Court to rule Thursday on Obama health care law

Set your calendars: Thursday is the day.

The Supreme Court announced this morning it will next deliver opinions on Thursday -- and that Thursday will be the last day of its 2011-12 term.

One of the remaining cases: The health care ruling that figures to be one of the court's most historic, and is likely to play a role in this year's election between President Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney.

This also means three more days of predictions and spin.

As we reported yesterday, recriminations over the pending health care ruling are already starting.

"Some prominent legal scholars say a series of tactical decisions by President Obama's legal team may have hurt the chances of saving his landmark health-care legislation from being gutted by Supreme Court conservatives," reports The Washington Post.

The New York Times  reports that the White House team once "assumed any (legal) challenge" to the law would fail, but officials now fear "that a centerpiece of Mr. Obama's presidency may be partly or completely overturned on a theory that it gave little credence. The miscalculation left the administration on the defensive as its legal strategy evolved over the last two years."

Of course, no one knows for sure what the Supreme Court will do with the health care law that Obama signed in 2010.

There is particular concern among supporters about the fate of the individual mandate, the requirement that nearly all Americans buy insurance or pay a fine.

Critics of the law say Congress and Obama exceeded their constitutional authority with the individual mandate. During hearings in March, several Supreme Court justices had harsh questions about the requirement.

The political world is bracing for the Supreme Court ruling, two groups in particular: Campaign aides to Obama and Republican Mitt Romney.

The Associated Press reports that both campaigns are gearing up to take political advantage of the ruling, whatever it is:

If the court upholds the law, Obama will get vindication for his signature legislative accomplishment. Romney will have a concrete target for his pledge to repeal it.

If the court rules against part or all of the law, Obama could blame Romney, congressional Republicans and a conservative-leaning court for denying health benefits to millions of people in the United States. Romney could claim victory for his assertion that the government overreached.

Striking down all or part of the law less than five months from Nov. 6 election also could mean much political uncertainty for both campaigns. That could force them to reshape long-held strategies and try to satisfy voter demands for Washington to start anew on fixing a broken health care system.