Tuesday, March 27, 2012

The Chief

No details yet, but Roberts was also apparently quite skeptical of Congress's authority to impose the mandate in his questioning of the SG. Again, there are reasons for the Chief to ask tough questions of both sides. So we should have a better sense of where he stands after Clement and Carvin have sat down. Needless to say, if he (along with Kennedy) appears hostile to the Government, it may well be time to start thinking about severability.

UPDATE: Here is a significant quote, courtesy of USA Today:
The court’s conservatives peppered Verilli with questions about whether Congress could also force Americans to buy broccoli, burial insurance, or cellular phones as part of commercial regulations down the road. Verilli said lawmakers couldn’t do that, but the justices seemed unconvinced. “Once you’re into interstate commerce and can regulate it, pretty much all bets are off,” Chief Justice John Roberts said.