Law Newz: Rep. Steve King Bill to Repeal Obamacare Likely Unconstitutional

Rep. Steve King is pushing for a full repeal of Obamacare in legislation he refers to as a "magic 40-word repeal bill."

But the bill is likely unconstitutional, reports Law Newz, as it tells the Supreme Court how to do its job.

"It presents a classic separation of powers problem," Prof. Rick Hasen from the University of California-Irvine School of Law tells Law Newz.

The purpose of the bill is to "bar Supreme Court decisions in certain Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act cases from citation," meaning it would bar them from citing their own Obamacare decisions.

But "Congress can't prescribe a rule of decision for courts (except by changing the law on which the decision was based), see United States v. Klein, 80 U.S. 128 (1871)," Prof. Eugene Volokh, who runs the Washington Post's legal blog, Volokh Conspiracy blog, tells Law Newz.

"Likewise, Congress can't try to strip precedents of their precedential value (again, except by actually changing the law on which the precedents were based). Article III, section 2 gives Congress the power to limit courts' jurisdiction, but not the power to constrain the courts’ reasoning."

King wrote to House Republicans Wednesday that there was "no excuse to fail to make good on our long-held vow to repeal this unconstitutional and egregious law."

President-elect Donald Trump said he would repeal and replace Obamacare when he takes office, vowing to keep certain parts of the bill.

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