The 60 vote problem has to be solved

The American Thinker ^ | 03/10/17 | Karin McQuillan

[pgkdan]

We are told that without 60 votes in the Senate, we cannot pass new health care legislation, so the only practical course is to accept the limited changes to Obamacare possible through “reconciliation.”

Then there is the father of all lies. We are told not to worry about how bad this bill is, there will be phase 2, and after that, phase 3 – and then President Trump will keep his promises on health care.

.....SNIP....

It’s a bigger problem than health care reform. If Republicans can’t get a single piece of any sort of legislation passed without 60 votes, none of Trump’s agenda will be passed. Folks, we’re not going to get unanimity from Republicans on every bill plus 8 Democrats voting with us.

The sixty vote problem has to be solved.

[spokeshave]

....they already used Rule 19 to shut up the fake indian Warren....when she went on a rant about something a few weeks back

seems to be effective since I seen or herd (no pun intended) neither hide nor hair of Poxahuntas since.

[abbastanza]

The Senate with it’s current cast of characters probably shouldn’t exist. When you have a travesty like the “Gang of Eight”, why do you need the Senate? Eight boneheads telling the rest of them how it will be. Who needs that. Most of them are so old that they haven’t had a lucid thought in years. It’s a mess.

[stonehouse01]

“If term limits...appropriate for President...also appropriate for Congressional Delegation.”

Great point thanks.

[stonehouse01]

“...herd (sic) neither hide nor hair of Poxahuntas (sic) since...”

heheheheh! Lol

[Alberta's Child]

I don't know why there's all this angst over the 60-vote "problem."

The GOP really has a 50-vote problem, not a 60-vote problem. The only way they can keep even their own members in line is to water down most legislation so much that it makes it pretty ineffective.

[rdcbn]

The secondary problem is that ObamaCare is crappy insurance and the entire ACA structure is irrational, unsustainable and designed to fail to usher in Single Payer government controlled health care.

The primary problem is that Americans, as a whole, are greedy, stupid and unaware. A huge fraction of Americans cannot grasp that ObamaCare is unsustainable and will soon destroy our economy and our healthcare system. Another huge fraction of Americans can grasp that ObamaCare is unsustainable and will soon destroy our economy and our healthcare system, but don't care as long as they get their freebies, however crappy they may be, until the eventual implosion -just because they are “free”

Obama, the Media and the Democrats were brilliant at exempting key constituencies and hiding the disaster of ObamaCare and shielding Americans from the consequences.

Americans will have to directly and personally suffer the painful consequences of ObamaCare before enough of them change their attitudes towards ObamaCare before meaningful change happens

Not to worry - painful consequences are on the horizon as soon as this Fall's enrollment as premiums skyrocket without Obama’s massive and illegal under the table transfers of taxpayer money to insurers to cover up massive red ink dry up and ObamaCare collapses due to ObamaCare’s fundamental unsustainablity.

Once Americans have pay 30-100% increases in premiums with ever higher deductibles

Force Americans to live with the true costs and poor product of ObamaCare without subsidies and they will demand it's repeal.

Give them an alternative, rational, free market option that fits their own personal health care needs and priorities instead of the needs of Democrat voters looking for political payoffs and most American s will flock to the new plans and abandon ObamaCare to die on the vine.

[spokeshave]

Summary The current Standing Rules of the Senate empower a majority of the institution’s members to overcome a filibuster and confirm a nominee to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Specifically, persistent minority obstruction may be curtailed by strictly enforcing Rule XIX (the two-speech rule) on the Senate floor.

Doing so simply requires the Senate to remain in the same legislative day until the filibustering members have exhausted their ability to speak on the nominee in question.

[stonehouse01]

“.....willing to give Trump some latitude regarding his tacit acceptance of this “initial step” ...

This is the position that I am holding as well. Trump is a master deal maker! after all. He absolutely has the talent to take his current position based partly upon how plans to negotiate this as it plays out over real time and the bill will morph (not by accident) into the form he wants. He does hold veto power in the end.

Trump is fully trustworthy and he will make sure this bill is hammered out and negotiated until it is correct. Trump has promised us repeal and reform and he is fully aware of the ramifications of a disastrous Obamacare lite being passed.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Everyone should read Joel Pollack's new article on Breitbart.

I think this is all part of Trump's negotiation tactics. When Ryancare fails, Trump is going to offer his own plan.

He's going to bring all parties together and hash out a deal.

[discostu]

No it doesn’t. Remember the Dems will have the majority again some day, do you want THEM to not have to navigate the 60 vote rule?

[pgkdan]

No it doesn’t. Remember the Dems will have the majority again some day, do you want THEM to not have to navigate the 60 vote rule?

You're kidding yourself if you don't believe that the first agenda item for a dem majority would be to kill the rule. Item number one. Dirty Harry got the ball rolling and they'll now kick it past the goalie. Guaran-damn-teed.

[discostu]

They didn’t kill it last time.

[pgkdan]

They didn’t kill it last time.

Harry Reid took the first step. They'll damned sure do it the next time.

[DH]

“The “problem” is the gutlessness of the GOPe... THEY are the problem.”

---

The “PROBLEM” is that they are on the TAKE one way or another and the payee is whomever is the highest bidder. Have you ever seen one of these “so called” representatives who simply had a decent income...not a filthy rich one? For what? They don’t do any actual work...just a lot of hot air and “under the table” deals.

Before we lose all of our freedoms we have “to take out the trash” before the garbage strangles us...the law abiding, tax paying citizens. Politicians think of like the ants and aphids...the aphids only purpose in life is to provide sugar to the ants.

[9YearLurker]

It really doesn’t as desperately as the GOPe pretends it does.

First, McConnell could name a GOP parliamentarian who would be more flexible—rather than sticking with the Dem named one they have. (You know that’s what the Dems would do.)

Second, Pence has the ability to overrule the Senate parliamentarian, so he could take care of it himself.

Third, they could put the essential tax cuts and the essential Obamacare repeal elements in reconciliation and power it through Congress this spring if they wanted to.

Fourth, instead of browbeating the freedom caucus in his first interaction with Congress, Trump could and should be focused on sweet-talking and persuading the Democrats in the Senate from red states.

Unfortunately, none of these is being done and instead Trump and his team are beating up on the good guys in Congress.

[discostu]

No they won’t. Because much like last time they’ll realize that eventually they won’t have the majority. Also it removes excuses, political parties love being able to blame each other. It’s the wrong strategic move, which is why both parties talk about it (re: blame the other side) but they never do it.

[duckln]

I agree.

The 60 vote rule is unconstitutional in that it gives more power to the senate than was intended by the founders.

A federal judge can step in and prevent the president from doing this or that on constitutional grounds, so likewise, shouldn't a (special prosecutor) be able to prevent the senate leader from doing likewise?

[Logical me]

America has been destroyed a long time ago with things like the 60 vote in the Senate. Stop and think. Nothing, for many years, has come out of Congress to keep America free and safe. All that has been done is fill the pockets of politicians, both Democrats and Republicans. The 60 vote must be changes to 51 or you can expect a communists government replacing our Constitution. It is almost there now. Think about it!

[JohnBovenmyer]

Ryan's RINO's excuse is that they can't put much into this bill because the Byrd rule won't let much go through with 50 votes under reconciliation and no one expects them to get 60 votes until after midterms. He certainly doesn't want us to think Ryan's RINO's can't get 50 votes on much in the Senate because too many want to be on the other side of the aisle... So they say putting more into the reconciliation will be stopped by the parliamentarian and can only be overruled by the 60 votes they lack. Meanwhile Cruz says he's found, in the law creating reconciliation, that the parliamentarian doesn't rule on the limits, the Chair (Pence at need) does, and it takes 60 Rat votes to overrule him. So if the GOP can find the guts to have Pence endorse adding whatever to their bill under reconciliation they only need 41 votes to sustain him! If we can't whip 41 votes for what 52 allegedly GOP Senators claimed was a top priority we're in worse shape than I'd realized.

I don't know if Cruz is correct, but it's in character for Cruz, in "look at me, I'm the smartest kid in the class" mode to discover something like this and be correct. The unusual behavior, for Cruz, is that here he seems to be working with Trump and Pence to try to fix the bill, rather than being the lead obstructionist.