Obama later elaborated in his weekly radio address saying, "this ruling strikes at our democracy itself" and "I can't think of anything more devastating to the public interest".

But the lawyers for the panhandlers have repeatedly reported to Judge Scheindlin that the police continued to issue summonses under the old law, despite the rulings striking it from the books.

Civil libertarians and representatives of lawyers' groups said the ruling on Tuesday struck at the heart of what they see as a client's basic right.

On Monday, ruling in another case, the Georgia Supreme Court agreed and struck down the law.

The Members argued that the EPA's ruling will strike a devastating blow to the already struggling American economy.

The Supreme Court's recent ruling struck at the heart of Mr. Cheney's goal to expand presidential powers.

At the same time, Stephanie Cutter, an assistant to the president, noted in a post on the White House blog that the ruling had struck down the entire law.

In a stinging dissent he lambasted the Court's ruling stating that it "was the most disastrous blow ever struck at the Constitutional power of Congress."

The earlier ruling had struck down that law, but with the reversal, it is now illegal to beg not only in the subway system but also in the city's main terminals.

She believed that the lower court's ruling had struck a proper balance that was consistent with Court precedent.