NOW they discover reconciliation...

[FourScore]

If it ends up going the way of reconciliation anyway, how about taking out the anti-abortion stuff and adding the public option???

Dem: If Coakley loses, health reforms may pass by reconciliation
By Stephen C. Webster
Saturday, January 16th, 2010 -- 1:21 pm

Could a special election in Massachusetts completely derail President Obama's health reforms? Not if Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) has his way.

Massachusetts voters will decide on Tuesday whether to elect Republican Scott Brown or Democrat Martha Coakley to serve the remainder of the late Senator Edward Kennedy's term. Should Brown be elected, the Democratic super majority in the U.S. Senate would be broken, endangering passage of the health reform bill.

Van Hollen, who chairs the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, stressed during a recent Bloomberg television appearance that if Brown wins, Democrats may yet pass the health overhaul through the process of reconciliation.

Reconciliation is a parliamentary tactic most often reserved for budgetary matters. It clear way for the majority to pass its legislation with a mere 51 votes, as opposed to the 60 needed for the traditional legislative process...

http://rawstory.com/2010/01/dem-coakley-loses-health-reforms-pass-reconciliation/

[Vincardog]

1. Reconciliation and they would still leave in all the crap corporate give aways they put in courting

The radical Reich.

[Donnachaidh]

3. yup. Do you think they'd use all their skills to actually HELP consumers?

It's ALL about the campaign contributions..... :sarcasm:

[Vincardog]

6. With the SCOTUS going to give the parasitic corporations unlimited donations to campaigns the jig

is close to up. They can quit lying to us and campaigns will be just Coke vs Pepsi.

[RoyGBiv]

2. No ...

Using reconciliation, particularly under these circumstances, will result in a bill worse than what we have now. Please do yourself a favor and actually look up the rules for reconciliation.

This has been argued time and again. Using reconciliation is a worst-case scenario, which is effectively what Van Hollen is saying.

[FourScore]

5. My point is that they never should have given away so much to Leibermann and Nelson. n/t

[RoyGBiv]

7. That was your point?

So when you said, "If it ends up going the way of reconciliation anyway, how about taking out the anti-abortion stuff and adding the public option???" you were just reminiscing about the past?

[treestar]

4. "most often?"

I thought it had to affect the federal budget.

[RoyGBiv]

8. And be deficit neutral over 5 years ...

... which means a lot of things certain people don't want to think about.