Washington, D.C. – On Monday, 38 House and Senate Republicans filed an amicus brief in support of Senator Ron Johnson’s lawsuit over the Obama administration’s special Obamacare treatment of Congress and its staff.  Senator Johnson made these remarks:

“Yesterday I filed an answer to the government’s motion to dismiss my lawsuit against the Office of Personnel Management’s rule that provides members and staff with a tax-preferred health care subsidy that the Affordable Care Act eliminated.  The government argued that this unilateral change to Obamacare  by executive decree could not be challenged because I did not have standing. 

“Thirty-eight of my House and Senate colleagues weighed in to support my claim, pointing out that, ‘Instead of faithfully implementing and executing the ACA, the Executive Branch has claimed open-ended authority to suspend or modify that law.  The result has been a wholesale rewrite of the ACA by executive fiat.’  Nearly two dozen conservative groups have also weighed in in support of my lawsuit.  

“This case is about far more than the special treatment granted to the political class.  One of President Obama’s own supporters, Professor Jonathan Turley of George Washington Law School, has testified, ‘We are now at the constitutional tipping point for our system.  If balance is to be reestablished, it must begin before this president leaves office and that will likely require every possible means to reassert legislative authority.’  One important means is to establish the standing of members of Congress to challenge presidential overreach, especially in cases in which our very own health care coverage is directly affected. 

“This is a crucial moment in U.S. history, and this lawsuit could be an important vehicle for highlighting the dangerous erosion of our constitutional balance.  I thank my colleagues for standing with me to uphold the rule of law, and I hope the court allows this case to see its day in court.”   

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