Healthcare Brouhaha: It Ain't Over …

Reactions in the news to the passing of the healthcare reform bill last week made it seem like everyone in the country was either in bliss or outraged. The reports paid little attention to the millions in the middle who felt exhausted from the withering debate, grateful that at long last it was over.     

Over? Not so fast.

Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli apparently agrees with baseball Hall-of-Famer Yogi Berra’s obliquely tenacious philosophy -- "It ain’t over ‘til it’s over."

Just minutes after President Barack Obama signed the bill on Mar. 23, Cuccinelli filed a lawsuit asserting that the landmark legislation is unconstitutional. The suit was filed in the United States District Court in Richmond. Among other points, Cuccinelli claims that when the new federal law requires Virginians to buy health insurance it oversteps the federal government’s power.

At this writing, lawsuits challenging the Affordable Health Care for America Act have been filed in 13 other states. Furthermore, Virginia’s General Assembly just passed a law that says the federal government can’t order Virginians to buy health insurance. As Virginia beat the other 49 states to the punch in this department, Cuccinelli, a Republican, may indeed find himself at the tip of the spear for the opposition who like to call the new law "Obamacare."

Since taking office in January, Cuccinelli has been the busiest new attorney general anyone in Richmond has seen in decades.

Upon being sworn in Cuccinelli promptly challenged the authority of the federal government’s Environmental Protection Agency to regulate greenhouse gas emissions in Virginia. A few weeks later he fired off a batch of letters to the commonwealth’s colleges and universities, opining that they have no authority to use/enforce nondiscrimination policies protecting gays.

A few days later Gov. Bob McDonnell, also a Republican, weighed into the controversy to take a more moderate stance. McDonnell said he would not tolerate discrimination based on sexual orientation, but he did not advocate putting the force of law behind his guideline.

As both men were elected by popular vote, separately, the governor is not the attorney general’s boss.

Not surprisingly, Cuccinelli’s confrontational moves grabbed the spotlight; the publicity has made him an overnight cable news celebrity. But however opportunistic these high-profile maneuvers might seem to his Democratic opponents, anyone familiar with Cuccinelli’s seven-and-a-half years as a state senator (2002-10) knows all three were consistent with what he has been saying all along.     

Cuccinelli’s argument goes something like this: While congress/the state has at times banned citizens from buying some things, it shouldn’t order them to buy anything. He will probably say it’s one thing for Congress to tell Americans how to do this or that. But it’s altogether another thing to tell them what they must do.

Whether Virginia’s law requiring liability insurance on automobiles undermines Cuccinelli’s point about how unprecedented this business actually is, remains to be seen. In Virginia one either buys car insurance or pays a $500 fee/fine.

Which is rather like the new health insurance concept that will fine people who aren’t exempt, who don’t purchase mandated coverage. Exemptions will be made if they have coverage through an employer, or through Medicare. Other exemptions can be extended to the poor, dependents, military personnel, etc.

While Cuccinelli and his fellow Republicans assert that aspects of the Affordable Health Care for America Act are unconstitutional, its Democratic proponents point to the benefits of the legislation: Chief among them, it will prevent insurance companies from denying coverage simply because of preexisting conditions.

Meanwhile, the noise behind this story is louder than politics as usual. Across the nation angry, even threatening, messages have been hurled at certain Democratic members of the House of Representatives. In Charlottesville a gas line was cut at the home of Rep. Tom Perriello’s brother. Perriello was one of the last Democrats to announce his support of the legislation.

Now it’s being reported that a Philadelphia man has been charged with threatening Rep. Eric Cantor and his family with a video he posted on YouTube. Cantor, a Republican, is presently the Minority Whip in the House.

Leaving crime news and returning to politics -- as governor, Bob McDonnell would seem to be the top Republican in the state. Maybe Cantor could be viewed as No. 2. But the swashbuckling Cuccinelli has suddenly become the darling of Tea Party supporters and other conservative activists. Some Republicans are already seeing him as the best candidate to run against Democratic Sen. Jim Webb in 2012.
 
So, Virginians should prepare themselves for what is obviously going to be an eventful year in state politics. While neither of its U.S. Senators is up for reelection, all 11 seats in the House are in play. Perriello’s run for reelection will be one to watch, in particular.  

Is Cuccinelli’s stand, challenging federal law, anything like Virginia’s bad old Massive Resistance days? Some Democrats think so, including Del. Donald McEachin, who has said so.

If the Cuccinelli lawsuit fizzles, Berra’s famous wisecrack -- "It’s déjà vu all over again" -- may eventually best sum up this story.

However, if the federal judges buy Cuccinelli’s argument, Richmond, Virginia may become the epicenter of a conservative quake of historic proportions.