At what point do Democrats pass their own legislation and take responsibility for it?
Nancy Pelosi promised more bipartisanship with Democrats in control of everything, yet Dems have whined continuously that Republicans aren't just rolling over and voting for bad legislation. We were told that things would be different once Democrats controlled Congress and, to some extend, they were right: we have a record deficit, a non-stimulus stimulus bill, terrible legislation that would crush industry in this country, government takeovers of the automobile industry and an assault on healthcare.
But holding majorities in the House and Senate wasn't enough to the dimwit Dems. What they needed, they said was a super majority in the Senate--a filibuster-proof 60 Democrats. So, when Al Franken successfully stole a Senate seat, you would have thought that solved the problem, right? No more "Republicans are derailing our agenda" crap from the lunatic left and their blathering politicians, right?
You'd be wrong.
Despite their 60-vote majority in the Senate, a top Democrat argued today that Democrats alone can't pull health care reform through Congress.
"There are not the votes for Democrats to do this just on our side of the aisle," Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., chairman of the Senate Budget Committee and a key player in the health care reform effort on Capitol Hill said during an exclusive health care debate this morning with Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., on "This Week."
"It's just not possible to have a Democrat-only bill?" I asked Sen. Conrad.
"No, it is not possible," he told me, "and perhaps not desirable either. We're probably going to get a better product if we go through the tough business of debate, consideration, and analysis of what we're proposing."
Translation: we don't want to take the heat for screwing up America's health care system. We want Republicans to share in it so it can't be a campaign issue.
If Democrats can't get their own party members to suck it up and vote for their own legislation, why on earth should Republicans give them cover? It's not like Democrats are interested in Republicans' ideas on the subject.
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