Obama: "Today’s Decision Was A Victory For People All Over This Country"

Obama devotes majority of his remarks to explaining the popular provisions of the unpopular bill.

Video available at: http://youtube.com/watch?v=mhBkaj8kG_I.

Source: youtube.com

President Barack Obama celebrated the Supreme Court’s ruling holding his signature Affordable Care Act constitutional, calling it a victory for all Americans.

“It should be pretty clear by now that I didn’t do this because it was good politics,” Obama said, acknowledging the vast unpopularity of the whole bill.

“Today’s decision was a victory for people all across this country whose lives will be more secure,” he added.

Obama explained many of the popular provisions in the bill to Americans — including a ban on using preexisting conditions to disqualify coverage and lowering health care costs for seniors.

“The highest court in the land has now spoken,” Obama said. “We will continue to implement this law.”

Obama made no mention of the Court’s re-classification of the individual mandate as a tax, which he had previously opposed.

Obama went out of his way to avoid the appearance of spiking the football after his victory, saying repeatedly that the decision was not about politics. But Obama at times appeared to struggle to hide a smile, as the decision provides an important burst of momentum for his reelection campaign.