Discussion: SCOTUS Deeply Divided Over Obamacare's Birth Control Mandate

But different rules would apply in parts of the country in which another appeals court has sided with the challengers.

Since we’re looking at an 8-member SCOTUS for the indefinite future, this will happen more and more. It’s crazy to think that you’re much better off living in blue states, or federal circuits consisting of primarily blue states, but it’s true.

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We’re only looking at an 8 member Court until the next one dies. Republicans are hoping that Roberts will outlive them all, leaving us with a 1 member court.

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Good grief. If the Court can past the “ick” factor to uphold same-sex marriage, they should easily get past it for birth control. C’mon guys (and it is only guys opposed) even if it offends you personally, some people really need this health care coverage.

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Why do they insist on having dominion over the ‘lady parts’? Stop getting between me and my doctor.

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Republicans are hoping that Bader Ginsburg is the next unscheduled departure from the Court, giving the right wing a 4-3 majority but they can’t hold out for a one man Alito or Roberts court. Federal law currently provides that the Supreme Court of the United States shall consist of a Chief Justice of the United States and eight associate justices, any six of whom shall constitute a quorum. I’m sure Scalia could have explained how that violates his originalism doctrine since the Constitution is silent on the issue but the Court no longer has his legal genius to guide it on the way to an autocratic theocracy.

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You wouldn’t think nuns would be the bad guys, but they are

Among the religious groups challenging the accommodation is an order of nuns based in Baltimore called the Little Sisters of the Poor, which operates nursing homes around the country. The order objects to playing any role in providing any of the forms of contraception approved for women by the Food and Drug Administration.

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Jesus christ. Freedom of religion doesn’t mean you’re free to impose your beliefs on your employees and other people.

I am so sick of this bullshit.

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Which is one reason I’m moving soon.

They’re fucking arguing over contraception in 2016 in America.

WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK

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Obviously you never attended Catholic School. I still have the scars.

My prediction is that the ACA work around will be upheld by the SCOTUS in a 5 to 3 decision authored by CJ Roberts.

What is Kennedy’s position?

If only the Founders had changed one little preposition in their thinking all this could have been avoided.

I don’t even think of Thomas, Alito and Roberts as being “conservative,” or “Republican,” or “right-wing”, or “originalist” or any other technical, definable term-of-art. They’re just jerks. They just vote however complete jerks would vote.

Kagan, Bader-Ginsburg, Sotomayor and Breyer obviously for the work-around.

The RAT (Roberts, Alito and Thomas) equally clearly against.

That leaves Kennedy. If Kennedy joins the RAT, I think Roberts stays and we get a 4-4 nondecision. If Kennedy joins the grown-ups, I think Roberts defects so he can write the decision as narrowly as possible. I just don’t see Roberts going over by himself. I could be wrong, of course.

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It isn’t guys opposed. It is Catholic guys.

I’m thinking that I should declare myself a tax exempt church and claim that the mere act of filling out the IRS forms violates my religious freedoms.

They are quite certain that: what you call “lady parts” are baby-making parts; those parts belong to their god; their god installed those parts in your fleshy case; and you will void the warranty if you don’t maintain the parts in pristine condition for the sole purpose of making baby christians.

As much as birth control is an important issue, the greasing of the already slippery slope that will allow “religious freedom” outs on many other issues is the scary part. As several of the sane justices pointed out, imagine Quakers withholding taxes because of pacifism? While I personally like that notion, I can imagine a lot of reactionaries opting out of essential programs for so called religious reasons. Talk about Pandoras Box.

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