(Newser)
–
To call the ObamaCare penalty a tax or not was the question dominating the talk show airwaves today, with John Boehner leading the charge with the dreaded T-word. "The American people ... do not want the government telling them what kind of insurance policy they have to buy, and how much they have to pay for it, and if you don't like it, we're going to tax you," declared Boehner, calling the Supreme Court ruling "shocking." "It has to be ripped out and we need to start over." Meanwhile, Mitch McConnell shrugged off the 30 million uninsured Americans, saying bluntly, "That is not the issue." Elsewhere on your sweltering Sunday dial, as per Politico:
- Nancy Pelosi on the health law "ta—": "It's a penalty that comes under the tax code. It's a ta—it’s a penalty for free riders."
- White House chief of staff Jack Lew doesn't care what you call it: "The court found it constitutional. Frankly, what you call it is not the issue." Pressed, he responded, "We call it fair."
- Chuck Schumer on repealing ObamaCare: "If Republicans make repeal the issue, they're going to lose the election for the House, the Senate, and certainly the presidency."
- Schumer on Mitt Romney's support for the individual mandate in Mass.: "Mitt Romney is in a pickle."
- Lew wants to move on: "I don't think the American people want to have this debate again. I don't think they want to be pulled back into decades of debate to get to where we are…We need to move on and deal with the economy and jobs."
