Attorney General Candidate Erik Wallin Calls on Attorney General Lynch to Protect the Constitutional Rights of Rhode Islanders
March 23, 2010 – Erik Wallin, Candidate for Rhode Island Attorney General, today called upon Attorney General Lynch to undertake an immediate review of the $938 billion dollar health care bill signed into law by President Obama. Wallin said “Provisions of this bill are unconstitutional as they infringe upon not only our individual liberties but states’ rights as well. Attorney General Lynch should therefore immediately review this bill and institute a legal challenge in order to defend our state from further infringement by the federal government.”
Wallin continued, “Never has the federal government attempted to force individual citizens to buy a good or service simply on the basis that they are Americans. Indeed, the fact that we are Americans, gives us the very right to challenge such an action, and that, as a state, we must. There are serious constitutional protections at stake, specifically the 10th Amendment. The 10th Amendment states: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” Wallin added, “Nowh ere in the U.S. Constitution does it state that the federal government can require an American to buy a commodity, therefore, such ability is reserved to the states – and that doesn’t exist here in Rhode Island.”
Pointing out that Rhode Island faces a possible $400 million dollar deficit in fiscal year 2011, Wallin stated, “This healthcare bill will shift hundreds of millions of dollars in unfunded mandates onto the already breaking backs of Rhode Island taxpayers.” He noted that recent estimates by the state Department of Human Services suggesting that the overall cost to Rhode Island taxpayers would be upwards of $1.5 billion over 10 years. Wallin continued, “While state budget issues, jobs, and tax increase are also of great concern, from the perspective of the Attorney General, protecting our state’s constitutional rights must be paramount.”
Wallin urged Attorney General Lynch to confer with othe r Attorneys General from around the country who are presently preparing suits to challenge the health care bill, including state attorneys general from Florida, South Carolina, Nebraska, Texas, Michigan, Utah, Pennsylvania, Alabama, South Dakota, Louisiana, Idaho, Washington, Virginia and Colorado.
Press Release: Committee to Elect Erik Wallin
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