[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9B43T3933RA]
With apologies to Harry Potter and the X-Files. From the folks at Patients First. After ObamaCare passing last night in the House, the pressure is on Reid to see if he can get anything out of the Senate. In order to do that he will have to gain 60 votes to invoke cloture, which means that, unless he can persuade either of the Maine Republican Senators Olympia Snowe and Sue Collins to cross over, he needs every Democrat and Joe Lieberman to vote for cloture. That is a very tall order.
I think it’ll go to reconciliation. Republicans will cry foul forgetting that they threatened to use the nuclear option when they were in the majority.
Reid’s pretty stupid restrainedradical but even he isn’t that stupid. For the reasons stated by Ezra Klein I doubt if Reid is even considering it.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/08/can_democrats_have_a_50-vote_s.html
I see four scenarios:
1. Some concessions are made and it passes with 60+.
2. The bill is watered down to the point where it’ll get 60+ but the Democrats can’t claim victory.
3. The bill dies.
4. Reconciliation. Whether Republicans can threaten shutdown is dependent on whether the public would be behind them. My guess is that a shutdown would be unpopular but I could be wrong.
I think Democrats would prefer 4 to 2 or 3.
Today’s catholics are such PALE imitations of the 1960’s heros who spoke for those who had nothing.
Where have you been in the crusade for medicare for all? You’re as ‘strangely’ silent as the insurance industry…and other fakes shrouded in religiousity.
Why weren’t your pale priests and nuns fighting for the least among us?
BAH.