David Vladeck, an expert in administrative law at Georgetown Law, tells me that critics would likely point out that the specifics of the case are not parallel to the current argument over the Affordable Care Act. “The inevitable question will be, what does lethal injection have to do with the health law?” Vladeck said.

But Vladeck clarified that the larger finding of the Court in that case does in fact support the administration’s reading of administrative law.

“The ultimate conclusion of the Court was that when it comes to using the various tools an agency has, it has very broad discretion, including refraining from enforcement actions, if the agency thinks this it will achieve its statutory goals,” said Vladeck, who was a political appointee to the FTC during Obama’s first term, but is widely quoted as an independent expert on these topics.