Supreme Court decision on federal health insurance mandate "A dark day for American liberty"

RICHMOND (June 28, 2012) - Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli will host a live news conference and teleconference call TODAY at 12:15 ET on this morning's Supreme Court decision on the federal health care law and its effect on Virginia. The Supreme Court upheld the federal mandate that every citizen buy private health insurance or face an annual fine.

The attorney general had the following initial reaction to the decision:

"This is a dark day for the American people, the Constitution, and the rule of law. This is a dark day for American liberty.

"This decision goes against the very principle that America has a federal government of limited powers; a principle that the Founding Fathers clearly wrote into the Constitution, the supreme law of the land. The Constitution was meant to restrict the power of government precisely for the purpose of protecting your liberty and mine from the overreaching hand of the federal government.

"This unprecedented decision says that Congress has the authority to force citizens to buy private goods or face fines - a power it has never had in American history, and a power King George III and Parliament didn't have over us when we were mere subjects of Great Britain. Since the federal government itself could never articulate to the court a constitutional limit to this power, Congress has gained an unlimited power to force citizens to buy anything.
"I am disappointed with the court's ruling and with the un

precedented attack on American liberty the president and the previous Congress have created with this law.
"We are currently reading the decision and I will have more comment at the news conference at noon."

News conference TODAY, Thursday, June 28, at 12:15 ET