POLITICO: …
Obamacare is upheld … and then sustains fresh wounds: The Affordable Care Act survived another major legal challenge in June when the Supreme Court sided with the Obama administration and upheld government subsidies to residents in the 34 states that rely on HealthCare.gov as a marketplace. The King v. Burwell case could have resulted in more than 6 million Americans losing financial assistance to purchase health coverage, but Chief Justice John Roberts once again sided with the court’s four liberals in backing the administration’s position — and this time Justice Anthony Kennedy joined them. Only six months later, though, the law sustained serious damage after Congress voted to delay or kill several elements of its financing as part of a massive spending bill…
FCC OKs ‘free’ Internet: Obama won his top technology priority in February, when the Federal Communications Commission voted along party lines to approve regulations that treat broadband like a utility and ensure all Web traffic is treated equally. The move gave the FCC clearer authority to act as an Internet traffic cop and introduced new protections for consumers and content companies such as Netflix. Internet providers like AT&T and Verizon said the rules would dampen innovation. Cable, telecom and wireless trade groups brought suit in March to throw out the rules. A three-judge panel heard arguments this month and is expected to rule in the first half of next year.
12-nation trade deal clinched: After more than five years of talks, the Obama administration concluded the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal in October, which would tear down trade barriers with 11 countries in the fast-growing Asia-Pacific region, including Canada, Mexico and Japan. Obama hopes to win congressional approval of the deal before he leaves office, but Republicans raise concerns about pharmaceutical, tobacco and financial services provisions, while groups on the left question its labor and environmental commitments. Add in the difficulty of trade votes during a presidential election year, and the outlook for the agreement remains uncertain… (more)
