So, health care and health insurance reform is up in the air. Senator-elect Scott Brown is coming to Washington and Democrats are suddenly a vote short of filibuster-proof.
One option for Democrats is a legislative procedural loophole called budget reconciliation that requires only a majority vote in the Senate. With this, Democrats could pass the health reform bill with only 51 votes.
But two Democratic Senators, Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas and Evan Bayh of Indiana, have already come out against the idea.
Senator Lincoln said that she doesn’t want the reform effort rushed and would fight against use of the tactic.
“I will not accept any last-minute efforts to force changes to health insurance reform issues through budget reconciliation, ” said Senator Lincoln.
Also, we can’t forget that Senator Lincoln is still considering a tough re-election race this year in the very red state of Arkansas.
Senator Bayh had a bit of a more calculated answer, saying that pushing reconciliation could hurt relations with Congressional Republicans for future legislation.
Both points are salient, but that doesn’t mean the Democrats won’t use their ultimate health reform trump card.