Oh… yeah, I guess that’s true. I guess I didn’t connect that in my head because it was Democrats being against it that kept it from happening not Republicans being against it. But yeah, you’re right. I guess it was the filibuster.
MikeJ
4681
This is what’s insidious about the fillibuster, it gets treated as if there is a requirement that a bill routinely needs 60 votes to pass. Rather than being treated as 60 votes to break what should be extraordinary obstruction by the minority.
magnet
4682
OK, but passing the ACA in 2010 is not the same as adding a public option later on. The former needed 60 votes, the latter quite possibly does not.
As to why didn’t they add just a public option in 2011: they probably didn’t even have 51 votes. Things are different now.
MikeJ
4683
Strictly speaking, they DEFINITELY don’t have 51 votes now :)
Trying to govern this county on 51-49 votes is a shitty way of doing it. Most of the lasting, landmark legislation has been passed with far more than 60 votes or narrow margin in the House. Now, I realize that Republican obstructionism has made that virtually impossible to do in the last decade or so. But getting 60 votes in the Senate should be the goal for any type of important legislation, certainly something important as Federal healthcare. I opposed any type of Republican 51-49 healthcare legislation and I’ll oppose any type of Democratic program on the passed in the same way.
magnet
4685
True! But if Biden believes he might find 51 votes before his term ends, then he’s not totally unrealistic.
MikeJ
4686
To my mind, you guys shouldn’t even HAVE a senate. Plenty of countries get along just fine with far fewer veto points.
It’s not easy to compare our whole, wacky, dysfunctional 50-different-states-trying-to-work-together arrangement with other countries.
Maybe we need to take out the United and just call ourselves the States of America.
KevinC
4688
I’m sure plenty of Americans would love to refer to themselves as the SA. Roughly 43%, by my count.
It’s worth noting that of the dozen or so countries with populations of 100 Million+, with the possible exception of Japan they all have a more screwed up government system. I don’t know a lot about Japanese government, but from a far the the whole Emperor seems pretty whacky-doodle.
It is easier to govern with a smaller more homogeneous population.
Alstein
4690
If NC is won, the Dems will have 50 in the Senate. I think it all hinges on North Carolina and getting rid of Tillis- which is doable, especially if the economy is downturning.
Yes, it was people like Max Baucus (perhaps literally Max Baucus) that prevented it. But, absent the filibuster, AKA as the 60-vote threshold, you don’t need that vote. Baucus is free to vote against it and it passes with 59. Or 58, or whatever. To pass it then you’d have to abolish the filibuster, and to pass it in 2021 you’ll need to abandon the filibuster.
No, I think they had 51 votes for public option, but they weren’t ready to contemplate something as drastic as abolishing the filibuster.
Yeah, Harry Reid really didn’t want to do that. Of course later on, when the Republicans absolutely refused to even do judge appointments that no one had any objections to, eventually they were forced to remove the filibuster for that.
magnet
4694
Again, the ACA required 60 votes. But the public option could have been added via reconciliation, which only required a simple majority. This was discussed at the time and they didn’t have 51 votes.
“In August, a whip count on the public option showed only 43 firm yes votes, one of which was Senator Kennedy,” he writes. “And these totals reflected how Senators claim they would have voted if the public option were considered under regular order – not under reconciliation, which is the process in play now. You might have to subtract some additional votes from among those Senators who are either opposed using reconciliation for health care in general, or opposed to including a public option in a reconciliation package specifically.”
Ah, that’s helpful, thanks.
In any event, Joe shouldn’t be saying it’s easy.
Menzo
4697
I used to think a show about how stupid Trump is would be hilarious. Then I watched Our Cartoon President and learned that no, it’s not. That show is terrible.
I think it’s funny that some people are saying this is a clip from The Simpsons.
Anything that normalizes this assclown is a bad thing.
I see what you did there.
