Jindal: Ruling could force people to eat tofu and drive hybrid cars

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) said Thursday’s “frightening” Supreme Court ruling could lead to penalties for Americans whose lives are out of step with government priorities. 

{mosads}On a call with reporters, Jindal said that the decision to uphold the healthcare law as a tax is a “blow to our freedoms.”

“What’s next?” he said, expressing concern for people who “refuse to eat tofu” or “refuse to drive a Chevy Volt” — a popular hybrid car. 

The court explicitly said the mandate was not constitutional as a regulation of commerce. 

Jindal’s remarks echoed the now-infamous “broccoli” comments made during oral arguments in the case. Notably, conservative Justice Antonin Scalia wondered whether mandating the purchase of health insurance could lead the government to mandate other purchases, too.

“Everybody has to buy food sooner or later, so you define the market as food,” Scalia said. “Therefore, everybody is in the market; therefore, you can make people buy broccoli.”

Broccoli received several mentions in Thursday’s ruling. In one instance, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg called Scalia’s argument “the broccoli horrible” and dismissed the slippery-slope logic as “specious.”

Jindal said he expects opposition to the law to “escalate” before November and that Republican governors will wait for the outcome of the election before implementing the law.