Senate Democratic Leadership Will Pass Health Care Reform “By Any Legislative Means Necessary”

ABCnews.com - Political Punch ^ | 08/19/09 | Jake Tapper

[OldDeckHand]

Amidst questions of whether or not any Senate Republicans will support a health care reform bill, Jim Manley, spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., today said that the “White House and the Senate Democratic leadership still prefer a bipartisan bill.”

The Reid spokesman said that “neither the White House nor the leadership have made a decision to pursue reconciliation,” the somewhat controversial legislative process by which a bill is introduced in such a manner so that it requires merely 50 votes instead of 60 to proceed to a vote, thus removing the threat of filibuster.

Manley said that “we will not make a decision to pursue reconciliation until we have exhausted efforts to produce a bipartisan bill.”

“However,” he cautioned, “patience is not unlimited and we are determined to get something done this year by any legislative means necessary.”

“By any means necessary” is a phrase popularized by Malcolm X (demanding the rights of African-Americans to be respected in society), though it is thought to have originally been penned by French existentialist Jean Paul Sartre in his play about assassination “Dirty Hands” (in a line demanding the end of class).

[GeronL]

Why not just arrested all the GOP lawmakers on trumped up charges?

[keepitreal]

They can’t get a cloture vote because they’re missing two of their 60. Byrd and Kennedy don’t come to work anymore. So if they really wanted to start ramming legislation through, they would have to tell these two guys to retire. Not going to happen.

[GOPsterinMA]

I hope you’re right. Reid is such a POS. Of course, Daschle is too, but he was taken out, courtesy of the SD voters. Hopefully NV voters perform the same service to the nation.

Prayers up and fingers crossed!

[GeronL]

Also...be prepared...if they do this with Obamacare, they’ll do it with amnesty too.

Cap N Trade, Card Ceck

[savedbygrace]

You began this by writing: Reconciliation (a/k/a 'the nuclear option')

Reconciliation is NOT Also Known As 'the nuclear option'. They are two different legislation actions, as I said. You are simply wrong.

But whatever gets you through the night, you just keep repeating it, and before you know it, you'll be fast asleep.

[melancholy]

At least until those health care consequences start landing on their front doorsteps, THEN when somebody’s wife, mother or disabled kid gets denied care, you might have some violence. But it’ll be far, far too late at that point.

Yep, we'll have to change the expression "going postal" to "going healthy!"

[dirtboy]

They can’t get a cloture vote because they’re missing two of their 60.

For health care, I'm sure they could wheel the two of 'em in on gurneys if needed.

[Doctor Don]

Any demonRAT House member will be voted out of office in 2010!

[keepitreal]

Or they might have to use the Weekend at Bernie’s option.

[GeronL]

Please no one misunderstand me. I am not calling for violence, but if they try this, there would be armed insurection in the streets

I doubt it. There will be much moaning and groaning on the net though

[dirtboy]

Or they might have to use the Weekend at Bernie’s option.

That was Strom Thurmond.

[GeronL]

don’t bet on it

[melancholy]

Reconciliation is NOT Also Known As 'the nuclear option'. They are two different legislation actions, as I said. You are simply wrong.

Hi SBG!

You corrected me once on impeaching an illegally elected President. You MUST be correct this time also! LOL!

[Don Corleone]

Which is it now, Health Kare reform or Insurance reform? I missed the memo!

[BluesDuke]

Which is it now, Health Kare reform or Insurance reform? I missed the memo!

It's health care deformity. I got the memo a little while ago.

[savedbygrace]

I don’t recall. Was I right then?

[dodger]

Golly, but you do seem rather overwrought not to mention a bit short on conceptual agility ...

TTFN

[GOPsterinMA]

Will Bryd go for this? He may be literally one of the only hopes to stop this thing.

[Gabrial]

Reid:

“I will force a system on Americans that is not good enough for me or the rest of the ruling class”.

“By any means necessary.”

[StAnDeliver]

Do it, Dingy. Let Nov. 2, 2010, give you the back of its hand, by all means. It's necessary.