Florida Attorney General Threatens Lawsuit Against Health Care Mandate

Former Republican congressman and Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum said Tuesday that provisions to force Americans to buy health care or pay a fine are not legal and he will file a lawsuit if they become law.

In a memo sent to the House and Senate leadership, the attorney general called the mandate requiring Americans to get health care a "living tax" that unconstitutionally penalizes people for being inactive.

According to the attorney general, a citizen's choice not to buy health insurance cannot rationally be construed as economic activity subject to the Commerce Clause.

"The Commerce Clause gives no authority for Congress to transform a citizen's individual choice to be inactive in the marketplace into a compulsion to purchase apparently unwanted insurance or be penalized," he wrote.

McCollum wrote that as attorney general of Florida he is in a position to file suit.

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Federal health care foes plot for state opt-outs

Congress can pass a federal health care bill and President Obama can sign it, but that doesn't mean the states plan to abide by it.

Lawmakers in 30 states are pressing for constitutional amendments to exempt individuals from the requirement to purchase health care, a pivotal piece of the legislation under debate in Congress.

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Comment: This could prove to be an explosive issue in 2010 -- do individual states have the right to nullify unconstitutional legislation? Of course, a sound understanding of the Constitution implies that they absolutely do, however, it will be interesting to see how the mainstream media spins it (I'm sure charges of "racism" will be made)