The Supreme Court has ruled in King v. Burwell that individuals who get their health insurance through an exchange established by the federal government are eligible for tax subsidies.
Says Cato scholar Michael F. Cannon, “The Court today validated President Obama’s massive power grab, allowing him to tax, borrow, and spend $700 billion that no Congress ever authorized.…In doing so, the Court has sent a dangerous message to future administrations: If you are going to violate the law, make sure you go big.”
Today at 3: p.m. EST, Cato scholars will be answering your questions on King v. Burwell’s overall impact and what the decision will mean for individuals enrolled in state health plan exchanges.
We’ve famously been told that the Department of Health & Human Services has no Plan B if the Supreme Court decides against the administration in King v. Burwell. But what if the Supreme Court forces the executive branch’s hand?
Ilya Shapiro takes a look ahead to what President Obama will do if the government does indeed lose King v. Burwell.
In May, the U.S. Senate passed the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act, better known as Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), by a vote of 62–37. But the road to securing TPA, finalizing the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), and implementing the agreement remains long and uncertain.
A new bulletin from Cato scholar Daniel J. Ikenson describes the status of TPA and TPP, provides some background, and fleshes out some of the issues that could impact the trade agenda in the weeks and months ahead.
“There have been twists and turns in the road for trade policy during the Obama administration. Expect several more in the weeks and months ahead. Although the likelihood that TPA will pass and the TPP will be completed and successfully implemented remains uncertain, it is clear that trade policy will be a ripe and contentious issue throughout the 2016 election year,” writes Daniel J. Ikenson.
The Senate on Tuesday passed (and President Obama later signed into law) the USA Freedom Act, which reforms the way U.S. agencies conduct surveillance and gather data.
In the new Policy Priorities for the 114th Congress, Cato Institute scholars outline modest and practical steps Congress and the administration could take in the next two years — reforms of health care, financial regulation, taxes, surveillance, marijuana policy, civil asset forfeiture, war powers, immigration, transportation, and more — to expand freedom and limit government. “If we want more growth, for more people, with wider scope for personal choice and decisionmaking,” says Cato executive vice president David Boaz, “libertarian policy prescriptions are the roadmap.”
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