Two years after liberal U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown voted for President Barack Obama’s massive healthcare bill, the Supreme Court ruled the individual mandate is a tax.
Democrats including White House Chief Staff Jacob Lew and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi were quick to praise the ruling, yet they’re claiming the individual mandate is not a tax.
CHRIS WALLACE: “But according to the Supreme Court, this is going to raise taxes for those families.”
WHITE HOUSE COS JACOB LEW: “No, that’s not what the Supreme Court said. What the Supreme Court said was this was constitutional, they said it didn’t matter what Congress called it. There’s a penalty for the one percent who choose not to buy insurance.”
CHRIS WALLACE: “No, wait a minute sir. Mr. Lew, they called it a tax.”
“Ohioans deserve a simple answer to a simple question – does Sherrod Brown believe ObamaCare is an unconstitutional mandate or does he agree that it’s a massive tax on the middle class,” said National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) spokesman Jahan Wilcox. “The fact is Brown supported ObamaCare – which taxes every Ohioan who does not comply with this law – instead of focusing on pro-growth, pro-jobs legislation.”
BACKGROUND …
SHERROD BROWN SUPPORTED OBAMACARE & THE INDIVIDUAL MANDATE
Brown Voted To Pass The Senate Version Of The $2.5 Trillion Obama-Reid Health Care Bill. (H.R. 3590, CQ Vote #396: Passed 60-39: R 0-39; D 58-0; I 2-0, 12/24/09, Brown Voted Yea)
Brown Voted To Kill An Amendment That Would Have Removed The Individual Mandate From The Health Care Bill. “Baucus, D-Mont., motion to table (kill) the Ensign, R-Nev. amendment no. 3710 that would repeal provisions of the 2010 health care overhaul law that provide for IRS penalties for certain taxpayers that do not obtain basic health insurance coverage.” (H.R. 4872, CQ Vote #101: Motion agreed to 58-40: R 0-40; D 56-0; I 2-0, 3/25/10, Brown Voted Yea)
WHICH THE SUPREME COURT HAS DECLARED AS A TAX ON MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE: At least 75% of individual mandate penalties fall on those making less than $250,000. (“Estimated Distribution Of Individual Mandate Penalties Under The Patient Protection And Affordable Care Act,” Congressional Budget Office & Joint Committee On Taxation, 11/20/09)
· SUPREME COURT: “…the shared responsibility payment may for constitutional purposes be considered a tax… read as imposing a tax on those who go without insurance.” (Supreme Court Of The United States Syllabus, National Federation Of Independent Business Et Al. V. Sebelius, Secretary Of Health And Human Services, Et Al., 6/28/12)
