A strong majority of Americans say the individual mandate is a tax, rather than a penalty or a fee, according to a CNN-ORC poll released on Monday. Sixty percent said they view the individual mandate as a tax, versus 39 that said it’s not a tax. Republicans jumped on the court’s ruling that the healthcare law's individual mandate, which the Obama administration originally pitched as a penalty or fee for those who don’t purchase insurance, is constitutional under Congress’s power to tax, calling it evidence that President Obama has raised taxes on the middle class/Jonathan Easley, The Hill. More here.