He saved the ACA in 2012 by declaring the individual mandate essential to the survival of Act and then may save the ACA again in 2020 by declaring that the individual mandate is not essential to the survival of the Act……………………….
By Prof. Jonathan Turley
| After Taking the Bait, the Chief Justice Prepares to Switch on the ACA |
“[Chief Justice Roberts] suggested that he would again save the ACA through severance but do so by recognizing that the basis of his earlier opinion is now invalid. Indeed, Roberts himself could find the individual mandate unconstitutional.
So, Roberts could create a curious precedent: he saved the ACA in 2012 by declaring the individual mandate essential to the survival of Act and then may save the ACA again in 2020 by declaring that the individual mandate is not essential to the survival of the Act.” [California v. Texas, No. 19-840; Texas v. California, No. 19-1019 (cert. pet. granted Mar. 2, 2020; oral arg. Nov. 10, 2020)] 
