The Washington Post carries this alarming story that Democrats will give Republicans until September to compromise on health care (i.e. go along with everything they propose), or else they’ll ram it through as part of the budget process, which is not subject to filibuster. While so-called budget reconciliation has been used to pass spending and tax measures, it would be an outrageous overreach to use the gimmick to pass a bill that would permanently overhaul the $2.4 trillion health care sector. Such a move would basically turn the Senate into the House, and would make a mockery of any claims President Obama has to be a bipartisan leader who wants to have a serious debate about issues.
