I requested that Rob McKenna stop his nonsense, noting that he was harming my small business. Here is his response, in which he implies that he does not drive cars and is further not aware that one who drives cars must carry insurance.<\/p>\n\n
\n\r\nThank you for taking the time to contact my office to express\r\nyour opinion about my decision to join the multi-state lawsuit,\r\nled by the Florida Attorney General's Office, challenging\r\nspecific provisions of the recently enacted federal health care\r\nbill.\r\n\r\nI apologize for the delay in responding. Our office received more\r\nthan 25,000 contacts via e-mail, phone and U.S. mail and due to\r\nthe tremendous volume, cost and time involved, we are simply\r\nunable to respond personally to each one. I appreciate the\r\nopportunity to provide some additional background to you based on\r\ncommon questions we've received.\r\n\r\nBackground: <\/b>\r\n\r\nAs you may know, in December 2009 I joined several state\r\nattorneys general in expressing concerns over provisions in the\r\nU.S. Senate health care bill which appeared to violate our\r\nfederal Constitution. At that point, we were primarily concerned\r\nabout the special arrangement in the Senate's health care\r\nproposal which permanently exempted Nebraska from paying its\r\nshare of the additional Medicaid costs mandated by the bill \u00e2\u20ac\u201c\r\ncosts that all other states, including Washington, would\r\nbear. <\/b>The attorneys general also indicated there could be\r\nlegal or constitutional concerns with other provisions of the\r\nproposed legislation, and we were waiting to see what ultimately\r\nremained on final passage of the bill.\r\n\r\nOn Tuesday, March 23, 2010, after further legal analysis and\r\ndeliberation \u00e2\u20ac\u201d and after notifying Governor Chris Gregoire of my\r\ndecision -- I joined what was then 12 fellow AGs in a bi-partisan\r\nlawsuit challenging specific provisions as an expansion of\r\nfederal power beyond that we believe is allowed under the\r\nU.S. Constitution.\r\n\r\nFlorida AG Bill McCollum filed this suit in the U.S. District\r\nCourt for the Northern District of Florida. As a party to this\r\nmulti-state suit, Washington is one of 20 states now\r\nparticipating to date. As the lead state, Florida has negotiated\r\nwith a Constitutional expert to cap his fees for the case at\r\n$50,000. Florida has also negotiated a cost-sharing agreement\r\nwith the bulk of the states to cover the costs of resources and\r\npersonnel to pursue the case. Washington is not participating \r\nin the cost-sharing agreement so the cost to the state will be \r\nminimal.<\/b>\r\n\r\nWhat is this case about? <\/b>\r\n\r\nAs this state's independently elected attorney general, I take my\r\nduty to defend your constitutional rights very seriously. Health\r\ncare reform is much too important to build on an unconstitutional\r\nfoundation.\r\n\r\nThe two main provisions of our lawsuit deal with:\r\n\r\n1) The unprecedented and unconstitutional mandate that individuals lacking\r\nhealth insurance must purchase private insurance or face a fine; and\r\n\r\n2) The massive expansion of the Medicaid program required by the\r\nbill, which will unconstitutionally require states to spend\r\nbillions more on this federal program at a time when state\r\nbudgets are already in crisis.\r\n\r\nThe attorneys general who signed on to this lawsuit believe both\r\nof these mandates represent expansions of federal authority that\r\nviolate the 10th Amendment, which states that "the powers\r\nnot delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor\r\nprohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states\r\nrespectively, or to the people<\/u>." We're also concerned\r\nthe individual mandate violates the Commerce Clause, because\r\nnever before has Congress required all Americans to purchase a\r\nspecific product in the private marketplace.\r\n\r\nDoes this lawsuit overturn the health care bill?<\/b>\r\n\r\nContrary to what has been reported, I did not join this suit to\r\n"overturn" or "repeal" the new health care\r\nreform legislation.\r\n\r\nIn fact, this lawsuit will not affect most provisions of the\r\nfederal health care legislation, including among other things:\r\n\r\n<\/pre>\n\n- Allowing children access to health insurance regardless of
\n pre-existing conditions;\n <\/li>\n - \n Providing seniors a rebate to fill the so-called "donut
\n hole" in Medicare drug coverage, which severely limits
\n prescription medication coverage expenditures over $2,700;\n <\/li>\n - \n Banning lifetime caps on the amount of insurance an individual
\n can have;\n <\/li>\n - \n Prohibiting insurance companies from denying coverage to
\n existing policy-holders when they get sick; and <\/li>\n - \n Allowing young adults to continue to be covered by their
\n parents' health insurance until they reach age 27.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\r\n\r\nWhile most provisions of the federal health care bill meet\r\nconstitutional muster, my fellow AGs and I feel strongly that the\r\nfederal government exceeded its constitutional authority in certain\r\nprovisions of the health care bill, and that the individual rights of\r\nour citizens deserve to be given the respect that the Constitution\r\nrequires.\r\n\r\nMy office has received a tremendous amount of feedback on this issue\r\nboth supportive of and in opposition to the suit. Some people claim\r\nthat because the majority in Congress approved the bill, I should not\r\npursue these constitutional concerns. However, the Constitution was\r\nadopted as a means to ensure people's basic rights are protected,\r\nusing the judicial branch and other checks and balances in our system.\r\n\r\nThese are issues of the utmost concern in our state and around the\r\ncountry. Regardless of the positions or viewpoints they express, it's\r\nimportant that Washington citizens are making their voices heard.\r\nAgain, thank you for taking the time to contact me.\r\n\r\nI hope this information has been helpful to you. For answers to more\r\nfrequently asked questions, a copy of the new law or a copy of our\r\nlawsuit, please visit our FAQ site:\r\n\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/atg.wa.gov\/page.aspx?id=25410<\/a>\r\n\r\nSincerely,\r\nROB MCKENNA\r\nAttorney General\r\n<\/pre>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n