Red States Request Delay In Big Obamacare Case

A coalition of red states led by Texas requested Monday that they receive 20 extra days to file a supplemental brief and a delay of opening arguments in a case they hope will overturn Obamacare in front of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

“As of today, it appears unlikely that any such response will be completed by the Court’s July 3 deadline,” Texas Solicitor General Kyle Hawkins said in a letter according to Politico.

The opening arguments were set for next week when Hawkins sent the letter.

The makeup of the three-judge panel was revealed Monday. Judge Jennifer Elrod, a George W. Bush appointee, Judge Kurt Engelhardt, a Trump appointee, and Judge Carolyn Dineen King will hear the arguments, reported The Washington Post.

The Justice Department is refusing to defend Obamacare, so blue states including California are seeking to keep the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare’s full name) intact.

The 5th Circuit was a “strategic” choice for the red states who are bringing the case, according to WaPo. Eleven of its 16 active judges are Republican appointees and could be more likely to see the merit of Republicans’ argument that all of Obamacare must be struck down since Congress repealed its individual mandate.

This latest step in red states’ attempts to undermine Obamacare come after U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor struck down the individual mandate penalty for Americans who do not buy health care in December 2018.