Democrats are Lying About Judge Barrett’s View on the ACA

Two days of hearings flooded the airwaves with two days of liberal lies regarding Judge Barrett’s views of the Affordable Care Act.

Democrats on the Judiciary Committee are misleading Americans on Judge Barrett’s book review analyzing the decision in NFIB v. Sebelius.

In a 2017 book review, Judge Barrett noted in passing that Chief Justice Roberts’ opinion in the case – calling the individual mandate a “tax” – was not the most plausible. But, Judge Barrett’s commentary on that case is irrelevant to the pending case about the ACA.

The view that the law created a penalty, not a tax, was a view espoused by the Obama Administration itself. During a debate over the ACA, President Obama stated that the penalty imposed by the individual mandate was “absolutely not a tax increase.” And Secretary Sebelius, herself, even testified that it “was not a tax per se.”

However, Judge Barrett has repeatedly affirmed her commitment to judicial independence and her academic punditry on NFIB v. Sebelius is no indication of how she would rule in a given case.

On multiple occasions, Judge Barrett has made clear, she would evaluate any case before her with no bias or hostility.

JUDGE BARRETT: “As I’ve said, I have no hostility to the ACA. And if a case came up before me, presenting a different question of the ACA, I would approach it with no bias or hostility. I also have said at earlier points in this hearing, that the exercise of being a commentator and an academic is much different than the enterprise of judging. And I didn’t have to sit in Chief Justice Roberts’ seat or Justice Scalia’s seat when NFIB v. Sebelius was decided.”

Judge Barrett has also established that she will follow what the law requires when deciding cases before her and will not legislate from the bench.

JUDGE BARRETT: “I totally reject and I have rejected throughout my entire career the proposition that, as you say, the end justifies the means or that a judge should decide cases based on a desire to reach a certain outcome.”

JUDGE BARRETT: “It is never appropriate for a judge to impose that judge’s personal convictions, whether they derive from faith or anywhere else, on the law.”

The fact of the matter is: Judge Barrett has never ruled on any case related to Obamacare and has not indicated her views on the pending case at the Supreme Court.   Democrats have twisted comments Judge Barrett made as an academic about the 2015 Obamacare ruling where she disagreed with the legal reasoning of the majority opinion – not the outcome of the ruling.

Judge Amy Coney Barrett has made it clear that she is dedicated to the rule of law, not predetermined policy positions. She is committed to saving the independent judiciary, a concept Senate Democrats should take the time to learn more about.