cnn's chief medical correspondent and also in his free time a practicing neurosurgeon at a public hospital and worked in the white house during the clinton administration and will cain, an attorney and columnist at the the blaze.com and following the case closely. this morning the supreme court will decide whether all or part of the president's affordable care act is constitutional. politically it is considered the signature legislation of president obama's time in office. likely to be as well a centerpiece of the presidential election. stakes are high on all sides. the most contentious part of the law is the individual mandate. it brings us right to jeff toobin live in front of the supreme court with what could happen today. jeff, why don't you start by walking me through what the main issues are that are at stake here. >> this is really an epic case in the history of the supreme court because this piece of legislation affects so many different people. the heart of the dispute in this case is about what you call the

individual mandate, the requirement that every american have insurance. obviously most americans already have insurance through their jobs. this law doesn't change that. 30 million people will get insurance according to the obama administration if this law goes fully into effect. there is a requirement in this law that every american have insurance. if you can't afford t the government will subsidize it for you. that requirement that every american have insurance is at the heart of the controversy. what the challenges to the law say is that congress in passing that law exceeded the power that the constitution gives to the congress under article 1 of the constitution to regulate interstate commerce, the commerce clause of the constitution. is the requirement that every american have insurance outside congress's power to regulate the

intrastate commerce. that's the toughest question and when we know the answer a little after 10:00 this morning we'll know how much of this law if any will no longer be on the books. >> we will know the answer at 10:00. let's walk through what the court can do. they could strike the individual mandate. they could strike the expansion of medicaid. they could strike the entire thing. they could punt in a way and cite tax law for the punting. where do you come down on that? what do you think is likely to happen there? >> are you asking me? >> yes, i am. >> i think you left out one very distinct possibility which is that they simply affirm the whole law. most of the time when congress -- when the supreme court considers the constitutionality of federal legislation, they say it is fine, it is not the supreme court's job to decide whether law is a good idea, whether they would vote if they were members of congress. the only job of the supreme court is to say whether a piece

of legislation is so far outside of congress' power that it is simply unconstitutional and cannot be allowed to stand. based on the oral argument, however, i thought the most likely outcome is that they would strike down the individual mandate, the requirement that people have insurance, but leave most of the rest of the law in tact. that's what i thought the main possibility was but there are certainly many people who think affirming the whole thing is a distinct possibility as well. >> let's walk through the implications of some of those legal decisions first of all. let's say it is upheld altogether and nothing changes. >> one thing that's important so point out is a lot of the law has not gone into effect. for a lot of people they may not notice a big change depending on any of the decisions you just mentioned. until 2014 some of the big provisions won't go into effect. if the whole thing is upheld, essentially you have tens of millions of people who will probably now have access to health care, around 30 million

probably they say in part because either they will have to buy it, they can afford it right now, and now they will have to buy it or face a penalty. will you have people who will get subsidized either through expansions of medicaid and various states or through subsidies and people will be able to buy this on exchanges as well come 2014. you can see a dramatic number of people who have health care insurance then who don't have it now. >> let's say the individual mandate is struck down. >> this is an interesting thing. the mandate if you think about that sort of as the funding arm if you will of this whole thing, so it helps pay for people who are sick you understand why you have to have it. i think there is another part, the psychology of it, saying, look, i will buy insurance when i need it and i know they can't charge any any more money so why would i be it until i need t i will get sick and then i will buy insurance. the car insurance analogy like i just got in a wreck and all the car insurance company and say i have car insurance now and they can't charge more money. you could see where that is a

problem and that is tried in various places at the state level. in kentucky they tried it in the mid-'90s and insurance companies cannot discriminate against people based on preexisting conditions >> and did people wait? >> people waited and everybody's insurance premiums went up by up to 40%. so even people that said i have no dog in this race and haven't paid attention and all of a sudden they saw their premiums go up as well and they started paying attention and eventually it was overturned. >> let's turn to jim acosta looking at the political implications because it is not happening in a vacuum. he laughs when i say vacuum of course. walk me through what it means, what the risks, the upsides and the downsides for each candidate and start with mitt romney for me, please. >> for mitt romney obviously if this law is struck down today what the obama campaign is going to say is that, wait a minute, when mitt romney was governor of massachusetts he passed a law that is almost exactly the same law the president signed when he was passing health care reform a

couple of years ago. we have heard the president just in recent days go afternoon mitt romney on this issue because romney has said if the supreme court does not rule this law unconstitutional and does not throw it out he will seek to repeal it on day one of the administration and what the president said in recent days is mitt romney wants to take us back to the day when insurance companies could discriminate against people with preskpising conditions. the romney campaign says wait a minute, that's not the case f mitt romney is elected president he will come into office and repeal what they call obama care and he will put in place a different kind of health care reform that does not have an individual mandate and that does cover people with preexisting conditions and that does provide some of those consumer protections and goes back to what sanjay was saying a few moments ago which is, wait a minute, none of that stuff works without the individual mandate, so, soledad, i think what we have here if the supreme court case goes down, if the president's law goes down today sort of a whole new stage of this campaign and that it is

going to be over health care reform. both sides will be asked what do we do now because potentially there are millions of americans who might be affected by all of this. >> let's talk a little bit, will, about the centerpiece, the individual man at a time and really it is all about the constitution, isn't it? >> it is all about the constitution. listen, soledad, anybody watching this program knows that i have opinions and i am not hiding them. however, i also am an attorney and do understand this law and i want to explain to the viewers what the supreme court is debating, what the issue is at hand. if die venture into the world of opinion, we have another 20er7b, one who worked for bill clinton and of course we have jeff toobin with us to pull me back into position. >> i am glad jeff is here with me. >> in order to address whether or not congress has the positive you are to compel americans to buy insurance, the individual mandate, we have to turn to the constitution. the constitution is a list of enumerated powers. it is a fancy way of saying here is a list of things congress can

do. i want to focus on two of them. congress has the power to tax and spend. this is right here at the top of the powers. this, i know you can't read t it is old english script so i got it blown up. this is the general welfare clause that reads that congress shall have the power to lay and protect accident at thats, provide for the common defense and general welfare. why is that important? we have had a ton of congressional laws passed through the taxing power, things like a government retirement program and a/k/a social security or health insurance program for the elderly and medicare and, however, the taxing power is not the constitutional justification by most accounts for the individual mandate. rather, congress and the government went down a few lines to this line right here, what is called the interstate commerce clause. tid blown up here. it reads like this, that congress shall have the power to

regulate with foreign nations and among the several states. again, this power has been read very, very broadly by the supreme court. it has been used to justify laws such as requiring that restaurants serve all americans regardless of what race they are, the 1964 civil rights laws, and most of our federal criminal code has been read through the interstate commerce power, rico laws, regulating medical marijuana and labor laws as well have been brought to us through the interstate commerce clause. here is the did he pat they're debating today. there is argument this is a great leap forward. for the first time congress is forcing you into commerce. it is requiring that you buy health insurance. that, according to those challenging the law, is the great leap forward. you saw several justices ask questions, essentially asking what this term, a limiting principle. what's the limiting principle, recognizing that the constitution is is a document of limited powers. if we allow you to do this, what can't do you?

where is this the limit on this document? that's where questions came in like if we do this can the government require to you buy broccoli or can the government require you to buy burial insurance? that's the debate. >> there are other instances, right, where the government does require you to do things. the government requires to you buy insurance or you cannot drive your car. >> that's right. >> the federal government does not. >> no, but there is a state requirement to do so. so how is that different? >> first -- >> i want so say so far have you done a better job explaining this than i think the solicitor general did at the supreme court. i mean, remember, there was the argument where he seemed flustered. i think that's pretty fair. i think you have bent over backwards a little bit not to state a position. i think that's pretty fair. there are plenty of instances where the government can require you to do something, so especially when in an area like

health care where it forms so much of the economic activity that we all engage in everywhere. it is like 1/8th of the total economic activity of the country. >> but richard makes a good point. that's the question the justices asked the government. if you can do this, what can you not do and they had trouble answering that question. they had trouble providing a limitation. in the end the argument was this, the health care market is different, it is just simply different. that did not sit well with a lot of the justices in two hours, three hours we'll find out if they do see the health care market as different. >> the one thing i would add to this, a lot of the argument around this that has taken place is how far -- how much of a stretch is this health care law in terms of how far is it stretching the present constitutional law and most scholars believe when this law was going into effect that this was very much within the normal range of the activity that was regulated, so i think that we have seen, you know, the political here also coming in on the legal. >> we'll talk about that this

morning. this is all being done in a political context. we have all morning to talk about health care law and the specific implications that it will have for people that need health insurance or may not want to buy health insurance. we'll continue the conversation all morning long and we'll speak to republican senator mike lee. i think i said he is from new york. he is from utah. we're going to talk to democratic senator chuck schumer who is from new york. they will both be joining me live this morning. fist we have to get to breaking news. a massive explosion outside the palace of justice in damascus. christine romans has an update for us. >> let's start with the breaking news out of sir a state tv reports a bomb exploded in damascus in the parking area outside of the palace of justice being described as a terrorist bombing. so far no word on casualties. stay with cnn for the breaking details. we'll have more pictures and news for you throughout the morning. history on tap in the house today. an unprecedented vote on whether to cite attorney general eric holder for contempt of congress.

holder was at the white house attending the annual congressional picnic. republicans accuse holder of stonewalling on the fast and furious weapons program by withholding some documents. that program allowed guns to end up in the hands of mexican cartels and linked to the death of a u.s. border parole agent. president obama asserted executive privilege over some of the documents. next hour we'll talk with emanuel cleaver about the possible walkout during the vote. hundreds of homes on fire, 36,000 people forced to flee as wildfires burn out of control in colorado this morning. take a look at these images from the denver post just showing the extent of damage the fires are doing. there is hope today that calmer winds will improve the situation, but this fight is far from over. meteorologist rob marciano is live this morning in colorado springs. good morning, rob. >> hi, christine. winds are relatively calm now. that's what happens at night but during the day yesterday what will probably happen again today, thunderstorms will kick up not necessarily dropping beneficial raining but enhancing

the winds and making the fire behavior veriy rat and i can at times the fire fighters had actually to seek safe places and the picture that is we have seen come in, a terrifying night tuesday night and a scary day yesterday as well and no official count and certainly well over 100 and maybe 200 or 300 homes burned here just in the northwest suburbs of colorado springs. this is the surreal part, just over my left shoulder you see city lights and cars driving by and west of i-25 is where the subdivision took the brunt of the flames and that's the point in which they're trying to beat back the fire. only 5% containment, over 18,000 homes or acres burned and over 32,000 people have been evacuated. part of the reason, the flames burned so hot, the heat and the dry air here which is now moving to the east and several states, over 20 states east now of the mississippi are going to be affected by intense heat and some cases dangerously hot and

humid conditions over the next several days. chicago, cincinnati, d.c., all cities that will see temperatures at times up and over 100 and maybe touching the 100 degree mark through the weekend. christine. >> also on the move, debby. as debby moves away from florida, there is more rain in the forecast, scattered showers and storms across central florida over the weekend. some areas hit with 26 inches of rain this week, more than 5,000 people in several counties still without power and officials say four people died in separate incidents. thank you for the update. still ahead this morning we'll continue our conversation about today's historic health care decision and we'll get insight from senator mike lee of utah. he used to be a clerk, a former law clerk for samuel alito. interesting to get his perspective. he is convinced they will strike down all or part of the law.

the right and left have lots to say about the law and usually on different sides, but what's true? what's false? we're fact checking both sides this morning. you're watching "starting point." we have to take a short break. back in just a moment. but their shakes aren't always made for people with diabetes. that's why there's glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. and they have six grams of sugars. with fifteen grams of protein to help manage hunger... look who's getting smart about her weight. [ male announcer ] glucerna hunger smart. a smart way to help manage hunger and diabetes. and the chefs at lean cuisine are loving tangy lemon, peppery poblano, sweet butternut. we're roasting, and grilling to create must-have meals with no preservatives. lean cuisine. be culinary chic. a living, breathing intelligence teaching data how to do more for business. [ beeping ]

in here, data knows what to do. because the network finds it and tailors it across all the right points, automating all the right actions, to bring all the right results. [ whirring and beeping ] it's the at&t network -- doing more with data to help business do more for customers. ♪ to help business do more for customers. we charge everything else... maybe it's time to recharge the human battery. only the beautyrest recharge sleep system combines the comfort of aircool memory foam layered on top of beautyrest pocketed coils to promote proper sleeping posture all night long. the revolutionary recharge sleep system from beautyrest... it's you, fully charged. get a free set of sheets when you buy a select beautyrest mattress. hurry, offer ends soon.

i'm one of six children that my mother raised by herself, and so college was a dream when i was a kid. i didn't know how i was gonna to do it, but i knew i was gonna get that opportunity one day, and that's what happened with university of phoenix. nothing can stop me now. i feel like the sky's the limit with what i can do and what i can accomplish. my name is naphtali bryant and i am a phoenix. visit phoenix.edu to find the program that's right for you. enroll now.

welcome back to "starting point," everybody. we'll return to the health care conversation. in less than three hours the justices will announce their ruling and as we all know and talking about for a long time, this could change the entire frame of health care in this country. mike lee from utah is a former law clerk to justice samuel alito and attended oral arguments in the supreme court's health care case. nice to see you. thanks for talking with us this morning. which way do you think it will go? >> i think the court is likely to invalidate the individual mandate. this is something that for most americans off fends their basic sense of freedom and not something they want. i think the justices understand this doesn't fall comfortably within any of congress's powers. >> some people have said and most notably jeff toobin if it is roberts writing the decision, that signals something. what do you think that signals. >> if it is chief justice roberts writing the opinion i think it is likely an opinion

invalidating the individual mandate. chief justice roberts was opinion atd at oral ak umt and every time he expressedable opinion critical he intended to express it in terms of the first person, you know, i have this concern and i have that concern. when he was expressing the other view point he would say some would say that we should uphold the mandate. i took that as a pretty strong indication as to which way he leans in this case. if he is authoring the opinion, he assigned himself the opinion, he is in the majority and means the majority opinion is likely to avout the demand. >> and say you're correct and the individual mandate is invalidated, what happens to the other things around it? does the preexisting conditions clause, for example, if you can't fund that, what happens to that? what happens next? >> i think it is very likely if the court does in fact invalidate the mandate that it also invalidates the community rating and guaranteed issue

provisions because those really couldn't exist, couldn't operate in isolation of the mandate without causing the whole structure to become unstable. that's why i think on the severability analysis at a minimum if it goes down so too does guaranteed issue and community rating. >> is there a concern politically now that if you throw out and we know that boehner has said that basically the goal will be to try to over turn all of the different provisions of the law if in fact they can get the individual mandate thrown out, and you lose a number. what's the number of children who are not covered, sanjay, by insurance? >> 13 to 15 million probably. >> you lose the coverage for preexisting conditions, have you a bunch of people who don't have health care and all of those could be i think for democrats real issues in an election year over the next five months. isn't that a challenge for you to kind of answer those charges over the next five months? >> i think those will certainly be issues not just for democrats but also republicans.

one way or another we'll have to approach this logically and on a step by step basis so we make sure we address the difficult challenges americans face with health care. one way or another what we have to move towards is a system in which americans have more options and in consultation with the doctors make their own health care decisions and rather than have them being made for them by government bureaucrats in washington. >> i think that most of the pressure is on president obama x if, his signature legislation deemed unconstitutional and that will not play well politically. i do think it injects health care back into the debate. i am not sure health care is a debate mitt romney wants to have now. i think he would like to have it exclusively on the economy >> that's a very important point. obviously this is the president's signature domestic policy achievement and they would like to have it upheld very much so. >> if it is not, it is just bad news. >> it is bad news but there is always you never know unintended

consequences in politics. you never know if something happens and you can turn it around and it may become a big issue that's a positive for the president in the election. i personally think they definitely want the best outcome for the white house would be to have the whole thing upheld which i think there is a strong possibility of happening. >> and it is worth pointing out again that governor romney knows about man dates. did he this in massachusetts. >> senator lee, the last question to you. there is an interesting poll that asks are the supreme court justices biassed and 76% of the people asked said that the judges were influenced by personal or political views and only 13% felt that they make decisions based only on legal analysis, another 11% saying they just don't know. does that concern you that there is a really big sense that the courts are partisan, the supreme court is partisan? >> that poll is somewhat concerning. i also think it is inaccurate

for whatever it is worth. if these justices do approach the law from their own different philosophical vantage points, that is not the same as saying that they're politically charged, that they vote according to the party of the president who appointed them. i think it is important for the american people to understand that we do have nine justices who don't always agree. we have nine justices who each approach the law from a different philosophical standpoint. it is determined i believe to find the right answer in each case and i think that's what they attempted to do here. >> it will be very interesting to see how this case comes down. mike lee, senator from utah. earlier i said new york. no, from utah. thank you for joining us. in the next hour we'll talk to chuck schumer joining us live. aside from health care another major story out of washington, the house will vote on mr. attorney general eric holder should be held in contempt. bill burton, a former deputy press secretary for the obama

white house will join us to talk about that and the fda approves the first new weight loss drug in the decade but is the potential danger of using it too high? here is mike lee's playlist. vampire weekend, a punk, you're watching "starting point." going to take a break. back in a momentment. every communications provider is different but centurylink is committed to being a different kind of communications company. ♪ we link people and fortune 500 companies nationwide and around the world. and we will continue to free you to do more and focus on what matters. last season was the gulf's best tourism season in years. in florida we had more suntans... in alabama we had more beautiful blooms... in mississippi we had more good times... in louisiana we had more fun on the water. last season we broke all kinds of records on the gulf.

this year we are out to do even better... and now is a great time to start. our beatches are even more relaxing... the fishing's great. so pick your favorite spot on the gulf... and come on down. brought to you by bp and all of us who call the gulf home. the lines. the cost. the hassle. ♪ express yourself [ female announcer ] why not try coffee-mate? with over 25 delicious flavors for a fraction of the cost of the coffee house. add your flavor with coffee-mate, from nestle. a living, breathing intelligence helping business, do more business. in here, opportunities are created and protected. gonna need more wool! demand is instantly recognized and securely acted on

across the company. around the world. turning a new trend, into a global phenomenon. it's the at&t network -- securing a world of new opportunities. ♪

welcome back to "starting point." our special coverage of the supreme court health care ruling continues in just a few moments as we speak to bill burton, former press secretary for the obama white house and he will join us live straight ahead. remember the tv show good times and j.j. j.j. walker will be joining us. dny-o-mite. >> good morning. breaking news out of sir a two huge explosions have rocked the capital city of damascus. they say two blasts have hit the parking garage outside the palace of jois just one day after seven people were killed when a pro government tv station was bombed and at least three hurt in morning's bombings and

at least 45 killed in fighting across provinces today. hillary clinton will attend emergency talks on the syria crisis this weekend. coffee kofi annan called for a political transition in syria after 15 months of violence. out of control wildfires in colorado exploded to epic proportions and the erratic winds fueling the flames are expected to continue this morning. the waldo canyon fire which doubled in size forced 36,000 people out of their homes. president obama is traveling to the state tomorrow. to find out how you can help go to cnn.com/impact. the am house call, the fda approving belviq, the first new prescription drug for long-term weight loss in over a decade. it is designed for overweight and obese adults with one or more health issues and health issues like diabetes or high

cholesterol and it works by fooling the brain so patients eat less and still feel full. the consumer group public citizen wanted the fda to reject it. they're worried it could increase the risk of heart damage. could quitting smoking one day be as easy as getting a single shot? researchers at the cornell medical college successfully tested a vaccine in mice to treat nicotine addiction. the study showed levels of the chemical in the brain reduced by 85% after vaccination. the nba draft happening tonight at the rock in newark, new jersey. anthony davis the man with the uni-brow is the consensus choice to be selected first by the hornets. soledad. >> i am so happy for him and so happy for new orleans and it was so interesting to hear magic johnson tell him surround yourself with friends and people that will support you. >> and trademarked the uni-brow. >> major decisions out of

washington, d.c. today. the supreme court will rule on president obama's health care law and they could let the law stand and strike it down as a whole and rule on specific provisions like the individual mandate and just across the street at the capital the house is expected to hold an unprecedented vote against attorney general eric holder. they could hold him in contempt of congress for failing to turn over documents concerning the fast and furious drug running operation. bill burton is the former deputy press secretary for the obama white house and the senior strategist for priorities usa action which is an obama super pac. . nice to see you. thanks for talking with us this morning. let's talk first about health care legislation if we can and how devastating will it be if it is struck down and the president spent three years working on, this the signature of his time in office. if it is knocked down, how bad is that for him? >> i think there are a seerds of outcomes that could happen and not as clear cut and i think no matter what we're in the middle of implementing what is very important reforms for the

american people and what's been good about this whole process, the silver lining for people that care about health care reform is we've had a discussion about what are the parts of health care reform that will be affected if the supreme court acts, the fact that now if you're under 26 you can stay on your parents health insurance and there is preventive care like mammograms through medicare and if you have a preexisting condition like pregnancy you can't be stopped from getting health care insurance. all of those things are on the table today. it is helping to crystalize what the choices and the presidential race as well between the president who has this accomplishment and pushing health care reform and mitt romney whose plan is basically just repeal reform. >> that's a really great way of spinning that, if this thing goes south and does not work out for the president, i think it is going to be bad for him. don't you think? >> it is not just doesn't work out for the president, doesn't work out for the american people. it is the american people that lose here if all of these reforms are stripped away. smart people on both sides -- >> i am not speaking

politically. i am talking politically, the two candidates. if in fact this is struck down politically speaking the president spent three years working on this. this is bad for him, right? >> i think if you look at just the raw politics, the nbc poll yesterday that showed that on the issue of health care reform democrats are trusted more than republicans by 15% and that's because as we talk more about health care, it is clear that regardless of what the supreme court does, the american people know that the president and his allies in congress are more dedicated to reform than mitt romney and the republicans are. >> how much of this is just bad way of managing the message? when you look at the polling on this, i think it is really interesting. you ask people about the affordable care act requirement that americans have insurance, 51% say they disapprove and 45% say they approve and 4% say they don't know. when you actually go through the individual issues, you know, approve coverage of preexisting conditions, 85% approve that. 77% approval loug children up to

age 28 to remain on their parents insurance. to some degree is it bad messaging out of the white house about what the health care act actually does? >> i do think that has been a benefit of this conversation that we are really talking about it and keep in mind that the opponents have -- >> the bad messaging has been a benefit. >> no. i am saying the discussion is a benefit. keep in mind the opponents have spend over $200 million to try to stop reform, to repeal reform and do all of these things. the mandate is a conservative idea. conservatives pushed it. mitt romney, republican governor of massachusetts put it in his health care plan and what the president sat down and figured out was the best way to make sure everybody had access to affordable care. if it is struck down and all of health care reform is struck down, it is a loss for the american people. i know there are politics here. i am convinced that the president is on the right side of the issue with the american people. i just think that the people who lose are americans who are depending on all of these

reforms in health care. >> priorities usa has a new ad. i want to play a tiny chunk of that if we can. >> romney bought companies and drowned them in debt and many went bankrupt and thousands of workers lost jobs, benefits and pensions. for every company he drove into the ground, romney averaged a $92 million profit. now he says his business experience would make him a good president. >> here is what bain capital responded. they say bain capital does not make money on investments when our investors lose money and any suggestion to the contrary is based on a misleading analysis that examines the income of a business without taking account of the expenses. also, when you look at the polling on this overall, people who say that bain capital doesn't make a difference or how they feel about it, you actually see that people say it doesn't make much of a difference, 24%, and people that feel more positive about the experience, mitt romney's experience at bain

capital, 23% and you add that up, 47% and actually isn't that a bad issue to be trying to push at in point with five months to go before the election? >> a couple of things. the poll you're looking at there, if you look just in swing states where we're advertising, the difference is a 10-point gap between people that think that mitt romney's experience in private industry is a helpful thing for him to be president and people who think it would be a hurtful characteristic for his presidency. now, the president isn't running against bain capital. he is running against mitt romney that says his experience would make him a better president so that statement from bain that you put up on the screen is completely misleading. if they want to say that this is based on a bad analysis, there are issues with the "new york times" because the "new york times" just this weekend published a report that showed that in seven different cases mitt romney made an average of $92 million when companies went under. now, the notion that they're not making a profit from that is

just blatantly false. when the american people find out what exactly mitt romney's business experience was, how he made his millions of dollars, it gives them great pause. it is not just me saying that. it is that poll when you look into it shows it is the walmart focus groups, the focus groups run by democracy core in high. it is across the boards these ads are making a difference. >> stop for a second and ask will a question. you can see people have moved on from bain capital. do you think that is fair to say? >> no. i hope that guys like bill are successful in forcing the bain conversation back into the national debate. i think the bain conversation is one as a conservative that is an absolute winner for us. i believe that arguing over the efficacy and the proper role of private equity and capitalism and profits in society is one that is inherently and easily winnable. >> i think the ad is a very successful ad, though. i think what mr. burton says is correct, that in the states where they use the ad the obama

numbers have gone way up. they should have had that advertising for health care. that is a disaster but that ad is a good ad. >> final word to you, mr. burton, do you degree it is a disaster in terms of advertising for health care and getting your message out on that front? >> i think the democrats and the allies of reform have been out spent by a tremendous amount and even show the support has been fairly durable with 51% of the american people supporting it. >> bill burton is a senior strategist for priorities usa. nice to have you. thank you for talking with us this morning. still ahead on "starting point," the right and the left have lots to say, lots, so much to say about the health care law. >> we have more. >> i know you do. i know you do. what's true and what's not true, we'll fact check both sides coming up next. it was one of the most iconic sitcoms ever, jimmy walker from good times will join us to talk about that. when you have diabetes...

your doctor will say get smart about your weight. i tried weight loss plans... but their shakes aren't always made for people with diabetes. that's why there's glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. and they have six grams of sugars. with fifteen grams of protein to help manage hunger... look who's getting smart about her weight. [ male announcer ] glucerna hunger smart. a smart way to help manage hunger and diabetes. great! tyler here will show you everything. check out our new mobile app. now you can use your phone to scan your car's vin or take a picture of your license.

it's an easy way to start a quote. watch this -- flo, can i see your license? no. well, all right. thanks. okay, here we go. whoa! no one said "cheese." progressive mobile -- insurance has never been easier. get a free quote today. the lines. the cost. the hassle. ♪ express yourself [ female announcer ] why not try coffee-mate? with over 25 delicious flavors for a fraction of the cost of the coffee house. add your flavor with coffee-mate, from nestle.

welcome back to "starting point." a look at the headlines this

morning. the news corporate bourque bourque will divide rupert murdoch's media conglomerate into separate entities both publicly traded. a formal announcement is expected today. bernie madoff's brother is pleading guilty to charges related to madoff's huge ponzi scheme. peter madoff is charged with conspiracy and falsifying records and agreed to fore fit all assets and personal property and expected to get ten years in jail. >> christine, thank you. our get real this morning is really more like get real facts, please. we're counting down to the supreme court's historic ruling on president obama's health care law. want to take a moment to fact check a couple claims about health care reform and today's decision. the law has only been in effect for 828 days, the subject of intense criticism since the very inception. congressional republicans are among the hash best critics and

promising a repeal if they let is stand. here is house speaker john boehner. >> we made it clear and i will make it clear one more time. if the court does not strike down the entire law, the house will move to repeal what's left of it. obama care is driving up the cost of health care and making it harder for small businesses to hire new workers. our focus has been the economy and will continue to be the economy. >> so first question is the president's health care law really driving up the cost of health care as speaker boehner was just claiming there. it is not exactly clear what he is referring to there, but let's say for the sake of argument he means driving up the cost of health care premiums, health insurance premiums did jump 9% from 2010 to 2011 and an increase that republicans blame on the health care law. according to fact check.org the law only caused about a 1 to 3% increase. the rest of the 9% increase is thanks to rising health care

costs. sanjay, what items fall under those rising health care costs? >> health care costs have been going up for decades. it costs more. there is more technology. we have more expensive ways to take care of people and america is not particularly good at taking care of itself. nearly three quarters of adults are overweight or obese and 1 in 5 smoke. those things cost money. we talk about that all the time. there is a price tag associated with that. nobody in the world is terrific at reducing health care costs. this isn't a uniquely american problem. we seem to be particularly bad at it in terms of those controls >> let's carry on for fact check. the increase caused by the law as a result of increased benefits, too, for example, allowing kids to stay on the parent's policy until 26 and recovering preexisting conditions. the second part is making it harder for small businesses to hire new workers. the fact is businesses with fewer than 50 employees are exempt and according again to factcheck.org, experts predict

is may cause a small loss of low wage jobs but will create an increase in better paying jobs in the health care and health insurance companies. will, do you think that's a compelling argument here, lose some, gain some. >> a job killer do, i find that's a compelling argument? i think it is a very nuanced argument which is never a good political argument and that is this, the health care law cause the uncertainty in the economy and a lack of not knowing what comes next which makes it hard to hire and there is a correct argument to make there. is it easy? no. it is easier to say it is a job killer. >> before i get to you, richard, they say you're not exactly wrong and not exactly right. republicans aren't the only ones stretching the truth about this. here is president obama speaking earlier this year. >> i am confident that the supreme court will not take what would be an unprecedented extraordinary step of over turning a law that was passed by

a strong majority of a democratically elected congress. >> so was it fair to say that -- >> fact check, that's correct. >> -- that the law was passed by a strong majority of democratically elected con sgres. >> he is right. >> no. he was passed along party lines with 60 votes. the supreme court over turned laws before passed by congress. i am not sure what he meant by unprecedented. that would be wrong also. >> the word unprecedented comes up a lot. >> it is not a nuance word, is it. >> no. >> it is precedented or not. >> i think the republicans that opposed the law have been extremely successful in convincing the american public there is something unprecedented about this law. as we said before, i think it is squarely within the bounds of what's allowed under the constitution and i think the fair argument that republicans are not making but what is really at the essence of the argument against this law is that this is not the way

republicans like to do it. they like the free market to do it. they want the insurance companies to do it. they want capitalism to run this. i think the election in 2008 was a mandate saying you have to do something, government has to get more involved in health care because costs are out of control. >> we'll see at 10:00 this morning what the supreme court says on that. still ahead, i can't say this the right way. i height to try. try. >> din-o-mite. >> pretty good. you remember. >> >> good times tv icon j.j. walker will join us to talk next. here he is. nice to have you. welcome, welcome. [ male announcer ] we began with the rx. ♪ then we turned the page, creating the rx hybrid. ♪ now we've turned the page again with the all-new rx f sport. ♪ this is the next chapter for the rx.

this is the next chapter for lexus. this is the pursuit of perfection. and the chefs at lean cuisine are loving tangy lemon, peppery poblano, sweet butternut. we're roasting, and grilling to create must-have meals with no preservatives. lean cuisine. be culinary chic.

you can come home any time you get ready. >> would immediately be too soon? >> it would be right on. >> dynamite! >> trying to say it all morning. "good times" was one of the most popular sitcoms of the 1970s. ran from 1974 to 1979. it was a groundbreaking show. a story of a struggling african-american family living in a chicago housing project. in the first full season, the seventh highest rated show, reaching 17 million households. and the show launched comedian jimmie walker in stardom with the famous catchphrase. >> it was a dynamite thing. >> which he says has an interesting backstory and written a memoir about his life and the show. jimmie walker joins us this morning. do you get sick of people saying

dynamite? >> i don't think people say it that much. i always tell the story, when 9/11 happened and had to take off for like whatever it was, two weeks, and we were coming through the airport and nobody knew who was happening at this time, and people, you know, whatever, fans, and you're going through after they turn your suitcase -- not like it is now, and one of the girls working behind the counter saw her and said dynamite and took her away. >> oh my goodness. >> you say that was an ad lib. >> from me to john rich who was our director and john rich says we got something here. i said, what are you talking about? he says, do the dynamite thing and he went out and got an iso camera. did the thing. et cetera, et cetera. i said, john, come on. a guy just standing there saying dynamite, people are not that stupid. and he said -- >> apparently. >> he said, yes, they are.

>> were you stunned and became -- >> no. i'm a comedian. you're trying for anything you can get. that's the key thing. you try, you try. you have to ad lib. it is like you're talking about health care. not just a constitution. you have to ad lib. try different things. you try a you're politically oriented, aren't you? >> debating me on health care in the break. >> yeah. >> you know, well, well, i worked in talk radio here in new york for like ten years and then worked in -- on different places, whether it be oai in san antonio or ls in chicago or kmj. we do a lot of talk. we do a lot of talk, constantly. >> you have called yourself the black sheep among black people. what do you mean by that? >> well, what happens is when you do something on a commercial level, people are going to turn against you. this is the kind of business that people always think you stink. there's nobody going to like you in this racket. if you have a soft ego, you're

done here. you're going to get hate mail. people go you're horrible. in terms of the black thing, we didn't work in the black market for a long time and our show took some hits from the black thing. you know? so -- in terms of my concert stuff which i'll bo at the broadway comedy club tonight -- thank you -- you lost some followers and that happens. >> are you happy with the reception of the book? it's getting a lot of interest. >> a lot of interest because diversity of it. there's a lot of topics, political topics, my writing staff and people stunned i have had the people i was lucky to have on the star was jay leno and david letterman and louie anderson and jack handy from "saturday night live" and stunned of 31 people on the staff. >> you dish a fair amount of dirt, as well. i was reading it last night.

jimmie, nice to have you join us. >> get my original app. 99 cents. 40 years in the business. i'm worth 99 cents. pick it up. >> we'll take a short break. we'll be back in just a moment. why not make lunch more than just lunch? with two times the points on dining in restaurants, you may find yourself asking why not, a lot. chase sapphire preferred.

mornings are a special time for the two of you... and now you can make them even more special... with new fancy feast mornings. mornings are delicious protein rich entrées... with garden veggies and egg. each one perfectly designed... to start her day with a little love. new fancy feast mornings gourmet cat food. the best ingredient is love.

[ male announcer ] aggressive styling. a more fuel-efficient turbocharged engine. and a completely redesigned interior. ♪ the 2012 c-class with over 2,000 refinements. it's amazing...inside and out. see your authorized mercedes-benz dealer for exceptional offers through mercedes-benz financial services. we welcome everybody. starting point this morning, stakes are high awaiting one of the most important decisions ever from the supreme court in just two hours. the yus tises will decide if president obama's health care law is constitutional. the outcome could have a major impact on all of us. got full coverage this morning on the health care decision. cnn legal analyst jeff toobin is

outside the courthouse for us this morning. dr. sanjay gupta is here talking about the medical ramifications and then later this morning we are talking to new york senator chuck schumer. another decision, will attorney general holder be held in contempt of congress over the fast and furious operation? there's word there could be a walkout. no relief in sight as tens of thousands of people are running from the enormous wildfires in colorado. why today it could get even worse. we'll bring you live to colorado this morning. thursday, june 28th. and "starting point" begins right now. ♪ irks i was looking for one of those, too. >> write it down. who's that? that's off of sanjay's list. paralyzer. might be a good choice for today. we are waiting, of course, this historic decision of the supreme court. 10:00 eastern. the justices will announce the

decision on president obama's health care law. we have coverage this morning on all angles. our team here in the studio richard socarides, he worked for the clinton administration back in 1993. dr. sanjay gupta is with us this morning, cnn's chief medical correspondent. he's also a practicing neurosurgeon in his free time. he worked in the bush administration in the clinton administration. will cain with us this morning, an attorney and a columnist at the blaze.com. walking us through what's at heart of the case, looking at the constitution. politically speaking, it is considered the signature legislation of president obama's time in office and likely to be a focal point of the presidential election. the most con ten jous part of the law, the mandate. get to jeff toobin at the supreme court with what could happen today. walk me through the options for the court. >> okay. first option, very simple. they affirm the law. they say it's constitutional.

it can go in to effect. the other options start to get more complicated. they could invalidate the whole lue. they could say that the unconstitutional part of it is so interwoven with the rest of the law that it is -- there's no way to tease it out so all 2,700 pages disappear, including the parts gone in to effect already like kids staying on the parent's insurance until 26. no preexisting conditions bar for children. it could go out the window in two hours. the other option is something in between. which would be invalidating some part of the law like the individual mandate through the part of the law you just mentioned saying every american has to have insurance, either through the jobs or through these exchanges that the law will set up. that based on the oral argument that i saw i thought was a very likely possibility. but some sort of invalidation of

some parts of the law, that's where things get complicated because we'll have to sort out what survives and what doesn't. >> exactly. all right. let's turn to will cain to walk us through. the argument is about constitutionality and the heart of the question is this clause, the commerce clause. >> exactly. as we have talked about, i have an opinion. i have expressed them quite frequently on this program. >> what? >> i'm not attempting to hide them and i understand the issue as an attorney and i want the audience to understand what the supreme court is deciding and i have richard, also an attorney, that worked with bill clinton to pull me back. does congress have the power to mandate that you buy the individual -- can it require to buy you insurance? i think i lost my mike here. >> will, come over and take my mike. >> i have it back. am i good? >> i don't know if we can hear you. try again. >> can congress require you to

buy health insurance? you have to turn to the constitution. the constitution is a list of enumerated powers of the government which is a fancy way of saying these are things you can do. create a post office. form a military. focus on two aspects. one, the general wael fare clause is right here. you can't read it. this is essentially congress's taxing power. it says that congress shall have the power to lay and collect taxes and provide for the common defense and welfare. they can tax us and spend and defined broadly by the supreme court. we have a public retirement program, social security, medicare. but this is not the constitutional justification for the individual mandate. we know that because honestly the president of the united states said this is not a tax. rather, we go down two or three lines to the interstate commerce

clause. because this is old english and you can't read it, i put it up on the screen and reads like this. congress shall have the power to regulate commerce with foreign nations and among the states. we have a power broadly, broadly defined. through this congress passed the 1964 civil rights act. passed most of the criminal code. regulating medical marijuana. and organized crime. and it's given us the labor laws. now, here's the great leap forward. to those opposed to the individual mandate. this is for the first time congress compelling you in to commerce. requiring action, requiring you to buy insurance. and the justices, guys, asked the government over and over, understanding that this is an enumerated powers constitution, it is limited, if we allow you to do this, what can you not do? can we allow you to force people to buy broccoli or buy burial insurance? tell us how these powers are

limited. >> so tell us about the broccoli. >> it is a relative term, right? and it's limited but it's been very expansive up until now and what we talked about earlier this morning is republicans successful in suggesting the law is unprecedented. is it unprecedented or in keeping with constitutional precedent from before? i mean, i think as i have said that this law will be upheld today and that it is squarely within the bounds of the constitution permits. that's what the argument is about. >> in addition to the constitutional argument, there's a context and part is political. so let's bring in sanjay to talk about the medical side of this and also paul kekley. executive director of health solutions joining us, as well. let's begin with you, if we can. do you believe that the individual mandate, in fact, falls within that commerce clause as will cain so clearly walked us through? >> i do.

because i think the notion of a market is really intrinsic to that. i think the health insurance market -- health care is something you use but you don't know when or how so how does a society manage something as complicated as health care? this is one approach. there are others but this is certainly one i think falls within the scope of the commerce clause. >> sanjay, the question then becomes, what are the implications of all of this? >> well, with regard to -- you know, how health care is different, that drives this particular question. so when will says, look, you know, this is like making you buy broccoli, i think health care is different. and i say this in part as a doctor who works in the hospital. >> different for people -- >> first of all, on appearances, if people don't buy broccoli, the cost goes down. the cost of insurance goes up

because cost shifting occurs across the country. this is $56 billion in uncompensated care every year in the united states f. you don't have insurance, you affect everybody else at the table. that's in part making this different and why you have to think about health care as a different market than other things. >> that's the debate. the supreme court is having. is the market different? what's the health care market and different and about two hours i think those are the questions you will have answers to. >> a -- >> if you don't want car insurance, don't buy a car. right? >> there's nothing wrong with broccoli. >> let's go back to -- >> i think we should have more broccoli. that will cut down costs of health care, as well. >> and then the economics of this. there are some alternatives. let's say that the individual mandate, in fact, is truck down. there are some who say, well, you could do an alternative or automatically be insured and opt out. a voluntary opt-in would be an option there, as well.

can you describe the up sides and downsides of those? >> it's intended to broaden the base, to increase the number of folks with insurance who are younger and healthier, especially. an opt-out is volitional. there are other options. states may end up having to use tax credits with employers to encourage insurance. some states like massachusetts may decide to have their own mandates. there are at least a dozen alternatives to the individual mandate, all intended to stabilize the insurance market. >> how would you and i'll start with you and then ask sanjay to jump in, how would you fix the system? you see 51% people disapprove of the affordable care act. when you drill down to the individual items, they approve

them by large numbers. 85% for preexisting conditions. 77% for allowing kids to remain on the insurance up to age 26. how would you fix the system? what would be true reform to you? >> setting aside those who are virtually uninsurible because of terrible medical problems, 5% or so of the population. one, you would definitely want to change the incentives from doing more to being paid for performance. in other words, ending fee for service. second, you know, we'd want to apply the evidence to what we cover instead of doing as much as we can, doing what the evidence suggest we should do. third, we need to leverage technology. so much of what we do doesn't require a physical exam in a doctor's office. so much can be done with technology appropriately. i think last we have to find a way to change people's behavior. i think sanjay quoted appropriately three out of four

people overweight but lifestyle related cost in the system are about 75% of its costs so those would be the four. if you took a white board and started over, most would agree that's the direction we should go. the real question on the table is, does the affordable care act do that and better ways to do that? >> paul keckly, thank you for joining us. >> do you think that will happen, sanjay? >> i don't think health care insurance necessarily leads to good health. i think that's an important point. you and i both know with good insurance and in bad health. so i think that this point that, you know, we need to become a healthier america and ultimately solve a lot of problems -- >> that's a whole other question. >> it's important because we say we'll focus on health care insurance but we're driving up costs and fueling the debate more so but i also don't know that disincentives work in this situation.

incentivizing people -- >> i think people want to be healthy. you're hard pressed to find somebody that say i'm happy to be unhealthy. they're not empowered to do it. >> can i -- i mean, i want to ask sanjay, what do you say to people and don't you think that ultimately -- i think that the answer is single payer universal coverage health care. some day we have to get to that in this country. i know that's not before the court today. >> that's a bomb to throw out here. >> i was going to say. talking about the supreme court. hello. >> that's the solution, isn't it? >> i think, you know in many ways if you ask people who have studied this for a long time, that would have been a good solution 30 years ago but unfortunately for people who believe in that that ship has sailed. we are an employer based coverage. >> you have to change everything. we have to change everything. >> a lot of people would be left in the lurch. how you get that done now is

tough. >> we'll continue to have the conversation. democratic senator -- >> just wanted to get to him. >> i know. chuck schumer will join us, democratic senator of new york will be our guest, joining us live. first, though, the rest of the top stories and christine romans for us. good morning. >> good morning. breaking news in syria. two huge explosions have hit the capital city of damascus. state-run media reports two blasts at the parking garage outside the palace of justice. it's just one day after seven people were killed when a tv station was bombed. few hours after the critical health care ruling the house will vote on whether to cite attorney general holder for contempt of congress. holder's justice department has refused to turn over documents subpoenaed by the house oversight committee concerning fast and furious. it's linked to the death of a u.s. border patrol agent.

president obama asserted executive privilege over some of the documents. we'll talk to a congress emanuel cleaver about a possible walkout in that vote. two more air force instructors charged with sexual misconduct with cadet trainees in texas. six instructors are now facing charges in this growing scandal. another pleaded guilty to an improper relationship as part of a plea deal. the air force says it's launched an investigation covering all four camps of basic training in texas and mississippi. wildfires swelling. the waldo canyon fire doubled forcing 36,000 evacuations. and the erratic winds fueling the flames expected to continue this morning. president obama will visit colorado tomorrow and thank the fire responders. meantime, find out how to help those affected by the fires, go to cnn.com/impact. just amazing those pictures.

>> unbelievable. all right. christine, thank you. still ahead this morning, congress will make history if it holds a contempt vote against attorney general holder today. not everyone planning to participate. we'll talk to congress cleaver of a potential protest. that's next. here's will's playlist. "money for nothing." mike for nothing. you're watching "starting point." great shot. how did the nba become the hottest league on the planet? by building on the cisco intelligent network they're able to serve up live video, and instant replays, creating fans from berlin to beijing. what can we help you build? nice shot kid. the nba around the world built by the only company that could. cisco.

energy is being produced to power our lives. while energy development comes with some risk, north america's natural gas producers are committed

to safely and responsibly providing generations of cleaner-burning energy for our country, drilling thousands of feet below fresh water sources within self-contained well systems. and, using state-of-the-art monitoring technologies, rigorous practices help ensure our operations are safe and clean for our communities and the environment. we're america's natural gas.

welcome back, everybody. you are watching "starting point." in a few hours from now, less than two hours, the house of representatives will make history. for the first time they could hold a vote to hold a sitting united states attorney general

in contempt of congress. they're voting against attorney general eric holder for wi withholding documents of the failed fast and furious program. speaker boehner confirmed the vote. listen. >> brian terry's family has a right to know what happened. the american people have a right to know what happened. and we're going to proceed. we have given them ample opportunity to comply. even as late as yesterday. >> brian terry is the border patrol agent killed by a group of bandits with guns traced back to fast and furious. a final attempt of officials to negotiate with house republicans failed on tuesday and now a group of house democrats are planning a walkout to boycott the vote. democratic congressman cleaver is the chairman of the congressional black caucus leading the charge on the democratic walkout. good morning, sir. nice to see you as always. tell me more about this walkout. how many folks are expecting to

walkout? just the congressional black caucus or more? >> there are a number of us that believe it should be some group, some person or some members who simply back away from this silliness. we don't want history to record that we participated in something that is so silly and debt equipme detrimental to one human being. there will be a number of people from the democratic side who will do something dramatic and that in all likelihood would be walking out of the chamber. >> will the leadership take part in that walkout? >> well, i doubt seriously if that's going to happen because they're going to be needed on the floor. and what we're trying to do is to simply say to the american public, we don't want to participate in that. this whole deal stinks. and we don't want to be involved in this conductivity. >> what makes you say the deal

stinks? i know you wrote a letter telling everyone you refuse to participate in a vote to tarnish the image of a congress or an attorney general who has done nothing but work on behalf of the american people. what's at work here, do you think? >> well, first of all, brian terry's parents and family members deserve to know what happened to their son. this does nothing about revealing what happened to their son. and number two, this is a situation where democrats were never able to bring to the committee any witnesses. not even the aft head who was involved in authorizing this gone bad gun toting project. and we never had an opportunity

either to have any kind of bipartisan dialogue and the chairman of the committee just yesterday testifying before the rules committee admitted that, no, this is not a bipartisan move and i think that with this pathological partisanship we are now practicing in washington the public has grown tired of it. instead of us backing away and trying to figure out 14 million people unemployed back to work we are out doing something that has absolutely no value to the republic. >> what do you think the walkout will accomplish? walkouts as you well know have been done before. back in 2008, alberto gonzalez the attorney general at that point and the contempt hearing at issue and republicans walked out and went to supreme court and got the documents. what does a walkout accomplish? >> the walkout won't accomplish anything that will alter history. but it will show that some of us

just don't want to observe an injustice taking place. eric holder's a good and decent man and shouldn't get caught up in this presidential political season. look. we're in politics. i'm in politics. i understand. if republicans want to go after the president, they have all the rights they should do so with. they need to criticize him on all of the policies with which they disagree. they ought to push back on things that they believe to be alien to what the american public needs but to attack a man and criminalize him, keep in mind this is not just something that's going to take place in the house. there is a criminal vote that will be sent to the u.s. attorney's office in washington, d.c. so here's a man who gives of himself to the public and ends up facing a criminal prosecution on something that he had no involvement with.

this started under president george bush and there are people to bring that kind of testimony to the front, but the chair of the committee will not allow anyone to come and testify and provide very important information because it would change the entire scenario that was designed for this awful day that we're about to face. >> congressman cleaver, chairman of the congressional black caucus, thank you for talking with us. appreciate it. >> good to be with you. still ahead, a lawmaker says the supreme court no longer cares about the constitution. that's it all about politics with the health care decision. we'll talk about what he said next.

down here, folks measure commitment by what's getting done. the twenty billion dollars bp committed has helped fund economic and environmental recovery. long-term, bp's made a five hundred million dollar commitment to support scientists studying the environment. and the gulf is open for business - the beaches are beautiful, the seafood is delicious. last year, many areas even reported record tourism seasons. the progress continues... but that doesn't mean our job is done. we're still committed to seeing this through. there it is ! there it is ! where ? where ? it's getting away ! where is it ? it's gone.

we'll find it. any day can be an adventure. that's why we got a subaru. love wherever the road takes you. wow, there it is. it's time to live wider awake. only the beautyrest recharge sleep system combines the comfort of aircool memory foam layered on top of beautyrest pocketed coils to promote proper sleeping posture all night long. the revolutionary recharge sleep system... from beautyrest. it's you, fully charged.

welcome back to xwt starting point." let's talk politics but this time let's talk about the politics of the supreme court. listen to california representative javier basata and sort of mad. here he goes. >> probably the worst outcome we can see is a 5-4 decision because i think that will go, unfortunately, a long way in confirming this growing belief in the gut of the american people that the supreme court no longer cares so much about the constitution. it cares more about politics. >> will cain rolled his eyes so dramatically while that was happening. i need to go to you to explain

that. what was with the eye roll? >> because it seths up a narrative that any decision that's against the decision of people like congressman beccerra want to see is painted as political because it's a close decision. there's five for it and four against it. why's that political? >> judicial activism. that's what we're seeing. >> for those that charge the court is political, they have to answer a question and it arose this week and talking about in the break. why did scalia and kennedy strike down three out of four arizona's immigration laws? that's a complete rebuttal to people say it's political. >> let's go do -- >> an important sign of what we might see today. >> let geese to jeff toobin. we know looking at polls that people feel when polled that the court, the supreme court, is becoming more political. but will raises a good question. don't you see certainly in the immigration ruling that we just got down that maybe that's just not the case? >> no, i don't agree with will.

you know? i think this is an intensely political court. you look at a case of like citizens united. five republican nominees against the four democratic nominees. doesn't apply in 100% of the cases but i would like to say in defense of a political court, when you look at the nature of these questions, when you look at the issues like what the government's role should be in health care, does the constitution protect a woman's right to an abortion, may a university consider race in admissions, it is not possible to separate the political content from the legal content. the idea that you can somehow analyze these questions in a completely apolitical way i think is fictional. i don't blame them for being political but important to point out they're political. it is the nature of interpreting the constitution that politics has a lot to do with it. >> jeff toobin is outside of the supreme court. waiting for that 10:00 decision. you can hear more people clearly. it's noisier each time going to

jeff toobin. >> i have done a lot of these in front of the supreme court. it's really who has a bull horn and who doesn't. doesn't mean there's a lot of protesters. >> there's one really noisy guy with a bullhorn. >> yeah. >> pan around. see it's one guy. >> jeff with the biggest mike. >> don't draw any conclusions about public opinion. >> duly noted. duly noted. >> 300 million people in the country and like 80 here so i mean, really. >> i had this morning a report of brian todd for a sense of what's happening around and behind jeff toobin from all that noise we hear. thank you, jeff. we'll ask you to stick around with us. still ahead this morning, democratic senator chuck schumer of the health care ruling live in a little bit. plus, scenes of terror in colorado as a wildfire is burning through neighborhoods forced tens of thousands of people to run for it. a live report from the wildfire zone. every powerful collaboratn is backed by an equally powerful and secure cloud.

that cloud is in the network, so it can deliver all the power of the network itself. bringing people together to develop the best ideas -- and providing the apps and computing power to make new ideas real. it's the cloud from at&t. with new ways to work together, business works better. ♪ with new ways to work together, business works better. nno matter what you do. when you're living with moderate to severe crohn's disease, there are times it feels like your life... revolves around your symptoms. if you're tired of going around in circles, it may be time to ask your gastroenterologist about humira. because with humira, remission is possible. humira has been proven to work for adults who have tried other medications...

but still experience the symptoms of moderate to severe crohn's disease. in clinical studies, the majority of patients on humira saw significant symptom relief. and many achieved remission. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal events, such as infections, lymphoma, or other types of cancer, have happened. blood, liver and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure have occurred. before starting humira, your doctor should test you for tb. ask your doctor if you live in or have been to a region where certain fungal infections are common. tell your doctor if you have had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have symptoms such as fever, fatigue, cough, or sores. you should not start humira if you have any kind of infection. if you're tired of going around in circles, get headed in a new direction. ask your gastroenterologist about humira today. remission is possible.

good morning. welcome, everybody. the clock is ticking. we are 90 minutes from the supreme court decision on health care law that could affect every single american. senator chuck schumer will join us live straight ahead this morning. first, christine with a look at the day's top stories. good morning. >> good morning again. beginning with syria. damascus is reeling after two large explosions this morning. two blasts hit the parking garage outside of the palace of justice. at least three people were hurt and 20 cars damaged. meantime, secretary of state hillary clinton and russian

counterpart will attend emergency talks this weekend on the crisis in syria. u.n. envoy annan called for the meetings. hundreds of homes on fire. 36,000 people forced to evacuate as wildfires burn out of control in colorado this morning. take a look at the images of "the denver post" showing the extent of damage. the erratic winds fueling the flames not expected to let up this morning. rob marciano live for us in colorado springs. good morning, rob. >> reporter: good morning, christine. sun coming up on colorado springs. you can see over my left shoulder the smoke billowing of the subdivision and the edge of the forest on fire. 18,000 acres burned. hundreds of homes burned, as well. no official count but thousands of people in a terrifying night had to evacuate on the run just two nights ago. the winds laid down a little bit last night but erratic fire behavior expected today because

of thunderstorms likely to pop up and cause more in the way of gusty winds. the heat obviously the main player with this and the dry conditions. the record breaking heat slides off towards the east and affect more than just people in the fire zone. take a look at the numbers. temperatures well up and over 100 and 110 in the high plains and all-time record breaking highs. heat advisory over 20 states. some east of mississippi and heat builds toward the east coast with doing you heat expected in some cases right through the weekend. that's the latest from here. christine, back up to you. >> unbelievable pictures. thanks so much. soledad? >> thank you so much. we talked about protesters at the supreme court ahead of the health care ruling. let's look at video of this morning where we are told hundreds of people lining up outside of the courthouse since last night. brian todd is there, as well. brian, they look in these pictures sort of calm and relaxed. but they sounded noisy talking

to jeff toobin. how is it today? >> reporter: it's getting noisier. you have the demonstrators out here and early morning commuters rubber necking and converging on the scene here. exciting time in anticipation of the ruling. right now the middle of the tea party patriots. think eve been here since early, early morning. holding rallies later on today. come on over here. we'll show you who some of the other disparate groups here. we have a pro health care group at the far corner here. another group against the plan chanting right here. and of all things, our photo journalist, take a peek over there. belly dancers and health care. who knew? this is another group against the health care plan. and i don't know if they're going to be able to keep up this pace in this heat, soledad. it is about -- getting in to the 80s now. supposed to get in to the upper

90s. let's move away from the noise a little bit to kind of get people over here. and they can see a little bit of media crush, too. we'll walk through the crowd out here. again, morning commuters with demonstrators. brian, the cameras and the lights over there, you can see this is reminiscent of the some of the high profile trials that the u.s. has experienced in recent years. the casey anthony trial, o.j. simpson. >> wow, wow. well, that really i had no idea that was behind jeff toobin. i got to tell you. the belly dancers for health care. brian todd, thank you for that update. we appreciate it. wow. >> sanjay had the question america wants to know s. the belly dancer what? >> for or against? >> i believe they were for it. >> they were against. they were against health care reform. >> oh, i got it wrong. i misunderstood them. i was distracted by the outfits then. health care decision, what does it mean for you moneywise? money, i think, christine

ultimately frames this. the question underlying this is can we afford it? >> taxpayers money, the government's money. 16 cents of the american economy is health care. it's a munlg industry. a trillion dollars over ten years. that's what the cbo says, expectations are. how much it costs to bring the people in and get them okaccesso affordable insurance. it's taxes on hospitalers, employers and you. according to the cbo, for the first ten years, first 20 years of health care reform, it cuts the deficit because it costs money to bring the people in to the system but they're finding ways to pay for it. how do you pay for it? making $200 thousand dollars more per year. you are paying higher medicare taxes and higher taxes on the investments. that's one way. people uninsured will be fined the they don't buy insurance. that helps pay for it. they get subsidies to help them afford it. that's how the money changes hand without insurance right

now. flexible spending accounts already changed and if you misuse it, there's taxes and fines for it and also the very famous we call it the patricia kresel part of the story, bringing in a tabloid story with a tanning booth. a dense subject. >> that name is so familiar. it's that super tan lady. >> yeah, yeah, yeah. that's how it's meant to be and how the system is set up. what happens if it's part of it repealed? some of it's repealed. that's the big question. i think cost for families, first people to see a cost change will be seniors because they get some breaks on prescription drugs in health care reform. right away changes for seniors, people with preexisting conditions. now the insurance companies told us they think they'll keep the kids 26 and under on their parent's insurance. that probably -- no matter what. that probably won't change right away i don't think. but you still have uncertainty, guys. there's still so much

uncertainty. the republicans said they'll take it apart bit by bit. >> talk to me, doctor. you're working in the hospital. what's the tenor of the conversation happening? >> people are talking about this. they're quite earnest to see what the decision is. i think for -- i work at a public, a university and staff a public hospital. most of the patients over there do not have insurance. we see the patients coming in quite late in their diagnosis with much more critical problems than seen earlier. you bring up the tanning booth and funny. everyone says how does that fit? probably more people affected than the mandate itself and affects a small percentage of people. >> so interesting. >> tanning beds. >> affected by the mandate. probably not that many. even though it's a huge topic of discussion. >> really interesting. >> the main idea here, though, right, the big picture is main idea behind the law was to reduce costs for people broadly.

and to make sure that everybody got insurance. right? >> i would say access was the first thing here. access to health insurance. i don't think -- i mean, costs are going -- takeaway for american people are the costs are going up pretty much no matter what. right? unless you have no insurance and never been to the hospital. i mean, you look at how much we pay if you have health care through the employer, going up. what we pay. i mean, health care infligs isn't going away. am i right? >> yeah. not just the united states but a worldwide problem. >> greece -- >> gone down. >> the rate of increase has gone down. >> one hour 15 minutes until we hear from the supreme court on this issue. we'll continue our health care conversation. democratic senator chuck schumer will be our guest. this is $100,000. we asked total strangers to watch it for us. thank you so much, i appreciate it, i'll be right back. they didn't take a dime.

how much in fees does your bank take to watch your money ? if your bank takes more money than a stranger, you need an ally. ally bank. no nonsense. just people sense. high schools in six states enrolled in the national math and science initiative... ...which helped students and teachers get better results in ap courses. together, they raised ap test scores 138%. just imagine our potential... ...if the other states joined them. let's raise our scores. let's invest in our teachers and inspire our students. let's solve this.

and the chefs at lean cuisine are loving tangy lemon, peppery poblano, sweet butternut. we're roasting, and grilling to create must-have meals with no preservatives. lean cuisine. be culinary chic.

we're just a little more than an hour away from the supreme court's decision on president obama's health care law. there's been no clear indication of which direction the court will go but republicans in congress will already planning the next moves should even parts of the law remain intact. listen. >> if the court does not strike

down the entire law, the house will move to repeal what's left of it. obama care is driving up the cost of health care and making it harder for small businesses to hire new workers. >> democratic senator charles assumer is a member of the judiciary committee and said he's confident the court will uphold the law. >> it's silly to make predictions. i said they have a right to uphold the law because they're well within the commerce clause but no one knows how the court will rule. we'll hear in an hour. >> you heard boehner saying he believes the individual mandate struck down, he'll work to repeal the rest of the law. what will happen in the senate? >> well, does speaker boehner want to tell senior citizens that we're not going to fill the doughnut hole and help pay for the prescription drugs, tell kids out of college they can no longer be part of the parent's plan? and does speaker boehner want to

give free rein to insurance companies to charge huge amounts for nonmedical costs? we limit it to less than 20% and we make sure that if you didn't dot a "i" they can't cut you off the insurance. the american people don't want to get rid of them. >> sounds like you're saying that's a strategy if that were to happen in terms of campaigning for the white house. >> well, look. there are lots of good things in this bill. and we hope that the supreme court will keep the whole bill intact. but certainly, keep the good parts of the bill intact. and if the house republicans try to repeal those good parts, i think we'll be on very strong ground. when you ask people about the overall bill, they're worried. asking people about lots of individual parts, they love it. >> analyze that for me then, sir? was the messages terrible? 51% disapprove. when you start to navigate down

to individual provisions, 85% approve of the preexisting conditions. >> if you look -- soledad, people are unhappy with the present system. before the health care bill ever went in to effect. insurance companies just got away with everything. rates were going up. lots of things weren't covered. i think as the bill, if the supreme court keeps it intact as the bill goes in to effect people will like it. were there a parade of horribles put out by the enemies of the health care bill, ideological or a pecuniary against it? sure. >> if the individual mandate is struck down and the house tries disassemble the rest of the bill altogether, what will be the move by the democratic leadership? >> we in the senate will not go along with repealing the entire bill. that's for sure. no matter what the house does and that's because as i mentioned so many good things in

the bill. >> do you think this was a failure of a message? >> i wouldn't say that. i would say in a big complicated bill the way our world works, frankly, the way the media work, they emphasize the negative. as people see the actual effects, they're very positive. seniors love having their prescription costs covered more and more will be covered through 2017. i've heard from so many young people and parents it is such a relief that their kids can be on the health care plan. >> yeah. but the polling -- >> those won't in to effect immediately. in 2014 when we have the competition among the insurance companies, and rates begin to level off, when we see that insurance companies can't charge more than 20% for advertising or salaries or profits and the rates start going -- stop increasing at such a large rate, people will like that, too. >> we played a chunk of

congressman becerra saying people should pray the court does not come down 5-4 and unmask the political tendencies. do you agree with him on that? >> well, look. as i said, if they're just judging the law on the her its, this is clearly within the commerce clause. we mandate car insurance on everybody. there are all kinds of mandates. the original case with the courts even scalia stuck with for 70 years said we can mandate that a farmer can't grow this amount of rice or that amount of wheat. >> if it's a 5-4 decision and it finds the law is unconstitutional would you agree with the congress saying, listen, it looks political? >> i would like to read the decision first. i'll say this. i'm troubled about previous decisions in the court, particularly citizens united and bush v. gore being highly political and worried of justice scalia's ventures in to politics

way away from the law. >> we're all saying that same thing. expecting it in an hour and 8 minutes. senator chuck schumer of new york, thanks for talking with us. >> thank you. >> we'll be back with more as we count the countdown to the historic supreme court ruling on the health care law.

what happens when classroom teachers get the training... ...and support they need? schools flourish and students blossom. that's why programs like... ...the mickelson exxonmobil teachers academy... ...and astronaut sally ride's science academy are helping our educators improve student success in math and science. let's shoot for the stars. let's invest in our teachers and inspire our students. let's solve this.

how many people on this panel believe it's going to be overturned in part or whole? >> definitely. >> not me. >> you think it's upheld? >> people will be surprised today that the court is going to -- >> put money on that? >> a dollar. right? that's what we bet. i'll bet you a dollar. >> deal. >> i think people will be surprised. i think we'll see roberts not wanting to be seen as a conservative judicial activist. i think that the immigration ruling a couple of days ago foreshadowed this and squeak through and that all of this

commotion will have been for naught. >> i think i'm going to win a dollar. i really do. >> we'll see. >> will cain? >> i think what i'm so interested in this case, why i'm so interested and find out today, there's political discussions. very valid discussions of what it does to the health care market. what's the limit of the federal government's power? i think we understood that and losing the concept. what's the boundary? what can the federal government not do. >> what do you want to know out of this, sanjay? >> the mandate is likely to be overturned. you brought it up all show today the messaging isn't good on this. i think if you say, look, if you don't buy health care insurance in 2016 you will pay $695 as a penalty or 2.5% of your income, no one goes to jail over that. very few people affected by the mandate. the penalties are quite small and not criminalized so it's -- they made a big deal about this.

it could overturn and disrupt it and i don't think people realize how it's a small part of this 450 provisions in the law. >> it's now in the hands of the supreme court. we'll be back on the other side. . covers spots, lines, and wrinkles. and helps improve skin tone over time. tone rehab from easy, breezy, beautiful, covergirl! covergirl!

you know what's exciting? graduation. when i look up into my students faces, i see pride. you know, i have done something worthwhile.

when i earned my doctorate through university of phoenix, that pride, that was on my face. i am jocelyn taylor. i'm committed to making a difference in people's lives, and i am a phoenix. visit phoenix.edu to find the program that's right for you. enroll now. begins right now with wolf blitzer in washington, d.c. this morning. hey, good morning. >> good morning, soledad. thanks very much. i'm wonderful blitzer in washington. we want to welcome our viewers

in the united states and around the world. our special coverage of the biggest u.s. supreme court decision in decades. next hour, right near the top of the hour, the nine justices will announce the decision on the bitterly divisive health care reform law. their rulings on the law not only shape the legacy of the court, but also, the obama presidency. it will carve new battle lines in the fall's presidential election. and most importantly, it will impact your health and your choices. almost impossible to overstate how important next hour's announcement is. we have complete coverage to break it down for all of you. our crews are covering every angle from coast to coast. let's go to the white house, though, first. there's breaking news coming out. jessica yellin is standing by. what are you learning about the president's intention today? >> reporter: hi, wolf. well, president obama will be in the oval office receiving his daily briefing when the supreme court ruling