Operative JP, who has been in the Sahara on a very special archaeological dig for us—and if we’re right about what JP finds, you don’t want to know what’s been buried there for 4,000 years—writes in on reconciliation:

If I understand the scenario correctly, reconciliation is not necessary for the actual bill—the House passes the Senate’s already passed bill, the Pres will sign it and off we go. The reconciliation then takes place ostensibly to make the agreed-upon-ahead-of-time changes to the now existing bill. In this way the left is technically correct when it claims to be acting as Repubs have in the past; ie, simply making budgetary changes to existing bills. And since the technical interpretation is to their advantage in this case, it will, of course be used.

This doesn’t reduce the travesty of the bill, nor the poke in the eye to the majority of citizens. But it meets the criteria of both Pres (not going to do a 50+1 on health care) and congress (not using reconciliation to pass health care). It is a haughty narrative, but they can and will repeat it until it is believed.

That’s exactly correct, if the House passes the Senate bill, but there is more and more evidence that this won’t happen. But as JP points out, they could have done that without reconciliation months ago. They didn’t because they hate the Senate bill. The expectation is that the House can pass a reconciled version of the Senate bill—the money—and then come back later to iron out the remaining differences (the parts they hate) in a conference report, which the President can also sign into law.

Yes, the GOP has used reconciliation quite a bit, and it’s a legitimate technique with legitimate purpose. The sticking point here is that it is being used for a travesty of a bill that pokes the eyes of the majority of Americans. You got it exactly right, JP.

The Czar of Muscovy

Божію Поспѣшествующею Милостію Мы, Дима Грозный Императоръ и Самодержецъ Всероссiйскiй, цѣсарь Московскiй. The Czar was born in the steppes of Russia in 1267, and was cheated out of total control of all Russia upon the death of Boris Mikhailovich, who replaced Alexander Yaroslav Nevsky in 1263. However, in 1283, our Czar was passed over due to a clerical error and the rule of all Russia went to his second cousin Daniil (Даниил Александрович), whom Czar still resents. As a half-hearted apology, the Czar was awarded control over Muscovy, inconveniently located 5,000 miles away just outside Chicago. He now spends his time seething about this and writing about other stuff that bothers him.