Excerpts
JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour): A sharply divided U.S. Supreme Court today ruled that some corporations can opt out of the Affordable Care Act’s contraceptive coverage mandate because of religious objections. The 5-4 decision comes two years after the justices upheld the president’s health care law, and it leaves the Obama administration to look for another way to make sure all women who want it have access to contraceptive care.
As word of the decision spread, cheers erupted outside the court from opponents of the contraceptive coverage mandate.
KRISTAN HAWKINS, Students for Life of America: The main takeaway is that our government overreached yet again. And our government cannot force individuals to violate their freedom of conscience and their freedom of belief.
JUDY WOODRUFF: On the other side, supporters of the mandate voiced disappointment.
MICHELLE KINSEY BRUNS: Clearly, the court is just out of touch on the will of the American people on this. Birth control is not controversial. It’s really not, except for a very small extreme religious minority.
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JOSH EARNEST, White House Press Secretary: The ruling allows the bosses of these women to essentially step in and say, well, I have a religious concern, so you’re not allowed to make your own decision about whether or not you would like to benefit from these services. We’re going to make sure that they aren’t provided. We strongly disagree with that. We believe that Congress should take action to fix it.
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ELIZABETH WYDRA, Constitutional Accountability Center: I agree with Justice Ginsburg, who said in her dissent that the majority’s ruling was startlingly broad. And I think that’s right, because for the first time in more than 200 years of free exercise law, the court has said that a for-profit privately owned corporation can exercise religious free exercise rights, something that has been thought to apply only to living, breathing individual human beings, and not to artificial corporate entities.
"Court limits how public unions can make nonmembers pay fees" (Decision-2) PBS NewsHour 6/30/2014
Excerpt
SUMMARY: The Supreme Court delivered a setback to organized labor with a 5-4 decision on whether public sector home-health workers have to pay union dues. Marcia Coyle of The National Law Journal analyzes the arguments and implications with Judy Woodruff.
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