Attorney General William Barr on Tuesday stood behind the decision of the Justice Department to support a recent court decision to overturn ObamaCare.
According to The Hill, last month a lower court issued a ruling that proclaimed the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional, which the Department of Justice supported.
Representative Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.) asked Barr why the DOJ would take such dramatic and drastic action, to which Barr replied:
“Do you think it is likely we are going to prevail? We are in litigation and we have to take a position. If you think it is such an outrageous position, you have nothing to worry about. Let the courts do their job.’’
ObamaCare was struck down in December last year by a federal judge from Texas who ruled that the law’s individual mandate was unconstitutional. The same judge sided with states led by Republicans which had filed a lawsuit against ObamaCare.
The U.S. District Court Judge Reed O’Connor was backed by the Department of Justice back in March, as they issued a court filing in which they said that he came to the correct conclusion, adding that they will support the ruling when the decision is appealed.
On the other hand, opposing states such as California are standing behind the law as they seek an appeal of the decision. In light of this, the Department of Justice, the Department of Health and Human Services and the White House received many letters from House Democrats in which they demanded access to documents and information regarding the involvement of key administration officials in the decision not to defend the law.
Some House Democrats like Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (N.Y.) and Oversight Chairman Elijah Cummings (Md.) are asking for communications between White House officials regarding that decision and a list of officials involved in the decision.
This Tuesday, Nadler issued a statement in which he said:
‘’The House is determined to get answers on the administration’s nakedly political decision to rip affordable healthcare away from millions and millions of Americans.’’
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