April 27

Unlawful
Healthca 201
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Jonathan S. Burton

In defense
[This specific healthcare issue isn’t an issue at all if of the
you judge it according to the law of the land, which
will ultimately decide whether this law is plausible or Constitution
not.] and it’s
principles.
 Burton 2

Jonathan Burton

Prof. Nathaniel Ferry

Composition II

26 April 2010

Introduction

The discussion of healthcare is always going to be controversial, no matter what

generation you are apart of. People will argue for the benefits of a universal healthcare

system and people will rebuttal; just like every topic of society. This specific healthcare

issue isn’t an issue at all if you judge it according to the law of the land, which will

ultimately decide whether this law is plausible or not. Here in the United States, the law

of the land is the U.S. Constitution. The Constitution’s purpose was to limit the federal

government’s powers to defending the liberties of the people… and that’s it. Within the

Constitution it delegates the powers of the Congress (House of Representatives &

Senate), the Executive branch (the president), and the judicial (a supreme Court).

The Founding Fathers realized the importance of the power the people had, so

they intentionally created the Congress to have the most power in Checks & Balances

system, because they were the most closely related to the people. This form of

government, a representative system, as described in the Constitution, is called a

Republican form of government.

“Section 4. The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a

Republican Form of Government.” –Article IV, Section 4 (U.S. Constitution)

In today’s society, we have a twisted view of what the Constitution holds in store for us.

They have created a stew of lies, which gives the president this over-reaching power to
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declare war, use signing statements and write executive orders to get his agenda through;

this completely bypasses the checks and balances system and the check the Congress has

on the president. This creates the precedent for a tyrannical, despotic system. When

reading the Constitution, there is no room for interpretation, because interpretation breeds

the opportunity for manipulation.

With this precedent of interpretation, the federal government truly believes it has

the power to provide healthcare. With the guise of providing an option apart from paying

a price gouging insurance agency, the government’s promise is a “free” healthcare option

that will not only destroy the Middle Class American, but it will further destroy the

posterity of the American people.

The other discussions of why we need this healthcare bill should be held at a

stand-still until the bill is scrutinized according to the supreme law of the land, the

Constitution. Once the bill has been deemed constitutional or unconstitutional, in other

words legal or illegal, then we can discuss why it would be good or bad; distinctively the

latter. This is because if it is illegal, then it cannot be passed anyway.

Unconstitutional Healthcare

H.R. 3590, The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and the partnering

H.R. 4872, Reconciliation Act of 2010, are jam packed with unconstitutional legislation

and tax hikes that will further cripple the American people’s liberties and freedoms.

According to Bloomberg News, an analysis by the nonpartisan Joint Committee

on Taxation reveals that this bill will generate $409.2 billion in additional taxes by 2019;

nothing like stealing more money from the people to “benefit” the people. Also, the

Congressional Budget Office reported that the bill will also levies $69 billion more in
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penalties for those who do not meet the mandates to buy insurance. It’s a good thing that

we can all count on our loving government to collect on us if we don’t obey the

illegitimate law.

The Journal of Accountancy narrows down some of the tax increases and penalty

fees hidden within The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Reconciliation

Act—the most concerning include:

• Excise Tax on Uninsured Individuals – Individuals who cannot

maintain a minimum essential coverage will be fined a penalty of $750.

The fee for an uninsured individual under the age of 18 is one-half of the

adult fee.

• Excise Tax on High-Cost Employer Plans – The federal government

would inflict a 40% tax on the value of the employer sponsored health

coverage that exceeds certain criteria. Those levels are anticipated to be

$8,500 for an individual and $23,000 for any other level by 2013. This

excise was announced with excitement by the White House in January

and still remains in the final version of the bill.

• Increase in additional tax on distributions from Health Savings

Accounts and Archer Medical Savings Accounts not used for

qualified medical expenses – There is an increase from 10% to 20% on

taxes of money in a health savings account not used for qualified medical

expenses. For Archer medical savings accounts, an increase from 15% to

20%.

Business Insider also explains that there is a “tax on individuals without acceptable health
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care coverage.” They state, “A 2.5% income tax on individuals who do not have health

care coverage, limited to a cost less than the average national health care premium.”

INvestors Business Daily wrote a piece titled “20 Ways ObamaCare Will Take

Away Our Freedoms,” which highlights just a few more unconstitutional taxes:

• Taxes on Employers – “If you are a large employer (defined as at least 101

employees) and you do not want to provide health insurance to your employee,

then you will pay a $750 fine per employee (It could be $2,000 to $3,000 under

the reconciliation changes) (Section 1513).”

• Taxes Pharmaceutical Companies – “The government will extract a fee of $2.3

billion annually from the pharmaceutical industry (Section 9008 (b)).”

• Taxes on medical device manufacturers – “The government will extract a fee

of $2 billion annually from medical device makers (Section 1405).”

These taxes, along with a plethora of others, are insidious and are outright

unconstitutional. As a candidate for the presidency, Barack Obama had one main

message for the middle class American: “I won’t raise your taxes.”

Not only is the bill packed with a myriad of taxes and regulations, but those who

will come and collect on any penalty will be a part of the new 16,500 IRS agents who are

“combat trained” with shotguns. These agents will be scrutinizing American’s income tax

returns and they will be ready to pounce on anyone for trying to avoid the mandatory

government health care.

Remember when Obama said he wanted a “national security force”? This is not

the National Guard that has sworn to uphold the Constitution. This is a civilian national

security force. On July 2, 2008 in a speech in Colorado Springs, Barack Obama called for

an addition to the United States’ already growing police state. Obama got his private
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army, and no one even noticed it in the Senate revisions to the health care bill:

Subtitle C–Increasing the Supply of the Health Care Workforce

Sec. 5207. Funding for National Health Service Corps.

Sec. 5210. Establishing a Ready Reserve Corps.

Subtitle D–Enhancing Health Care Workforce Education and Training

See the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, page 1,312:

SEC. 5210. ESTABLISHING A READY RESERVE CORPS.

Section 203 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 204) is amended to read as

follows:

SEC. 203. COMMISSIONED CORPS AND READY RESERVE CORPS.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT–

(1) IN GENERAL.–here shall be in the Service a commissioned Regular Corps and a

Ready Reserve Corps for service in time of national emergency.

(2) REQUIREMENT.–All commissioned officers shall be citizens of the United States and

shall be appointed without regard to the civil-service laws and compensated without

regard to the Classification Act 2 of 1923, as amended.

(3) APPOINTMENT.–Commissioned officers of the Ready Reserve Corps shall be

appointed by the President and commissioned officers of the Regular Corps shall be

appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate.

(4) ACTIVE DUTY.–Commissioned officers of the Ready Reserve Corps shall at all

times be subject to call to active duty by the Surgeon General, including active duty for

the purpose of training.

(5) WARRANT OFFICERS.–Warrant officers may be appointed to the Service for the
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purpose of providing support to the health and delivery systems maintained by the

Service and any warrant officer appointed to the Service shall be considered for

purposes of this Act and title 37, United States Code, to be a commissioned officer within

the Commissioned Corps of the Service.

(b) ASSIMILATING RESERVE CORP OFFICERS INTO THE REGULAR CORPS.—

Effective on the date of enactment of the Affordable Health Choices Act, all individuals

classified as officers in the Reserve Corps under this section (as such section existed on

the day before the date of enactment of such Act) and serving on active duty shall be

deemed to be commissioned officers of the Regular Corps.

[Note here that those personally appointed by BO -- without advice and consent of the

Senate -- automatically become a part of the Regular Corps. Ed.]

(c) PURPOSE AND USE OF READY RESERVE.–

(1) PURPOSE.–The purpose of the Ready Reserve Corps is to fulfill the need to have

additional Commissioned Corps personnel available on short notice (similar to the

uniformed service’s reserve program) to assist regular Commissioned Corps personnel

to meet both routine public health and emergency response missions.

(2) USES.–The Ready Reserve Corps shall–

(A) participate in routine training to meet the general and specific needs of the

Commissioned Corps;

(B) be available and ready for involuntary calls to active duty during national

emergencies and public health crises, similar to the uniformed service reserve personnel;

(C) be available for backfilling critical positions left vacant during deployment of active

duty Commissioned Corps members, as well as for deployment to respond to public

health emergencies, both foreign and domestic; and

(D) be available for service assignment in isolated, hardship, and medically underserved
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communities (as defined in section 399SS) to improve access to health services.

(d) FUNDING.—For the purpose of carrying out the duties and responsibilities of the

Commissioned Corps under this section, there are authorized to be appropriated such

sums as may be necessary to the Office of the Surgeon General for each of fiscal years

2010 through 2014. Funds appropriated under this subsection shall be used for

recruitment and training of Commissioned Corps Officers.

Senators Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) both proposed an

outline for immigration reform. The leading idea from their agenda is a national,

biometric identification card for all workers, citizens and immigrants. Schumer said, “We

would require all U.S. citizens and legal immigrants who want jobs to obtain a high-tech,

fraud-proof Social Security card. Each card's unique biometric identifier would be stored

only on the card; no government database would house everyone's information. The cards

would not contain any private information, medical information or tracking devices. The

card would be a high-tech version of the Social Security card that citizens already have.”

To believe Schumer’s words “no government database would house everyone’s

information,” would be asinine. There is already a database of citizen’s Social Security,

so what would stop them from adding to that a digital, more traceable, mechanism. This

is complete negligence of the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution, which states, “The

right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects,” which

protects every American’s right to privacy.

Passage

Why did so many senators and congressman switch their votes in dire

circumstances? The most notable of these is Ben Nelson (D-NE). “Ben Nelson didn’t

come cheap,” writes Jim Vicevich, “In addition to the abortion restrictions he wanted, he
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also got a very nice pay out to his state of Nebraska: the feds will pay 100% of its

Medicaid costs, forever. The bill raises eligibility for Medicaid, so that’s been a big deal

for opponents and governors complaining about unfunded mandates. Senate Majority

Leader Harry insisted federally funded Medicaid for Nebraska forever was just a small

part of it all for Nelson, and he said there were also deals cut to try to win a few

Republicans.”

Democratic Congressman Dennis Kucinich has opposed this bill since the

beginning. In just moments, he flips his vote. The deciding factor: a ride on Air Force

One with President Obama. Kucinich voiced his opposition to the bill saying it was “a

giveaway to the insurance industry.” On MSNBC’s Countdown, Kucinich said that even

if he had the final deciding vote, he would oppose it, effectively signing its death warrant.

In a recent column he wrote for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, he said:

“I have doubts about the bill,” Kucinich said. “This is not the bill I

wanted to support… However, after careful discussions with President

Obama, Speaker Pelosi, my wife Elizabeth and close friends, I’ve decided

to cast a vote in favor of the legislation.”

These are examples of Commandeering. According to the Merriam-Webster

Dictionary, to “Commandeer”: is a) to compel to perform military service, b) to seize for

military purposes, or c) to take arbitrary or forcible possession of; in this case, it

happened between the federal government and the States. The supreme Court has ruled

that “forced participation” or “commandeering” is unconstitutional in the case New York

v. United States, 505 U.S. 144 (1992). In this case, it challenged a portion of the Low-

Level Radioactive Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1985. The act provided three
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incentives for states to comply with statutory obligations to provide for the disposal of

low-level radioactive waste. The first two incentives were monetary. The third, which

was challenged in the case, obliged states to take title to any waste within their borders

that was not disposed of prior to January 1, 1996, and made each state liable for all

damages directly related to the waste. The Court, in a 6–3 decision, ruled that the

imposition of that obligation on the states violated the Tenth Amendment. Justice

O’Connor wrote that the federal government can encourage the states to adopt certain

regulations through the spending power (i.e., by attaching conditions to the receipt of

federal funds, see South Dakota v. Dole), or through the commerce power (by directly

pre-empting state law). However, Congress cannot directly compel states to enforce

federal regulations.

In an interview with Newsmax, Judge Andrew Napolitano said, “The Constitution

does not authorize the Congress to regulate the state governments.” He continued:

“Nevertheless, in this piece of legislation, the Congress has told the state

governments that they must modify their regulation of certain areas of

healthcare, they must surrender their regulation of other areas of

healthcare, and they must spend state taxpayer-generated dollars in a way

that the Congress wants it done. That's called commandeering the

legislature. That's the Congress taking away the discretion of the

legislature with respect to regulation, and spending taxpayer dollars.

That's prohibited in a couple of Supreme Court cases. So on that

argument, the attorneys general have a pretty strong case and I think they

will prevail.”
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USURPTION OF POWER

The current state of the Republic is indoctrinated in the idea that the president sits

at the top of the pyramid made by Congress, a supreme Court and the president himself.

When the Founding Fathers gathered to create the law of the land, they originally drafted

the Articles of Confederation. The Articles made the Congress the most powerful of the

three branches of government for one reason: the Congress is the most closely related to

the people. When the Founders scraped the Articles and drafted the Constitution, they

still declared the Congress the most powerful, but with the addition of the Checks and

Balance system. This provides that no branch can grab too much power.

In the Constitution, Article I, Section 8 delegates the powers granted to the

Congress, none of which institute the power to regulate or provide healthcare. In Article

II, Sections 2 and 3 give the president his duties and responsibilities, and here we see

there is no duty or responsibility, at all, to meddle with healthcare. Article III creates the

judicial Power of the United States, vested in one supreme Court. This supreme Court

must use its power to scrutinize each case it receives under the Constitution. This means

judging laws to make sure they abide by the Constitution, and if need be, rule them

unconstitutional if they violate any one part of it. For example, let’s hold the Patient

Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Reconciliation Act next to the U.S.

Constitution. What happens next is the intense dissection of the provisions of each bill

and see if either of them are worthy of being considered constitutional. So far, nothing in

each of these bills are constitutional. If anything, they violate several of the Bill of

Rights; most notably it violates the 10th Amendment.

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ETHICS & MORALITY

When discussing the ethical and moral point of view one has on these bills, it

must be taken into consideration what ethical framework their morals are based upon.

One of the most debated frameworks in ethical studies is Divine Command. Within the

Divine Command framework, you must identify to whom or what is that person or group

of persons subject to. For example:

It is not OK for Christians to steal according to Divine Command. Who

are Christians subject to? They are followers of God. God’s Law, the Ten

Commandments, says “Do Not Steal.” So a Christian’s ethical stand on

the issue of stealing says it is not OK.

Now that there is a basis for this discussion, let’s apply this current debacle on

healthcare. Based on the framework of Divine Command, the Congress is subjected to

whom or what? The United States Constitution. When congressman get elected into

office, they swear (upon oath) to uphold the Constitution. This is because the

Constitution gives them their powers to begin with. As required by Article VI of the

Constitution, Members of Congress are bound by oath or affirmation to support and

uphold the Constitution. Here is the oath of office:

"I, (name of Member), do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support

and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies,

foreign or domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same;

that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or

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purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties

of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God."

So, in fact, the Congress’ moral and ethical compass is the U.S. Constitution. They must,

in every single case, defend the Constitution and throw out any considered law that

doesn’t abide by the provisions held within the Constitution.

What about for the good of the whole population? What about those Americans

without health insurance? According to the Census Bureau in September 2009, there are

46.3 million Americans that do not have health insurance. The Utilitarian ethical

framework is not feasible in this situation. Merriam-Webster defines Utilitarianism as “a

doctrine that the useful is the good and that the determining consideration of right

conduct should be the usefulness of its consequences; specifically: a theory that the aim

of action should be the largest possible balance of pleasure over pain or the greatest

happiness of the greatest number.” The discussion of these bills and providing “free” care

to everyone who does not already have it, at the expense of the taxpayer needs to stop.

What people don’t understand is that there is no benefit for the majority. Every individual

must pay a $750 fine ($375 if you’re under 18) if they cannot afford to buy the $15,000

government option.

CONCLUSION

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Reconciliation Act of

2010 are both unconstitutional and unethical. These pieces of legislation are not only

drenched in socialist/Marxist provisions but they violate the human rights outlined by the

Founding Fathers in the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. Fidel Castro’s

approval of Obamacare just adds to how mind-boggling Communist these bills are. There
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is no way our Founding Fathers would approve of this. We now know that they are

rolling in their graves over how far our Republic has fallen. This is where freedom and

liberty stand tall or this is where freedom and liberty die. The power in this constitutional

Republic lies with ‘We the People.’ If the People do not stand up, liberty dies and the

Military-Industrial Complex will continue to tread upon the personal liberties of every

citizen. The time to stand up is now. The continual power grabs of the federal

government are through. It is now time for liberty to prevail.

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Works Cited

Associated Press. "Census Bureau: Number of Americans without Health Insurance Rises to 46.3

Million." New York News, Traffic, Sports, Weather, Photos, Entertainment, and Gossip -

NY Daily News. 10 Sept. 2009. Web. 17 Apr. 2010.

<http://www.nydailynews.com/money/personal_finance/2009/09/10/2009-09-

10_number_of_americans_without_health_insurance_rises_to_463m.html>.

Donmoyer, Ryan J. "New Health-Care Taxes Help Obama ?Spread the Wealth? (Update1)."

Bloomberg.com. 22 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Apr. 2010.

<http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ake7tOWwUT6E>.

Esguerra, Richard. "Senators Unveil Yet Another Flawed National ID Card Plan | Electronic

Frontier Foundation." Electronic Frontier Foundation | Defending Freedom in the

Digital World. 22 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Mar. 2010.

<http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2010/03/senators-unveil-another-flawed-national-id-

card>.

Harper, Jim. "Schumer and Graham on Immigration Reform: Why Not Do It Without the

Biometric National ID?" Cato @ Liberty. 19 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Apr. 2010.

<http://www.cato-at-liberty.org/2010/03/19/schumer-and-graham-on-immigration-

reform-why-not-do-it-without-the-biometric-national-id/>.

Haven, Paul. "Fidel Castro LOVES Obamacare - Cuba Politics News - Havana Journal." Havana

Cuba Business Culture Politics and Travel News and Information. 25 Mar. 2010. Web.
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17 Mar. 2010. <http://havanajournal.com/politics/entry/fidel-castro-loves-obamacare-

325/>.

Hogberg, David. "20 Ways ObamaCare Will Take Away Our Freedoms." Investors Business

Daily. 21 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Apr. 2010.

<http://blogs.investors.com/capitalhill/index.php/home/35-politicsinvesting/1563-20-

ways-obamacare-will-take-away-our-freedoms>.

H.R. H.R. 3590, 111th Cong., U.S. G.P.O. (2010) (enacted). Print.

H.R. H.R. 3590, 111th Cong., U.S. G.P.O. (2010) (enacted). Print.

H.R. H.R. 4872, 111th Cong., Open Congress U.S. G.P.O. (2010) (enacted). Print.

Kucinich, Dennis. "Latest Health Care Reform Bill Leaves Americans Vulnerable to Insurance

Companies: Dennis Kucinich." Cleveland Plain Dealer. 14 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Apr.

2010.

<http://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2010/03/latest_health_care_reform_bill.ht

ml>.

Matthis, Nancy. "Obama Just Got His Private Army." Infowars. 27 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Apr.

2010. <http://www.infowars.com/obama-just-got-his-private-army/>.

"MSNBC's Countdown." Countdown. MSNBC. 8 Mar. 2010. Television.

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obama/2010/03/26/id/354008>.

"Tax Provisions in the Health Care Act." Journal of Accountancy. 22 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Apr.

2010. <http://www.journalofaccountancy.com/Web/20102724.htm>.
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Vicevich, Jim. "Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson Sells out for Cash | Radio Vice Online." Radio

Vice Online - Blog Home of The Jim Vicevich Show. 19 Dec. 2009. Web. 17 Apr. 2010.

<http://radioviceonline.com/nebraska-senator-ben-nelson-sells-out-for-cash/>.

Watson, Paul, and Steve Watson. "Obamacare: Taxing The American People Into

Oblivion." Prison Planet. 23 Mar. 2010. Web. 17 Apr. 2010.

<http://www.prisonplanet.com/obamacare-taxing-the-american-people-into-

oblivion.html>.

Watson, Steve. "Kucinich Sells Out On Health Care After Ride In Air Force One."

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<http://www.infowars.com/kucinich-sells-out-on-health-care-after-ride-in-air-

force-one/>.