Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen Wants to File Suit Against ObamaCare

Since the passage of President Obama’s landmark health care legislation one week ago, Attorneys General from across the United States have been filing lawsuits in an attempt to take the legislation to the United States Supreme Court.  Thus far, thirteen states have filed suit, and many others will likely follow soon.  The state of Florida was the first to file suit, and others (including left-leaning states such as Washington) quickly followed.  Now, Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen is working with his Justice Department attorneys to build a case.  It is important to note that this is not a unilateral decision on Van Hollen’s part.  Rather, it requires a majority vote in at least one house of the state legislature.  Currently, the Democrats have a razor thin majority in the Wisconsin Senate.  Republicans need the support of just two Democratic State Senators to bring this lawsuit forward.  Republicans believe they will receive Democratic support from Jim Holperin (D-Conover), one of the most conservative districts of the state, and Jim Sullivan (D-Wauwatosa), another conservative stronghold.  The next week and a half will be an important time for the state legislature, as both parties will attempt to muster votes for and against this lawsuit. 

On what legal basis is the state of Wisconsin trying to sue the federal government?  Van Hollen, like many Attorneys General, believes that the provision requiring individuals without health care to purchase the government-sponsored program before the year 2015 oversteps the authority of the federal government to “regulate” interstate commerce.  Moreover, Van Hollen argues that the president’s health care bill is a gross violation of states’ rights and individual liberty.  It is likely that Senate Republicans will be successful in persuading both Senators Holperin and Sullivan to support this lawsuit.  Expect Wisconsin to have the votes necessary to bring this lawsuit forward by the end of the week.  If you have not already done so, contact your State Senator and remind him or her that this issue is no mere contest of partisanship but a vital, structural challenge to the viability of federalism itself.