Three ways Obamacare ruling hurts Romney

The Supreme Court's ruling on Obamacare impacts presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney in three ways:

1. It reinvigorates the Tea Party.
The Tea Party has new life now that Obamacare looks as if it is here to stay and they will most certainly play a role in the November elections. They will bring life to races up and down the ballot for the Republicans but they may hurt Romney by pulling him to the right. Romney is in an awkward position as the guy who pretty much invented the precursor to Obamacare, Romneycare, in Massachusetts. He had to deal with hostility from the Tea Party throughout the election and tried hard to not get pulled into their purity fights but now he may need them more than ever. Romney has to be careful to not drift too far from his moderate corporate centrism that he is comfortable with.

2. It takes time away from talking about the economy

The health care debate is back and it is taking time away from the economy, Romney's bread and butter. Romney does best when he is talking about creating jobs and restoring the economy, not when he is dancing around his history with health care reform.

3. So is his Massachusetts law a tax, too?

Romney is, again, in an awkward spot as he has to talk about, and defend, his groundbreaking health care law in Massachusetts but this time he has to defend it as a tax. The last thing Romney wants is to be labeled a tax hiker.