VOTE | Health-care reactions roundup: Do you agree with the politicians?

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<b>President Barack Obama:</b> “Even though I knew it wouldn't be politically popular and resisted the idea when I ran for this office, we ultimately included a provision in the Affordable Care Act that people who can afford to buy health insurance should take the responsibility to do so. … Today I am as confident as ever, that when we look back five years from now, or 10 years from now, or 20 years from now, we will be better off because we had the courage to pass this law and keep moving forward.“

<b>Mitt Romney:</b> “Our mission is clear: If we want to get rid of Obamacare, we're going to have to replace President Obama. My mission is to make sure we do exactly that: that we return to the American people the privilege they've always had to live their lives in the way they feel most appropriate, where we don't pass on to coming generations massive deficits and debt, where we don't have a setting where jobs are lost. If we want good jobs and a bright economic future for ourselves and for our kids, we must replace Obamacare.”

<b>Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton:</b> “I’m very pleased. That’s how I hoped it would turn out. It’s a great moment to just think about what this will mean to the millions and millions of Americans who have already benefited from the Affordable Care Act and so many more who will continue to do so. … Obviously I was quite excited to hear the results.”

<b>Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.):</b> “Earlier this morning I met with our caucus after the decision was announced. It was, as you know, no surprise to us. We knew that, we thought that we were on solid grounds in terms of interstate commerce, solid grounds in terms of the Constitution. It was just a question of what the vote would be. And with that confidence, we happily embraced the decision that came down. Now we can move forward to the full implementation of the law. When that happens for the American people, the best is yet to come.”

<b>House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio):</b> “The president’s health-care law is hurting our economy by driving up health costs and making it harder for small businesses to hire. Today’s ruling underscores the urgency of repealing this harmful law in its entirety. What Americans want is a common-sense, step-by-step approach to health-care reform that will protect Americans’ access to the care they need, from the doctor they choose, at a lower cost.”

<b>Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.):</b> “Mr. President, I’m happy, I’m pleased to see the Supreme Court put the rule of law ahead of partisanship and ruled that the Affordable Care Act is constitutional. Mr. President, it’s a long opinion, and we know that when we come back here after the elections there may be some things we need to do to improve the law, and we’ll do that working together. But today, millions of Americans are already seeing the benefits of the law that we passed. Seniors are saving money on their prescriptions and checkups. Children can no longer be denied insurance because they have a preexisting condition.”

<b>Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.):</b> “Today’s decision does nothing to diminish the fact that Obamacare’s mandates, tax hikes and Medicare cuts should be repealed and replaced with common-sense reforms that lower costs and that the American people actually want. … It is my hope that with new leadership in the White House and Senate, we can enact these step-by-step solutions and prevent further damage from this terrible law.”

<b>Gov. Martin O-Malley (D-Md.), in a tweet:</b> “In upholding #ACA, #Scotus chose to protect the lives of millions of Marylanders & millions of Americans.”

<b>Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.):</b> “There are 21 taxes in this bill, 12 of which hit people making less than $200,000. That in and of itself is a violation of the president’s promise not to tax people making less than $200,000. He sold it as one thing – a mandate, not a tax – argued ... another thing, that it’s a tax, and I agree with the dissenting opinion that they rewrote this law, calling it a tax.'

<b>Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.):</b> “This decision preserves not only the health-care law but also the Supreme Court’s position as an institution above politics. Just as Speaker Boehner vowed not to spike the football if the law was overturned, Republicans should not carry on out of pique now that the law has been upheld. … Congress must now return its full-time focus to the issue that matters most to the public, and that is jobs.”

<b>Gov. Rick Perry (R-Tex.):</b> “This ruling will be a stomach punch to the American economy. It is a shocking disappointment to freedom-loving Americans desperate to get our country back on track. … Now that the Supreme Court has abandoned us, we citizens must take action at every level of government and demand real reform, done with respect for our Constitution and our liberty.“

<b>Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.):</b> “The Supreme Court’s ruling is a victory for America’s families, who deserve affordable health care. … Now Americans will have the certainty of knowing they won’t be denied coverage because of a preexisting condition. Women won’t be charged a higher premium because of their gender. And families struggling with serious illnesses will not face lifetime limits on coverage.”

<b>Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.:</b> “I realize that passage of health-care reform was extremely controversial. But we cannot forget that insuring fellow Americans and driving down the exploding cost of health-care spending in this country is a national emergency. Even with this favorable decision from the court, our work reforming the insurance market and expanding access to health care continues.”

<b>Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.):</b> “During the week of July 9th, the House will once again repeal Obamacare, clearing the way for patient-centered reforms that lower costs and increase choice. We support an approach that offers simpler, more affordable and more accessible health care that allows people to keep the health care that they like.”

<b>Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-Minn.):</b> “While I am disappointed in the precedent that this sets for future government interference in Americans’ lives, please rest assured that I will not rest until we accomplish a full-scale repeal of Obamacare. Real health-care reform is about bringing down the cost of health care through free-market competition.”

<b>Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.):</b> “We now know that health care is legal, constitutional, undeniable and irreversible. Let's hear it for democracy. The system works, and it'll work for the American people.“

<b>Former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.):</b> “Today's outcome is the worst of all scenarios. I have no doubt that [President Obama] sees today's ruling in his favor as a mandate that he can now do whatever he chooses by any means possible.”

<b>Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.):</b> “The nation and every American household now would be best served if this historic decision puts an end to the years of partisan attacks and obstruction of efforts to help the millions of Americans who have fallen through the cracks, and millions more who worry with good reason that they may fall through the crack of our broken health insurance system. The Court has spared the American people a return to those decades of spiraling problems and uncertainty that reached into every American household.”

<b>Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.):</b> “Just because a couple people on the Supreme Court declare something to be ‘constitutional’ does not make it so. The whole thing remains unconstitutional. While the court may have erroneously come to the conclusion that the law is allowable, it certainly does nothing to make this mandate or government takeover of our health care right.”

<b>Sen. Bernie Sanders: (I-Vt.)</b> “Today is a good day for millions of Americans who have preexisting conditions who can no longer be rejected by insurance companies. It is a good day for families with children under 26 who can keep their children on their health insurance policies. It is a good day for women who can no longer be charged far higher premiums than men.“

<b>Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.):</b> “I’ve been clear from the very beginning that I do not believe a one-size-fits-all health-care program works for the entire country and that each governor should have the ability to make decisions about what works best for their state. Today’s Supreme Court decision is disappointing, and I still believe this is the wrong approach for the people of New Jersey, who should be able to make their own judgments about health care. Most importantly, the Supreme Court is confirming what we knew all along about this law: It is a tax on middle class Americans.”

<b> Former Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska), in a tweet:</b> “Obama lied to the American people. Again. He said it wasn’t a tax. Obama lies; freedom dies.”

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