Harry Reid Eats His Wheaties

I’d like to start this post with a sincere wish for the rapid recovery of Harry Reid’s wife and daughter, who were in a serious car accident yesterday.

Health care reform looks more certain to pass any day now. One hold-up has been the distrust between the House and the Senate. The Senate is now an almost completely dysfunctional body and the House is worried that the fixes to the health care bill will not see action. There are now at least 54 Senators on board with reconciliation for the sidecar bill containing fixes to the Senate bill and Harry Reid has sent a letter of notice to Mitch McConnell that Democrats are going to pursue reconciliation:

Excerpts of Reid’s letter to Senator McConnell:

“While Republicans were distorting the facts in the health care debate and inflicting delay after needless delay, millions of Americans have continued to suffer as they struggle to afford to stay healthy, stay out of bankruptcy and stay in their homes. Thousands of Americans lose their health care every day, and tens of thousands of the uninsured have lost their lives since this debate began.”

“Many Republicans now are demanding that we simply ignore the progress we’ve made, the extensive debate and negotiations we’ve held, the amendments we’ve added (including more than 100 from Republicans) and the votes of a supermajority in favor of a bill whose contents the American people unambiguously support. We will not. We will finish the job.”

“As you know, the vast majority of bills developed through reconciliation were passed by Republican Congresses and signed into law by Republican Presidents – including President Bush’s massive, budget-busting tax breaks for multi-millionaires. Given this history, one might conclude that Republicans believe a majority vote is sufficient to increase the deficit and benefit the super-rich, but not to reduce the deficit and benefit the middle class. Alternatively, perhaps Republicans believe a majority vote is appropriate only when Republicans are in the majority. Either way, we disagree.”

“At the end of the process, the bill can pass only if it wins a democratic, up-or-down majority vote. If Republicans want to vote against a bill that reduces health care costs, fills the prescription drug ‘donut hole’ for seniors and reduces the deficit, you will have every right to do so.”

Do you get the feeling that Harry Reid is completely fed up with the Republicans’ dishonest whining to the press?

I want to let this part savor for a while:

Given this history, one might conclude that Republicans believe a majority vote is sufficient to increase the deficit and benefit the super-rich, but not to reduce the deficit and benefit the middle class. Alternatively, perhaps Republicans believe a majority vote is appropriate only when Republicans are in the majority. Either way, we disagree.

I love the sound of a smackdown in the morning.