General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsWe're A 60 Seat Dem Senate & Dem Controlled House....
away from single payer. Let's take back the House & win a filibusterproof Senate.
man4allcats
(4,026 posts)How'd that work out for us last time? Oh yeah, I remember now. I'm all for single payer, but I have my doubts about many so-called democrats.
Drunken Irishman
(34,857 posts)I don't recall the Democrats having a 60 seat majority in the Senate - or do you mean back in the 60s?
man4allcats
(4,026 posts)in 2008, but I could be mistaken. I think it included counting Lieberman as a democrat - a stretch, I admit.
Drunken Irishman
(34,857 posts)man4allcats
(4,026 posts)I stand corrected on the count, though I believe I am still correct in principle. Unfortunately, I think it will take more than an Obama win, 60 seats in the Senate and a democratically controlled House to bring single payer to fruition. There are just too many blue dogs in the mix. Nevertheless, I'm always in for the fight to see single payer realized.
Drunken Irishman
(34,857 posts)Too many moderate Democrats won't ever allow it. I think Obama would sign a singe-payer plan if it passed, especially in his second term, but it's not going to pass. Obama has to work in the context of the Senate & House, unfortunately.
ProgressiveEconomist
(5,818 posts)from April 30, 2009, the effective date of Arlen Specter's party switch, to February 4, 2010, when Scott Brown replaced temporary Democratic appointee Paul Kirk.
Unfortunately, with such a knife-edge "majority" for beating a Republican filibuster, all it took for Republicans to win against any bid for cloture was one Democratic defection, such as Ben Nelson (DINO, NE).
pennylane100
(3,425 posts)I was really surprised that Gore chose him as I did not think that he was a complement to the Gore platform.
Art_from_Ark
(27,247 posts)I think he was chosen for Gore, a la Kennedy/Johnson.
msongs
(67,199 posts)dkf
(37,305 posts)Looking at the way the Supreme Court invalidated the Medicaid expansion stick, there's not another way to get more people covered. If the goal is to provide coverage for all Americans there is no other way.
bluestateguy
(44,173 posts)Otherwise you are going to have a Democratic majority chock full of folks like Dan Boren, Mike Ross, Jason Altmire, Blanche Lincoln and Mary Landrieu.
KatChatter
(194 posts)as we have seen over and over again just 1 Blue Dog can destroy or water down any meaningful legislation.
eomer
(3,845 posts)There are lots of precedents of changes like this being done through reconciliation, like the SCHIP program, for example. However, the precedent cases were not challenged by the minority party so we don't know for sure what can or cannot be.done - the parliamentarian would have to rule.
If we do have in the future a simple majority in both houses but not 60 in the Senate, then it would be worth finding out.
(Reconciliation bills can't be filibustered so they require just 50 votes in the Senate.)
SoCalDem
(103,856 posts)and we'd need at least a 250 (us)/ 135 (them) for that to even START to be discussed seriously.
Art_from_Ark
(27,247 posts)We controlled both Houses and the Presidency in 2009 and we couldn't even get a public option in the discussion.
robinlynne
(15,481 posts)the public option, remember?