Does Obama WANT to lose the ACA case?

[MoonRiver]

Exhibit A: He went out of his way to ask for SCOTUS to hear the case. It probably would have dragged on past the 2012 election otherwise.
Exhibit B: His counsel seems unprepared and overwhelmed, according to the pundits. This despite him being a well respected attorney, having had lots of time to prepare for the hearing.

I don't exactly know WHY he would want to lose, but maybe in an attempt to force Congress to pass a single payer plan. I have my doubts though whether this would ever happen. Ugh.

[Cali_Democrat]

1. No.

[1StrongBlackMan]

3. A double NO.

Pundits ... saying ill-prepared? I think they're hearing what they want to hear. Controversy sells air-time.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

2. No.

[savalez]

4. It's a horse race for the media.

Yesterday the mandate may have won, today it may have lost. Stay tuned! Preferably to our station.

[Cleita]

5. His stance seems peculiar in a way.

Maybe he is playing chess, but to me it seems more like high stakes poker if this is his plan to get us to Medicare for all.

[savalez]

8. Good thinking.

If the ACA survives but the mandate doesn't there will be an urgency to fix what the SCOTUS broke. We'll need another solution to do what the mandate was designed to do.

[MoonRiver]

9. If this is his plan I REALLY hope and pray he is successful.

But seriously, how is this going to happen with Rethugs controlling the House (maybe they won't next year, but we can't count on that) and having a strong minority in the Senate?

[Cleita]

11. Maybe there was a reason that a lot of this plan wasn't

scheduled to kick in until 2014. Maybe they knew there would be major legal actions from the health insurance and PhRMA industry puppets. So could give them the room to change things after we get a new Congress? Could this have been the plan?

[MoonRiver]

13. I don't know. The whole thing is bizarre.

[elleng]

6. No, don't listen to pundits, listen to Argument,

on C-Span radio now.

[SpencerShay]

7. It doesn't matter because:

A right-wing Congress that is "brought and paid for," by the insurance companies is not going to pass a single-payer healthcare law. Period. I don't understand why some people can't get this simple FACT through their thick skulls.

[karynnj]

10. I seriously doubt it was the thought that the current (or the 2013) Congress

would pass single payer.

To use your excellent style:
Exhibit 1: Bernie Sanders said of the 2009 Senate that there were only about 10 Senators for single payer. One of them, John Kerry, when confronted by a single payer advocate asking why they weren't fighting for it, answered because the votes were not there. Asked if they could be there with a strong enough effort, the answer was there were too many people against it on an ideological basis.

Exhibit 2: Nearly all Congressional Democrats voted for the Ryan budget that would take Medicare and, over time, convert it from single payer to a voucher system.

Given the above, I really do not see anyway that Congress would move to single payer if the healthcare reform is thrown out. The only thing I could imagine is that the Ryan plan be extended to all, giving any subsidies that anyone would have under ACA as a voucher. (I do NOT state this as a positive development. It would keep the private system, with no provision to cap costs and, even for those entitled to Medicare, there might be no insurance that the vouchers that pay enough of the cost to be affordable.)

I don't think Obama wants to lose the case and, as are as discouraged to hear the comments as you appear to be. Given Bush vs Gore and Citizens united, I really wonder if the court itself is too ideological. (I really think in retrospect that Democrats, who voted for the clearly not fit Thomas (or who cut off the hearings) or who did not really work hard to filibuster Alito may regret their actions.

[kudzu22]

12. I've heard the same thing

The theory is that if ACA is struck down, it will deenergize the Tea Party/GOP and be better for democrats to be reelected. I can't believe the administration would be willing to abandon its landmark legislation, considering how much effort went into passing it.

[a kennedy]

14. His counsel seems unprepared and overwhelmed, according to the pundits.

Screw the pundits. I'm listening to it on C-SPAN 3 and he's doing a good job.....I don't care what the pundits say, I'll wait for the results in June or so, thank you.

[robinlynne]

15. no.