one with “socialized medicine” or otherwise.

RELATED: O’Reilly Promised To Apologize If The SCOTUS Upheld The Individual Mandate. Did He?

Suggesting people “take a deep breath, step back from emotional analysis,” O’Reilly blamed Chief Justice Roberts specifically for “stunning everybody” with the ruling, which allows “the federal government to take over the health care system… now the government calls the shots.” Because “the government can charge whatever they want,” he and Ingraham agreed, the middle class would have serious problems and, he added, health care “is going to be rationed.” He also predicted many doctors opting out of government programs as has happened abroad with similar programs. “Americans have to decide what kind of country they want,” he concluded, and President Obama offered “a huge federal government to level the playing field.”
The segment via Fox News below:

Goldstein: What Conservatives Won in the Health Care Case

Published on Jun 28, 2012 by bloomberglaw

June 28 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on Medicaid eligibility may have given states rights advocates an opportunity to challenge other statutes, according to Tom Goldstein, founder of SCOTUSblog and a High Court litigator. The court found that Congress can't take away all of a state's federal Medicaid money if they do not comply with the health care law's conditions. Tying compliance under one statute to the loss of other, unrelated money is a frequent technique Congress uses, Goldstein tells Bloomberg Law's Spencer Mazyck. "The net, long-term historic effect may be, ironically, very pro states rights," Goldstein says.

Rush Limbaugh Deems ObamaCare ‘Largest Tax Increase In The History Of The World’

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by Meenal Vamburkar
2:04 pm, June 28th, 2012

The news of the day of course is that the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 vote, upheld President Barack Obama‘s health care initiative — with much of the focus being on the individual mandate, which critics believe in unconstitutional. By contrast, the Court ruled otherwise, keeping it intact as a tax. Displeased, to say the least, Rush Limbaugh cited Obama’s previous remarks, in which he insisted it’s not a tax, and deemed the Affordable Care Act “the largest tax increase in the history of the world.”
“So ObamaCare is nothing more than the largest tax increase in the history of the world,” Limbaugh said. “And the people who were characterizing it as such were right and were telling the truth. We have the biggest tax increase in the history of the world right in the middle of one of this country’s worst recessions.”
Limbaugh then went on to note a statement Chief Justice John Roberts made in the opinion (a statement that’s also been making the rounds on Twitter). “It is not our job to protect the people from the consequences of their political choices,” Roberts said.
“Well, what about when we are deceived?” Limbaugh asked. He went on:

The court upheld a law that was not what we were told it would be. What has been upheld here is fraud, and the Internal Revenue Service has just become Barack Obama’s domestic army. That is what we face now. We were deceived. ObamaCare was a lie. It was a stealth tax on all Americans, and nobody knew it until today. Not officially. Obama told George Stephanopoulos it wasn’t a tax. And Stephanopoulos was trouble-making for trying to suggest otherwise.

Limbaugh recalled Obama saying couples making less than $250,000 a year would not see any tax increases. “That’s out the window,” he said. “It was a lie. We were all deceived.”
“What happened today is all that matters,” he added. “And what happened today is that we were bludgeoned with a tax that requires us to do as the government mandates. We must do what they say.”
Take a listen:

SCOTUSblog live blog of opinions June 28, 2012

This is the last of the live blog.  There are tons of links. Check them out.

1:22	Matt:  Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), the Republican Conference Vice Chairman, is speaking now. Presumably, Speaker Boehner will be on after.

1:24	Matt:  USA Today has a timeline of the health care bill, marking "key dates in the passage of legislation by President Obama and Democrats to overhaul the nation's health care system." http://www.usatoday.com/News/Interactives/health_care_timeline.htm

1:26	Kali:  Politico has a guide post titled, "What does the health care decision mean?" http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/77961.html

1:28	Matt:  The Speaker has begun.

1:29	Matt:  A live stream of the press conference is here: http://www.c-span.org/Live-Video/C-SPAN3/

1:30	Kali:  A bunch more posts from Bloomberg View. "Does Romney Really Want a Health Care Fight?" http://bloom.bg/M9bI6X

1:30	Kali:  "John Roberts, Traitor to the Conservative Cause?" http://bloom.bg/M9aFDX

1:30	Kali:  "Court Takes Away Medicaid Stick, But Leaves Big Carrot" http://bloom.bg/M9aRDs

1:32	Kali:  If you're just joining us, a menu of our earlier coverage is here:http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/menu-of-todays-coverage/

1:33	Matt:  Here are some of our post-decision symposium contributions:

1:34	Matt:  Randy Barnett, A weird victory for federalism http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/a-weird-victory-for-federalism/

1:34	Matt:  Richard Epstein, Taxation and regulation under the health care act http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/taxation-and-regulation-under-the-health-care-act/

1:34	Matt:  Adam Winkler, The Roberts Court is Born http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/the-roberts-court-is-born/

1:36	Matt:  Boehner: "The number one concern for families and small business people is the cost of health insurance, and the Republican health care reforms will in fact lower health care costs."

1:36	Matt:  The Speaker gave a very short statement, and he is now answering questions.

1:38	Matt:  Boehner: "The Court makes a decision on whether the law is constitutional. It doesn't mean that he law is wise It doesn't mean that the law is good for the country."

1:39	Kali:  Lyle has updated his initial post on the mandate. Read it here: http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/dont-call-it-a-mandate-its-a-tax/

1:41	Matt:  Boehner: "While I'm disappointed in their decision, they came to a decision. I respect it."

1:42	Matt:  Boehner: "What I'm concerned about is a law that's driving up the cost of health care, and making it harder for employers to hire people."

1:43	Matt:  Boehner has finished answering questions. At 2:15EST, Senate Democrats are expected to react.

1:45

Matt:  Consumer Reports President Jim Guest: "This is a victory for consumers. Health reform is alive and well and will benefit all of us. But today we are especially thinking of the seriously ill children who will continue to be able to get critical care, the young adults who can stay on their parent's insurance, and the seniors who can better afford the prescription drugs they need. For these people and the millions of Americans with pre-existing conditions, the uncertainty is over." http://news.consumerreports.org/health/2012/06/supreme-court-health-care-ruling-a-statement-from-crs-president.html (Thanks to Geoff for the link)

1:48

Matt:  Orin Kerr at Volokh: "The Chief Justice’s opinion finds an interesting middle ground in the battle of absolutes over the Affordable Care Act. Under the Chief Justice’s opinion, real economic mandates are beyond the power of Congress. Congress can’t force action where there was none. Congress can’t say you must act or else go to jail, for example. The individual mandate is constitutional because despite the name because it’s not really a mandate. Congress called it a mandate, to be sure, but in practice it’s really just a small tax." http://www.volokh.com/2012/06/28/the-mandate-survives-because-its-not-really-a-mandate/ (The page may take some time to load)

1:50	Matt:  Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales live on Fox News notes that the Court analyzed the Commerce Clause even though it didn't have to reach that issue since the Affordable Care Act was upheld as a tax.

1:52	Matt:  Full transcript of Obama's remarks from Fox News: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/06/28/transcript-obama-remarks-on-supreme-court-decision-upholding-his-health-care/

1:54	Matt:  MSNBC has videos of both Obama's and Romney's remarks. (Obama's are at the top of the page. Romney's towards the middle) http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/06/28/12459499-obama-calls-court-ruling-a-victory-for-us-as-romney-vows-repeal?lite

1:55	Kali:  CQ Press has this summary report: http://cqresearcherblog.blogspot.com/2012/06/health-care-law-upheld-in-fractured.html

1:59

Matt:  MSNBC has a poll on the decision on the question "Do you agree with this ruling?" 58%: Yes. Roberts provides a rational, nuanced decision in upholding the law. 38.5%: No. The reasoning in this decision is fractured and incorrect. 3.4% I don't know. I'll have to read the whole decision along with the concurring and dissenting opinions before I decide myself. http://nbcpolitics.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/06/28/12459343-vote-do-you-agree-with-supreme-court-ruling-on-health-care-law?lite

2:00	Matt:  That's over 130,000 people who said that the decision is either nuanced and rational or fractured and incorrect. They must be very fast readers.

2:02	Matt:  Drudge Report has a picture of Chief Justice Roberts with the headline "TAKE YOUR MEDICINE!" http://www.drudgereport.com/

2:05

Matt:  Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky): “Just because a couple people on the Supreme Court declare something to be ‘constitutional’ does not make it so. The whole thing remains unconstitutional,” the freshman lawmaker said in a statement. “While the court may have erroneously come to the conclusion that the law is allowable, it certainly does nothing to make this mandate or government takeover of our health care right.” http://www.politico.com/blogs/on-congress/2012/06/rand-paul-obamacare-is-still-unconstitutional-127574.html (Thanks to Emily for the link)

2:08	Matt:  Joe Palazzolo at the Wall Street Journal has a breakdown of the issues in the case and how the Court ruled: http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2012/06/28/health-care-ruling-a-scorecard/

2:11	Matt:  At 2:15ET, we are expecting a reaction from Senate Democrats.

2:13	Matt:  Regina Bratton at Fox News reports on Former Governor Sarah Palin's reaction. http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2012/06/28/palin-thanks-supreme-court

2:13

Matt:  Former Alaska Governor and 2008 Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin calls the Supreme Court ruling on President Obama's controversial Health Care law, "A big bleeping deal." To the high court, Governor Palin sends her gratitude. "Thank you [Supreme Court]. This ‘Obamacare' ruling fires up the troops as America's eyes are opened! Thank God," said Palin via an e-mail to this producer. "We will not retreat on this."

2:16

Matt:  Howard Fineman at Huffington Post: “Defying the expectations, Justice John Roberts -- said to be a relentless conservative activist -- joined the court's "liberal wing" in saving the law by grounding the "individual mandate" not in the power of Congress to regulate commerce, but in its taxing power.” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/howard-fineman/health-care-law-supreme-court-decision_b_1633709.html

2:17	Matt:  Thanks to everyone for sticking with us this whole time. There are still over 80,000 people following the live blog.

2:18	Matt:  Senate Democrats are coming out now to react to the decision

2:19	Matt:  Majority Leader Senator Harry Reid (D - Nev.) is speaking. Here is a live stream: http://www.c-span.org/Live-Video/C-SPAN3/

2:20	Matt:  Reid: on Republican's efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act: "It is just a show vote."

2:21	Matt:  Reid on Senator Paul's comments: "Can you believe that?"

2:22	Matt:  Senator Durbin (D - Ill) is now speaking.

2:23	Matt:  Durbin: "Offering the expansion of medicaid means that people will be paying patients going into hospitals."

2:25	Matt:  Senator Schumer (D-NY) is up now.

2:26	Matt:  Schumer: "Now that all three branches of government has ratified the law, the time for quarreling is over. The time for disputing its validity is over. Congress should now return to it's full time focus: the issue of jobs and the economy in America."

2:28	Matt:  Schumer: "This decision preserves not only the healthcare law, but the Supreme Court's position as an institution above politics."

2:28	Matt:  Schumer: "In this case at least, the Chief Justice acted as the umpire that he promised to be."

2:30	Matt:  ABC has Democratic and Republican twitter reactions. http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/supreme-court-health-care-ruling-twitter-reactions/story?id=16670554#.T-yiXfWo_5M

2:30	Kali:  Tom did a podcast with Bloomberg that you can listen to here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UmqWffYRLE&feature=youtu.be

2:31	Matt:  Senator Reid is taking questions now.

2:33

Matt:  Question: The President has said on numerous occasions that the individual mandate is not a tax. Do you think that the individual mandate, after all, is a tax? Reid: I'm not here to give everyone my limited knowledge of constitutional law. I am here to say it's been upheld. It's good for the country. It's good for my people in Nevada.

2:35	Matt:  In answer to a question on whether Republicans attempting to repeal the Affordable Care Act are wasting their time: "Yes, they should be spending that time focusing on jobs."

2:37	Matt:  Going back to the ABC report on the twitter reactions. Patrick Gaspard's (Executive Director, Democratic National Committee) is funny. @patrickgaspard

2:39	Matt:  Reid has finished taking questions. CSPAN is now showing the Tea Party Caucus's reaction which seems to have taken place immediately after the decision was announced.

2:41

Matt:  Jeff Landry (R-La.): "At the end of the day, our founders relied on one group to solve our problems. It wasn't the Supreme Court. It was 'we the people.' It's time for the people to speak up and demand that Congress repeal the law, limit this federal government, and solve the problems that have been ailing this country over the last 30 years.

2:43	Matt:  Rep Steve Scalise (R-La.): "President Obama broke his word to the American people because consistently for years now he said it was not tax. The Supreme Court confirmed today that this is a tax. A massive tax."

2:45	Matt:  Don't forget that today the Court also held it's last Conference, voting on the final cert petitions of the term. My post (sneaking in while others at the blog seem to have their heads turned) is here: http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/petitions-to-watch-conference-of-june-28-2012/

2:45	Kali:  The Brookings Institute has several experts posting their commentary: http://www.brookings.edu/research/topics/supreme-court-decision-on-affordable-care-act

2:46	Kali:  In reference to Matt's Petitions to Watch post - we do expect an order list from the Court some time soon. Although not necessarily today.

2:48	Matt:  Ethan Bronner at the New York Times: Ruling Likely to Prompt Re-evaluation of Roberts http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/28/a-re-examination-of-roberts-legacy/

2:49	Kali:  At the WaPo's The Fix, Chris Cillizza has a post titled "John Roberts, Umpire" http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/post/john-roberts-umpire/2012/06/28/gJQAx5ZM9V_blog.html?hpid=z2

2:51	Matt:  Tom Scocca at Slate: Did Roberts Save Health Care Just So He Could Gut the Commerce Clause? http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/scocca/2012/06/roberts_health_care_opinion_commerce_clause_the_real_reason_the_chief_justice_upheld_obamacare_.html

2:53

Matt:  Paul Vigna at the Wall Street Journal: "The Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision upholding the Affordable Care Act is a a positive for healthcare stocks, Deutsche Banks says, as most others seem to be concluding. But investors may not feel that way, the firm notes. That might be one reason why the sector’s down today, even though a big cloud of uncertainty’s been lifted." http://blogs.wsj.com/marketbeat/2012/06/28/health-care-ruling-a-positive-but-investors-may-not-feel-that-way/

2:55	Matt:  Jon Bardin at the LA Times discusses how Medical groups are reacting to the ruling. http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-medical-groups-react-to-supreme-court-healthcare-ruling-20120628,0,1676584.story

2:55

Matt:  Here is one: California Medical Assn: “While the ACA provides insurance coverage for millions of previously uninsured Californians, it does not guarantee that these newly insured patients will have access to doctors because the Medicare and Medicaid programs were left grossly underfunded. CMA was also strongly opposed to the ACA’s creation of an unaccountable Independent Medicare Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), which will mandate arbitrary spending cuts, force more physicians out of the program, and limit seniors’ treatment options.”

2:59	Matt:  For those asking for links to the opinions again: The Health Care decision is here: http://www2.bloomberglaw.com/public/document/Natl_Federation_of_Independent_Business_v_Sebelius_No_11393_US_Ju Alternate Link: http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/11pdf/11-393c3a2.pdf

2:59	Matt:  Alvarez: http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/11pdf/11-210d4e9.pdf

2:59	Matt:  Edwards: http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/11pdf/10-7081b2d.pdf (one sentence dismissing the case)

3:04	Matt:  At 4:00, we will post a link to our webcast with Kaiser Health News.

3:06	Matt:  New York Times' Room for Debate asks "What's Next for Health Care?" Contributing are: David Firestone, Michael Cannon, Maggie Mahar, Robert Reich, and Grace-Marie Turner http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/06/28/whats-next-for-health-care/

3:09	Matt:  Liz Halloran at NPR has highlights of the reaction from legal scholars. http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2012/06/28/155919089/legal-scholars-react-many-people-were-stunned

3:10	Matt:  Erwin Chemerinsky: "The Supreme Court's decision does not change the law in the way that striking down the law would have. Since 1937, not one federal taxing or spending program has been declared unconstitutional. Today's decision follows from that.

3:11

Matt:  Richard Garnett: For people like me, interested in Federalism and judicial review of federal power, the decision had a lot of emphasis of how the Commerce Clause does have limits. The Medicaid expansion decision puts teeth into the notion that the federal government can't coerce states. At the end of the day, the act is upheld, and that's a win for the administration. But there was strong emphasis from Chief Justice Roberts on the continuing importance of Federalism, the continuing importance of judicial review.

3:12	Matt:  Ilya Shapiro: "Nobody expected this on either side. It's a baby-splitting ruling that rewrites the ACA in order to save it. Roberts rewrote the legislation in order to save it."

3:13	Matt:  For more on what these professors have to say: http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2012/06/28/155919089/legal-scholars-react-many-people-were-stunned

3:14

Kali:  Alan Morrison has a post for us on the Anti-Injunction Act. He writes, "I continue to be unpersuaded by the Court’s conclusion that the ACA’s label on the amount payable for not purchasing health insurance as a penalty should have near-conclusive significance. It was quite clear from oral argument that no one on the Court was interested in the AIA argument; the only question was how it would get there." http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/agreeing-on-one-thing-the-anti-injunction-act-does-not-apply/

3:17	Matt:  You can access all of our posts analyzing the decision here: http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/menu-of-todays-coverage/

3:17	Matt:  Our post-decision symposium contributions can be found here: http://www.scotusblog.com/category/special-features/post-decision-health-care-symposium/

3:18	Kali:  George Will at the Washington Post has an opinion piece titled, "Conservatives consolation prize"http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/george-will-supreme-court-gives-conservatives-a-consolation-prize/2012/06/28/gJQAWyhY9V_story.html

3:21	Matt:  Richard Samp at the Washington Law Foundation: Today’s First Amendment SCOTUS Ruling Has Hidden Gems for Commercial Speakers. http://wlflegalpulse.com/2012/06/28/todays-first-amendment-scotus-ruling-has-hidden-gems-for-commercial-speakers/ (thanks to Glenn for the link)

3:21	Kali:  Tom and Lyle will be on Kaiser Health News at 4, as we mentioned earlier. You can access that webcast at this address at 4:00 http://www.scotusblog.com/flash-player/

3:24	Matt:  Darren Samuelsohn from Politico on Justice Ginsburg's comments from the bench earlier today. http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/77953.html

3:24	Matt:  That link was about Justice Kennedy's comments. This one is for Ginsberg: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0612/77958.html

3:28	Matt:  Greg Sargent at the Washington Post writes: "Broccoli Tyranny lives!" http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/broccoli-tyranny-lives/2012/06/28/gJQAwxRQ9V_blog.html

3:30	Kali:  The ABA Journal has this minute by minute account of what was happening INSIDE the Courtroom http://www.abajournal.com/news/article/scotus_notebook_minute-by-minute_inside_courtroom/

3:33	Matt:  Michael Grunwald at Time: Obama’s Big Health Care Win: An Incredible Stroke of Luck http://swampland.time.com/2012/06/28/obamas-big-health-care-win-an-incredible-stroke-of-luck/#ixzz1z7O7cxT8

3:34

Matt:  Jeremy A. Lazarus, MD President, American Medical Association: “This decision protects important improvements, such as ending coverage denials due to pre-existing conditions and lifetime caps on insurance, and allowing the 2.5 million young adults up to age 26 who gained coverage under the law to stay on their parents' health insurance policies. The expanded health care coverage upheld by the Supreme Court will allow patients to see their doctors earlier rather than waiting for treatment until they are sicker and care is more expensive." http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/news/news/2012-06-28-supreme-court-health-care-reform-decision.page

3:40	Matt:  Fox News Live: Obama had quisical look when there were conflicting reports regarding whether the mandate was struck down. Then his top lawyer came in, gave him two thumbs up and said, "It survives." Obama then hugged the lawyer and celebrated with his chief of staff.

3:43

Matt:  Jon Kamp at the Wall Street Journal with more how the market is reacting: "Thursday's historic Supreme Court ruling upholding the U.S. health-care overhaul law sent stocks throughout the health-care sector in different directions by maintaining the promise of more people seeking services, but also new costs and other big changes" http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303561504577494571634425272.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_LEFTTopStories

3:44	Kali:  Larry Tribe has commentary up on our blog now. http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/chief-justice-roberts-comes-into-his-own-and-saves-the-court-while-preventing-a-constitutional-debacle/

3:47	Matt:  Stay here at SCOTUSblog. At 4:00ET you will be able to see our webcast with Kaiser Health News here: http://www.scotusblog.com/flash-player/

3:49	Kali:  The Boston Review has an interview with Pam Karlan here: http://www.bostonreview.net/BR37.4/pamela_s_karlan_supreme_court_obamacare_ruling.php

3:51

Matt:  Brad Heath from USA Today on Paul Clement's reaction: Paul Clement, the former Bush administration lawyer who argued most of the challenge before the justices, said Thursday that "it would be hard to think of a case where more of the arguments we made were accepted by the court" even though he lost. He said the court's 7-2 decision to limit the penalties states could face for opting out of a Medicaid expansion was "really quite significant." http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/story/2012-06-28/health-care-legal-implications/55895252/1

3:54	Matt:  To round up on all of SCOTUSblog's coverage so far:

3:55	Matt:  Amy’s report on the mandate “In Plain English” is here: http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/the-mandate-is-constitutional-in-plain-english/

3:55	Matt:  Kevin’s report on the Medicaid portion of the decision is here: http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/court-holds-that-states-have-choice-whether-to-join-medicaid-expansion/

3:55	Matt:  With a supplement here: http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/medicare-holding-may-have-broad-implications/

3:56	Matt:  Tejinder’s report on the Anti-Injunction Act portion of the decision is here: http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/sometimes-labels-matter-why-the-anti-injunction-act-didnt-preclude-judicial-consideration-of-the-individual-mandate/

3:57	Matt:  A podcast of Tom talking with Spencer Mazyck of Bloomberg is here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UmqWffYRLE&feature=youtu.be

3:57	Matt:  Then we have all of our contributions for our Post-Decision Health Care Symposium

3:57	Matt:  Adam Winkler, The Roberts Court is Born http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/the-roberts-court-is-born/

3:57	Kali:  Adam Chandler, SCOTUSblog alum, has this post, "Health Care Back Story up for Grabs" http://justenrichment.com/2012/06/28/the-health-care-back-story-up-for-grabs/

3:58	Matt:  Richard A. Epstein, Taxation and regulation under the health care Act http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/taxation-and-regulation-under-the-health-care-act/

3:58	Matt:  Randy Barnett, A weird victory for federalism http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/a-weird-victory-for-federalism/

3:58	Matt:  Alan Morrison, Agreeing on one thing: The Anti-Injunction Act does not apply http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/agreeing-on-one-thing-the-anti-injunction-act-does-not-apply/

3:59	Matt:  Laurence Tribe, Chief Justice Roberts comes into his own and saves the Court while preventing a constitutional debacle http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/chief-justice-roberts-comes-into-his-own-and-saves-the-court-while-preventing-a-constitutional-debacle/

3:59	Matt:  The "Petitions to Watch" for today's conference is here: http://www.scotusblog.com/2012/06/petitions-to-watch-conference-of-june-28-2012/ We expect orders from this conference soon (possibly tomorrow)

3:59	Kali:  We will have more symposium contributions in the coming days so please come back.

3:59

Kali:  Thanks so much for joining us throughout the day for this Live Blog sponsored by Bloomberg Law. We are shutting down the Live Blog now but will have more coverage -- including additional symposium contributions and a recap of the whole decision in Plain English -- on the main blog. We hope you enjoyed today as much as we did.