Rep. Jeff Landry, R-La., speaking on the steps of the Supreme Court after a 5-4 ruling upholding the individual mandate as a tax, told a crowd of protesters and counter protesters that the individual mandate is now “the largest tax increase” in U.S. history.

“They basically have said Congress has no limit to its taxing power,” Landry said after the ruling. “This is the largest tax increase on the poor and the middle class in the history of this country . . . it was sold to the American people as a mandate and not a tax.”

The White House criticized Republicans for attacking the health care bill on the basis of an “alleged tax” in 2009. “What President Obama is proposing is not a tax, but a requirement to comply with the law,” the White House website declared.

Landry called for voters “to repeal this tax” at the ballot box in November.