Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
High Court Face-Off: Today's Arguments A Rematch For Attorneys Arguing The Case
One attorney is known for his measured, authoritative approach, the other for a brash, confrontational style. And when the Affordable Care Act brings both of them back before the Supreme Court on Wednesday, these differences may be on display as much as their legal points. In what鈥檚 arguably the most important case of the court鈥檚 term, Michael Carvin will argue for plaintiffs seeking to upend a fundamental aspect of Obamacare, and Solicitor General Donald Verrilli Jr. will again defend the government. Both are hailed as brilliant litigators steeped in case law, and their first round in 2012 concluded with each man able to claim a victory of sorts. (Wheaton, 3/3)
Washington lawyer Michael A. Carvin will be back at the Supreme Court on Wednesday for the second great battle over the Affordable Care Act, once again facing off against a familiar adversary in Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli Jr. With hardly a trace of deadpan, Carvin said it would be wrong to characterize the case as a rare second chance to bring down President Obama鈥檚 health-care law. 鈥淢e, personally?鈥 he said. 鈥淚鈥檓 a libertarian. I鈥檇 get rid of three-quarters of the U.S. Code if I could.鈥 But he added, 鈥淭he ACA is the law of the land. We want it to be implemented the way Congress intended for it to be.鈥 (Barnes, 3/3)
Three years ago this month, Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli Jr. stood before the Supreme Court to defend President Obama鈥檚 health care law against a constitutional challenge that threatened to destroy its central provision. His oral argument drew harsh reviews, but in the end he managed to persuade five justices to accept his backup argument, saving the law. Mr. Verrilli will return to the lectern on Wednesday morning to defend the law once again, and he has reason to be nervous. (Liptak, 3/4)
Attorney Michael Carvin on Wednesday will for the second time argue against the health-care law at the Supreme Court, hoping to do what opponents couldn鈥檛 do in 2012: cripple President Barack Obama 鈥檚 signature domestic achievement. Challengers to the law fell one vote short three years ago when Chief Justice John Roberts stunned fellow conservatives with a vote to uphold most of the Affordable Care Act. This time, Mr. Carvin says things should go more smoothly. (Bravin, 4/3)
In March 2012, a blunt-talking and rumpled lawyer named Michael A. Carvin told Supreme Court justices that President Obama鈥檚 health care law was an unconstitutional attempt to 鈥渞egulate every activity from cradle to grave.鈥 He lost that case 鈥 and has never quite gotten over it. (Stolberg, 3/4)
The case that comes before the Supreme Court on Wednesday with the potential to unravel President Obama's landmark healthcare law began in a conference room at the American Enterprise Institute, a few blocks from the White House and the K Street corridor. It was December 2010, and voters had recently elected a new crop of Republicans, many of whom had ridden to victory on their objections to Obamacare. GOP attorneys general in several states, along with a major business group, had headed to court in Florida, arguing the entire law was unconstitutional. (Savage, 3/3)