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Atwater prematurely celebrates

Posted Jun 28, 2012 by William March

Updated Jun 28, 2012 at 10:24 AM

The Supreme Court’s ruling that apparently upheld most of the Affordable Care Act is taking some Republicans by surprise, including Florida Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, who embarrassingly issued a news release praising the invalidation of the law, then had to recall the message.

“Today’s landmark ruling by the Supreme Court upholds two distinctly American principles outlined in our Constitution—individual freedom and limited government,” said a 10:10 a.m. email from Atwater’s press office.

“The Supreme Court carefully considered the constitutionality and appropriate legal arguments associated with this overreaching piece of legislation. Ultimately, the rejection of the individual mandate is more than a legal determination; it is an upholding of the American way of governing and the ideals of individual freedom and liberty—the fundamental principles that shaped our nation and will continue to guide us into the future.”

Within minutes, it was being reported that the court had, in fact, upheld the mandate and most of the law.

“CFO Atwater’s Press Office would like to recall the message, ‘Statement from Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater Regarding the U.S. Supreme Court’s Decision to Strike Down the Health Care Individual Mandate, ” read a 10:12 a.m. email.