Monday, February 07, 2011

Court filing: Kinder has no standing to sue federal health care program


A response filed Friday in U. S. District Court claims that Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder has no standing to sue the federal government over its health care program.

The documents note that Kinder's term in office will be over when the portion of the health care plan that concerns him takes effect. Assistant Attorney General Tony West also notes that Kinder's efforts to sue as the person who hires employees for the lieutenant governor's office also does not hold water:

(W)hile Kinder may be the current supervisor of those who work in the Lieutenant Governor’s office, the employer, the party who pays their salaries and benefits and is ultimately entitled to both employees’ efforts and their loyalty, is Missouri, not whoever happens to be Lieutenant Governor for the time being. Kinder does not have a personal stake here in how Missouri compensates those employees.

Most of the rest of the documents address claims made by Kinder and the other plaintiffs in the suit and note that the things they are alleging have not happened and are not likely to happen. Arguments are also made against the other plaintiffs' standing to file suit.

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