In a statement issued late today, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell slammed the historic health care reform bill that passed the U.S. Congress yesterday, and that President Obama will sign into law this week. McDonnell said that Virginia Attorney Gen. Ken Cuccinelli’s “has rightly chosen” to challenge the constitutionality of the law, and that issues raised by Cuccinelli “require a full and prompt review by the judicial branch.”

McDonnell called the bill, by placing new mandates on states, “is shocking to the American system of federalism,” evoking the same “states’ rights” argument used by Virginia in its unfortunate past when resisting federal civil rights mandates.

McDonnell stated, “We will not improve our healthcare system by implementing a massive, one-size fits all federal policy that dramatically increases the deficit, put unprecedented mandates on states and individuals, and jeopardizes the good coverage most citizens already have. I am disappointed in the passage of this bill, and I thank the bipartisan majority of Virginia’s congressional delegation for voting against it.”