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BY VICTORIA CRAIG
ANCHOR LAUREN GORES
You're watching multisource political video news analysis from Newsy.
The Supreme Court begins a new term today...and it’s likely to be one with high stakes. The court is expected to hear a number of controversial cases, and President Obama’s health care law is one many Americans are keeping their eyes on. CNN explains the momentum behind the law’s challenge.
“Lawsuits brought by 28 states and dozens of individuals and groups have challenged the federal government’s right to require people to purchase health insurance, the key provision in the law. Analysts say the court will almost certainly address this hot button issue this term. ... The politics of health care aside, this is the central issue. This could change the way the government and the people interact going forward in our country.”
As Politco reports, the Supreme Court has many compelling reasons to accept the health care case. But in doing so, it could inadvertently set up a a heated battle as the country prepares for the 2012 elections.
“A Supreme Court ruling in the middle of a presidential election could carry serious political risks, since a decision upholding or striking the mandate has the potential to galvanize either Republicans or Democrats. If the court accepts the case before January, it is likely to be put on the calendar to be heard in the spring. A decision would likely be postponed until June.”
But the battle over health care isn’t the only landmark case the country’s highest court could hear. As one analyst tells Fox News, deportation of undocumented immigrants will be a hot issue this term as well after the Obama administration’s opposition to immigration laws like Arizona’s.
“They’ve been unbelievably aggressive on that front. They’ve gone out and they’ve sued various states who’ve enacted immigration laws, trying to get those laws struck down as unconstitutional. So what you’re seeing now is a very tight tightrope that the administration is walking: They don’t want to alienate their base, but at the same time, to their credit, they’ve said, look, we can’t have our hands tied. We need to have the enforcement capabilities we need to be able to remove dangerous people from our communities if they’re here illegally and they commit a crime.”
The LA Times reports the Supreme Court will decide whether immigration is a federal or state issue.
“Lower-court judges blocked Arizona's law from taking effect, saying the federal government has exclusive control over immigration. Last week, though, a judge in Alabama cleared parts of a similar state law to go into effect there.”
While immigration is a divisive issue, MSNBC reports the Supreme Court is likely to take up another controversial case that deals with race in the college admissions process.
“Eight years ago, the court said colleges could consider race to make classes more diverse. But since then, the court has become more conservative on the issue of affirmative action.”
Other cases the court is likely to hear involve a ban by the FCC on broadcasters to use expletive language, gay marriage rights, and whether police need warrants to install tracking devices on cars to monitor movements by criminal suspects.
Transcript by Newsy.
