Late last week, we received a request for a "supplemental

        brief" from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Frankly,

        I was not pleased to get that court document because it

        could have meant serious delays in getting a decision

        on the heart of our case.

        But today, when we reviewed the Department of Justice's

        answer to the appeals court's request, we realized

        the DOJ actually agreed with OUR position!  This is

        the kind of development we are coming to expect when

        tens of thousands of friends are praying for this case!

        Please read more below - Mat.

In a stunning development, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has agreed with Liberty Counsel on a key issue regarding our lawsuit challenging the Individual and Employer Mandates found in the so-called Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, better known as ObamaCare.

Weeks after the oral argument on May 10th, the panel of three judges at the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals asked Liberty Counsel and the DOJ to file a "supplemental brief" addressing the question of whether the federal Anti-Injunction Act (AIA) applies to the case, thus precluding a court of appeals from even hearing the matter at this time.

      The AIA applies to the payment of taxes and requires

      the party challenging a tax to FIRST pay the tax, apply

      for a refund, and then file suit if the refund is

      unacceptable.

As you probably remember, while ObamaCare was being ram-rodded through Congress, the Obama/Reid/Pelosi machine swore that ObamaCare's individual mandates were NOT taxes. In passing the Act, Congress explicitly stated that it was doing so under the Commerce Clause, and not creating a new tax.

      In court however, Eric Holder's Department of Justice

      has argued that these mandates ARE taxes and that

      Congress has a constitutional right to levy taxes. 

The "tax" issue brought by the DOJ prompted the court to request supplemental briefings from all parties on whetherthe AIA law would prohibit an appellate court from hearing the ObamaCare case until an actual tax had been paid.

      If so, that would've pushed the case well into 2014 -

      well after the 2012 elections and three more years

      into ObamaCare's implementation process!

We worked through the Memorial Day weekend to meet the court's deadline for submission of the supplemental brief. Yesterday, we filed our brief arguing, in essence, that the AIA does  not apply because it only addresses the payment of taxes, while the exactions in ObamaCare's mandates are penalties, not taxes, and that the appeals court should decide on the merits of the case.

++Prayer changes things!

      Here is the shocker: The U.S. Department of Justice

      was also requested to file a supplemental brief,

      and their brief, like ours, contended that the

      AIA does NOT apply and the court should address

      the merits!

      This was amazing news! That means both sides agree

      on this potentially sticky point and that the court

      will most likely drop the issue. We now expect a

      ruling by the end of the month, most likely on

      the merits of the case. From there the case is

      expected to be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

This was an inexplicable turn-around by the DOJ that I can only attribute to the fact that over 75,000 people are praying for these judges, our adversaries, the entire deliberation process, and Liberty Counsel's Litigation Team!  

++We remain on high-level alert.

My litigation team is perpetually on stand-by when this type of quick response is required by a federal court. We were ready for the request from the judges when it came, even at an unexpected time. What we were NOT expecting was agreement on our view by Attorney General Eric Holder's Department of Justice! 

      God has been working throughout this process and we

      feel greatly encouraged by the prayers and support

      from our Liberty Counsel Team. 

 I would be honored if you would stand with me, the Liberty Counsel Litigation Team, and (currently) 79,215 of your fellow patriotic Americans who REFUSE to allow the Left to turn America into just another second-rate socialist state!

      To make this possible, we are compiling a new edition

      of the Liberty Counsel "Amici Book."

      The Amici Book has a single purpose: To strengthen

      us in the knowledge that we are undergirded by the

      prayers and support of tens of thousands of friends

      like you throughout this marathon battle to take

      down ObamaCare!

      This knowledge (and especially the prayers!) gives us

      great strength and encouragement. 

Please take a moment right now to sign the Amici Book and declare that you will personally stand with me in the daunting challenge of taking on the Obama administration and Eric Holder's Department of Justice:

http://www.libertyaction.org/r.asp?u=42646&RID=27323377

 I want everyone who stands with us in this special way to receive a commemorative certificate acknowledging their name is in the Amici Book and that they've committed pray for the Liberty Counsel Litigation Team in our battle to take down ObamaCare.

We are just a few days away from mailing the first wave of our beautiful Certificates of Inclusion, and there is still time for you to be among the first to receive one!  But I need to hear from you by Monday morning, June 6th, in order to include you in this first shipment of these beautiful, frame-worthy certificates. 

Please go here to have your name included in the Amici Book and to see what your certificate will look like: 

http://www.libertyaction.org/r.asp?u=42646&RID=27323377

More than anything else, Liberty Counsel's revised and updated Amici Book (the concept is called a "Book of Remembrance" in the Bible - see especially the Lord's preparation of a book of Believers as described in Malachi 3:16) is a way of allowing YOU to be literally present and part of our efforts to STOP ObamaCare before it is too late!

http://www.libertyaction.org/r.asp?u=42646&RID=27323377

Signing our Amici Book will unite you in Liberty Counsel's cause of defeating an unprecedented expansion of federal power and the outrageous imposition of ObamaCare's unconstitutional mandates.

      Since the start of this battle against ObamaCare, I

      have depended upon you and my Liberty Counsel team in

      many important ways. The response so far has been

      nothing short of phenomenal, but we need an ARMY of

      supporters to defeat the U.S. Department of Justice

      and their unlimited resources.  Please, join with us!

http://www.libertyaction.org/r.asp?u=42646&RID=27323377

Here's my promise to you and our many other supporters: Liberty Counsel will do everything possible to make sure that ObamaCare is struck down judicially, legislatively, or administratively.

As always, my team and I are thrilled that we have such a strong foundation of support in you and those like you! THANK YOU for continuing to be a key member of the Liberty Counsel team!

Mathew Staver, Founder and Chairman

Liberty Counsel

P.S. ObamaCare is dangerous and we are committed to striking it down. Please join me in this fight by signing our Amici Book (meaning, as I have mentioned, "Book of Friends"). Please let me know you are praying for the success of our case against this outrageous healthcare "reform" bill!  Again, thank you and God bless you!

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+ + Comments? Questions?

Http://www.libertyaction.org/r.asp?U=42645&CID=332&RID=27323377

Liberty Counsel, with offices in Florida, Virginia and Washington, D.C., is a nonprofit litigation, education and policy organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of human life and family.  Liberty Counsel . PO Box 540774 . Orlando, FL 32854 .800-671-1776

June 9, 2011