Conservatives will — and should — disagree with Roberts, but one maddeningly necessary aspect of the conservative doctrine is that the means are often just as important as the ends. Sometimes adhering to our principles means making wildly disastrous decisions to uphold them. This is, after all, the price and obligation of liberty.
But the four liberal justices were not interpreting the Constitution from an originalist perspective or in good faith, as Roberts may have been. Leftists will do whatever it takes to fulfill their ends.
Modern American leftists praise democracy and the "common will" — except when voters turn against their pet projects, like gay marriage in California. Leftists will, no doubt, slather on the snark in the coming weeks. As conservative commentators lament the slippery slope of this ruling, leftists will deride conservatives for their alarmism.
Alarmism is completely justified. Will Obamacare help some people? Probably. But as with all big social programs, the immediate, short-term benefits belie the gargantuan, unsustainable costs.
More important than the financial costs are the intangible ones. Milton Friedman famously argued that economic freedom is a necessary precursor to political freedom. The U.S. funds its excessive spending with loans from other nations. China owns huge portions of our national debt. How can the United States exercise an active, muscular foreign policy that promotes freedom abroad when it's hogtied to its debtors?
On an individual level, how can we exercise our own liberties when we're commanded (excuse me — taxed) to have health insurance, or any other product for that matter? How can businesses expect to make long-term decisions in the face of the massive uncertainty over what the Affordable Care Act will actually do? The nation suffers from a sluggish economy. Fox Business's Ed Butowsky argues that the U.S. is already experiencing stagflation. Pundits predict a double-dip recession. Is this 2012 or 1979?
Leftists like Obama have strength that comes not from a nuclear arsenal but from an ideological one. They prey on the weak-minded and the emotional. And, ultimately, they seek nothing less than the destruction of Republican government, market-driven capitalism and individual liberty.
What can conservatives do? We must reclaim the culture. We must fight their empty slogans and chants with substance and wisdom. We must teach our children economics, civics and history. We must reiterate the lessons of our Founding Fathers. And we must recommit ourselves, spiritually and ideologically, to liberty. Voting for Gov. Mitt Romney in November won't hurt either.
Romney is a businessman. He'll give the voters what he thinks they want. We need to send him the message that what we want above all else is liberty.
— Tyler Cook, class of 2006