memeorandum: Common Sense: Health Care Won, but Congress May Have Lost (James B. Stewart/New York Times)

9:05 AM ET, June 30, 2012

Top Items:

James B. Stewart / New York Times:

Common Sense: Health Care Won, but Congress May Have Lost — With the landmark Supreme Court ruling on Thursday, conservatives and libertarians lost their legal battle to overturn the Obama administration's signature health care legislation. But they may have won a bigger war.

Discussion: JustOneMinute and CNN

Amy Davidson / News Desk:

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Hero — I am glad that John Roberts, the Chief Justice, voted to uphold almost all of the Affordable Care Act. But the stance of humble gratitude toward Roberts that's been assumed by many in the past day is beginning to be a bit much.

Discussion: The Democratic Daily, Brad DeLong and Mediaite

Neal K. Katyal / New York Times:

A Pyrrhic Victory — THE obvious victor in the Supreme Court's health care decision was President Obama, who risked vast amounts of political capital to pass the Affordable Care Act. A somewhat more subtle victor, but equally important, was the rule of law more generally …

Discussion: Washington Post, The Volokh Conspiracy, At War, Runnin' Scared, No More Mister Nice Blog, Washington Wire and SCOTUSblog

Orin Kerr / The Volokh Conspiracy:
Did Chief Justice Roberts Change His Vote? Perhaps Not.

Discussion: Hot Air, Los Angeles Times, Outside the Beltway, National Review, New York Times, Gawker, Wall Street Journal, Althouse and emptywheel

Big Tent Democrat / TalkLeft:
A Dark Cloud On A Sunny Day

Discussion: naked capitalism and Suburban Guerrilla

New York Post:
It's on to November

Discussion: The Other McCain and Outside the Beltway

John M. Broder / New York Times:
In Health Ruling, Vindication for Donald Verrilli

Discussion: Outside the Beltway

David Brooks / New York Times:
Modesty and Audacity — Washington is full of arrogant people …

Discussion: Hot Air, National Review, Bloomberg, The Daily Caller, Wall Street Journal and Ross Douthat

Wall Street Journal:
Noonan: Obama Has a Good Day — But liberty has a bad one.

Discussion: American Prospect, Wonkette and Washington Post

Lydia Saad / Gallup:

Americans Issue Split Decision on Healthcare Ruling — Nearly two-thirds believe politics played too great a role — PRINCETON, NJ — Americans are sharply divided over Thursday's Supreme Court decision on the 2010 healthcare law, with 46% agreeing and 46% disagreeing with the high court's ruling that the law is constitutional.

Discussion: Daily Kos, The Daily Beast, FiveThirtyEight, Hot Air, Outside the Beltway, CNN, Taking Note, Business Insider, American Power, ABCNEWS, Politico, Washington Wire, Washington Examiner and 2012 Decoded

Nick Summers / The Daily Beast:

New Poll: Voters Dislike Supreme Court's Obamacare Ruling — By a 50-45 margin, voters disapprove of the court's decision, a Newsweek/Daily Beast poll finds. — Voters are reacting in broadly negative ways to the Supreme Court's decision to uphold the legislation known as Obamacare …

Discussion: Weekly Standard, more at Mediagazer »

Matt Cover / CNSNews:

White House Statement on Obamacare Mandate Tax Contradicts Supreme Court Ruling — (CNSNews.com) - The White House said Friday that the Obamacare insurance mandate tax is a penalty for not having insurance - a statement that directly contradicts what the Supreme Court ruled Thursday.

Discussion: Patterico's Pontifications, protein wisdom and Conservatives4Palin

Justin Sink / The Hill:

White House urges Dems to go on offense on healthcare reform — The White House is encouraging congressional Democrats to go on the offensive after the Supreme Court upheld the president's signature healthcare legislation Thursday, urging members on the campaign trail to …

Discussion: Politico and Weasel Zippers

Manu Rajuand Jake Sherman / Politico:
The Republican recipe for repeal

Discussion: CNN, Mother Jones, Daily Kos, Outside the Beltway and Washington Post

Spike Dolomite Ward / Los Angeles Times:
The court saved my lifeline

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, CBS News, Washington Post and Daily Kos

Byron Tau / Politico:
Obama campaign: It's a penalty, not a tax

Discussion: RedState, CNN, Taylor Marsh, Wake up America and The Gateway Pundit

Jonathan Strong / Roll Call:

Darrell Issa Puts Details of Secret Wiretap Applications in Congressional Record — In the midst of a fiery floor debate over contempt proceedings for Attorney General Eric Holder, House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) quietly dropped a bombshell letter into the Congressional Record.

Discussion: JustOneMinute, Doug Ross, RedState, CNN, The Jawa Report and The Lonely Conservative

Fox News:

Justice Department shields Holder from prosecution after contempt vote — The Justice Department moved Friday to shield Attorney General Eric Holder from prosecution after the House voted to hold him in contempt of Congress. — The contempt vote technically opened the door for the House …

Discussion: Hot Air, Fox News Insider and The Gateway Pundit

CNN:
No criminal prosecution of Holder for contempt

Discussion: Mediaite, Politico and The Raw Story

Associated Press: Justice Department won't prosecute Attorney General Holder for contempt of Congress

Jordy Yager / The Hill: Justice Department won't prosecute Holder

Adam Peck / ThinkProgress:

Mississippi Tea Party Chairman Calls For Open Rebellion Against Federal Government After Obamacare Ruling — Of all the right-wing meltdowns following yesterday's decision by the Supreme Court to uphold the individual mandate in the Affordable Care Act, this statement put out by the chairman …

Discussion: The Huffington Post and The Raw Story

Fred Lucas / CNSNews:

Obama Contributor, Who Helped Enact Assault-Weapons Ban, Ran ‘Fast and Furious’ — (CNSNews.com) - Dennis K. Burke, who as a lawyer for the Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee in the 1990s was a key player behind the enactment of the 1994 assault-weapons ban, and who then went …

Discussion: The Jawa Report and Weasel Zippers

Associated Press:

Egypt leader Mohammed Morsi vows to free Omar Abdel-Rahman, infamous blind sheik jailed in U.S. — The Arab Spring — (AP) CAIRO - In his first public speech addressing tens of thousands of mostly Islamist supporters, Egypt's president-elect Mohammed Morsi has vowed to free the blind sheik jailed …

Discussion: The PJ Tatler

David D. Kirkpatrick / New York Times:
Morsi Promises to Work for Release of Imprisoned Sheik

Discussion: National Review, The Lede, Hot Air, The Jawa Report, Outside the Beltway and THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS

J.D. Heyman / People.com:

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes Are Divorcing — After five years of marriage, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes are getting a divorce, PEOPLE has learned exclusively. — “This is a personal and private matter for Katie and her family,” says Holmes's attorney Jonathan Wolfe.

Discussion: TMZ.com, CNN, Mashable!, newsfeed.time.com, The Stranger …, The Huffington Post, Scared Monkeys, BuzzFeed, Conservatives4Palin, Alan Colmes' Liberaland, msnbc.com, Runnin' Scared, La Daily Musto, Gawker and The Daily Caller

Mj Lee / Politico:

Allen West: Pelosi is ‘delusional’ — Rep. Allen West on Friday called Nancy Pelosi “somewhat delusional” for refusing to say that the individual mandate of the Affordable Care Act constitutes a tax, and likened the mandate to forcing people to “buy a 9mm Glock.”

Discussion: Towleroad News #gay, Weasel Zippers, Mediaite and The Hill

Sterling C. Beard / The Hill: Freshman Rep. West: Nancy Pelosi ‘somewhat delusional’

Eric Lach / tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com:

TPMMuckraker — Texas GOP's 2012 Platform Opposes Teaching Of ‘Critical Thinking Skills’ — The Republican Party of Texas' recently adopted 2012 platform contains a plank that opposes the teaching of “critical thinking skills” in schools. The party says it was a mistake …

Discussion: Daily Kos, Colorlines and Taking Note

Nick R. Martin / tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com:

TPMMuckraker — Conservatives Find A Way To Blame Obama For Monster Colorado Wildfire — While Colorado burns, conservatives have looked for ways to blame it on President Obama. — Some of the same people who have bashed the president as a big government, big spending liberal …

Discussion: CNN, The Impolitic, Michelle Malkin, The Maddow Blog and National Review

Michelle Malkin: Exclusive: When did the Waldo Canyon Fire start, and when did the feds know it?

Krista Hostetler / Local News:

Former inmate speaks out on being shackled while in labor — North Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) — A former inmate, who claims she was shackled while in labor, is suing the Nevada Department of Corrections. — Valerie Nabors, a resident in Clark County, served time at Florence McClure Women's Correctional Center …

Discussion: Crooks and Liars

Pete Kasperowicz / The Hill:

Congress passes highway funds, extends lower student loan rate — Congress on Friday approved legislation that will extend federal highway programs through 2014, a low interest rate on student loans for one year, and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) for five years.

Discussion: The Maddow Blog, Politico, Daily Kos and Prairie Weather