Boehner: Don’t Gloat If Supreme Court Strikes Health Law Down

House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, has told fellow Republicans in a memo released Thursday to avoid "spiking the ball" if the Supreme Court strikes down the health law.

Kaiser Health News: Capsules: Boehner Orders Members To Forget High Fives If Court Strikes Health Law
Just in case House Republicans were planning a series of public chest-bumps, high-fives and keg parties if the Supreme Court decides to strike down all or parts of the health law, House Speaker John Boehner is shutting that down right now (Carey, 6/21).

The Associated Press: Boehner Says No Gloating If Health Law Struck Down
House Speaker John Boehner is telling rank and file Republicans not to gloat if the Supreme Court rules the health care law unconstitutional. In a memo his office released publicly Thursday, the Ohio Republican says there will be no spiking the ball if the court rules against the law either partially or entirely. He says that's because he wants the party to focus on the economy as the elections approach (6/22).

Reuters: Boehner To U.S. House On Health Care Ruling: Don't Gloat
U.S. House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner on Thursday told the Republican rank-and-file there will be no celebrating in Congress if the Supreme Court rules against President Barack Obama's sweeping health care reform law. "No one knows what the court will decide," Boehner said in a memo to fellow Republicans. "But if the court strikes down all or part of the president's health care reform law, there will be no spiking of the ball" (6/21).

National Journal: Boehner: 'No Spiking Of The Ball' On Health Ruling
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, warned his caucus on Thursday not to celebrate if the Supreme Court overturns or guts Democrats’ health reform law next week, but he reiterated a promise to hold yet another repeal vote if any part of the law is still standing (McCarthy, 6/21).

For some, his caution came too late -

Market Watch: GOP Senate Candidate Jumps Gun With Videos On Health Ruling
Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock apparently jumped the gun Thursday by accidentally releasing several videotaped responses to the Supreme Court's highly anticipated ruling on the health-care overhaul bill — before the court has had a chance to issue a ruling on the case. Talking Points Memo and Politico both reported that Mourdock prematurely posted the tapes to YouTube and then pulled them, apparently wanting to get his response out on the law, officially known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Britt, 6/21).

In the meantime, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md., says any Supreme Court ruling will hurt Republicans and help Democrats --

National Journal: Hoyer: Health Care Ruling Will Help Democrats
The Supreme Court's forthcoming ruling on the federal health care law will hurt Republicans regardless of what the high court's justices decide, the second-ranking House Democrat told reporters on Thursday. "Whatever the Supreme Court does, I think the Republicans are going to have to get real about alternatives as opposed to simply saying 'this is bad,'" said House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer. The court will rule next week on the constitutionality of the 2010 law. It may strike down the individual mandate provision of the measure, or perhaps even the entire law. Alternatively, the whole thing could be upheld (Sullivan, 7/21).