Let's Get Ready To Reconcile!

摘要

Sex, drugs and rock and roll. Sounds fun, except that this column is about reconciliation, obfuscation and cap-and-trade. A pity, I know, but bear with me. If we want to "put away childish things," as President Obama urged in his Inaugural Address (quoting Saint Paul), we're going to have to talk about some awfully wonky procedural and substantive things that grown-ups in Washington like to obsess about. And we're going to have to get used to the idea thattransformational change in health, education and energy policy is more important than whether Republicans cry foul over being railroaded.Reconciliation on Capitol Hill, as you have probably heard, has nothing to do with avoiding divorce. It's the process by which the House and Senate "reconcile" their differing versions of the federal budget and deal with the devilish details. To keep things moving, passing budgets requires only 51 votes in the Senate, a simple majority. Now it may strike you that majority rule is what democracy is supposed to be about, but that just means you haven't been paying attention.