Do they have the 50 votes in the Senate

[bigdarryl]

MSNBC is talking as if its not definite.

[Clio the Leo]

1. Rumor is 52....

.... per Bart Stupak today.

[quiller4]

20. and that doesn't include Byrd who will make 53 if he isn't too ill to participate

He issued his own letter of support from his hospital bed.

[Ozymanithrax]

2. Reports were that Reid delevered a letter with 51 names.

[marshall]

3. It'll happen

One way or another, it'll happen.

[kestrel91316]

4. What happened to needing 61??

[Ozymanithrax]

5. The Senate is passing the bill as a reconciliation bill.

A reconciliation bill must be deficit neutral and limited in scope. It requires a simple majority but there is a mandatory 20 hours of debate required, during which an infinite number of amendments can be added to the bill. Also, if the Senate Parliamentarian so deems, it may required a to vote filibuster breaker, but the Vice President, if he chooses to preside as President of the Senate, can over rule the Parliamentarian. If the bill gets through the process without amendments, it can be passed by a simple majority. If any amendment passes, it is no longer identical to the House bill and must go back to the house.

[bigdarryl]

6. I would have though all this shit was worked out before the votes tonight

[kestrel91316]

7. It's not gonna pass. People DO realize that, right? We were lucky to get what we got.

There is no way Harry Reid can get jack shit passed if a single Repuke opposes it.

[bigdarryl]

8. WHAT!!!!!

[4lbs]

9. That's wrong. Under reconciliation you only need 50 Senators (+ VP) or 51 Senators to vote YEA.

You can have 49 NAY votes.

That's why they are using reconciliation. Reconciliaton only requires a simple majority, not 60.

[kestrel91316]

12. I have no faith whatsoever in Harry being able to bring it to a VOTE,

let alone muster 51 votes. He has been completely incompetent IMHO.

[4lbs]

16. We'll find out Tuesday when the vote happens.

The only reason it passed today is because Reid brought a signed guarantee from 52 Senators promising to vote YEA on the House fixes. That was presented at Saturday's meeting of the House Democratic Caucus that Obama spoke.

[kestrel91316]

19. Like I said, I don't trust him. He's incompetent.

[phleshdef]

15. Bullshit. Reid got through the senate bill that the house passed tonight.

[WeekendWarrior]

17. THE SKY IS FALLING!!!!!!

Give me a fucking break.

[secondwind]

10. HARRY'S GOT 51 SIGNATURES ALREADY. DON'T NEED BIDEN.

[bigdarryl]

11. The pundits are saying they can renege

[fugop]

13. The pundits are tireless

The talking heads never give up on making things a horserace. They're ratings whores. It's what they do. If they were to say it's a done deal now, they'd have even fewer viewers than they get now. It's pathetic to watch, because often, after something is all over, I realize they were just ramping up the fear to keep eyes glued to tvs. It's going to be the same. Sure, they could renege, but odds are, history is happening. The Senate won't stop it now.

[FrenchieCat]

14. Well if you are listening to them, you are in for a whole lot of hurt!

[phleshdef]

18. Yea, they could. And the entire Republican caucus could suddenly call for a single payer system.

What could happen and what is likely going to happen are 2 different things.

[tritsofme]

21. There will be another vote in the House before the reconciliation package becomes law.

At the least Republicans are sure win some procedural challenges that produce cosmetic changes to the bill and force another vote in the House.

At worst major parts of the package will get thrown out such as the excise tax fix.

There is no doubt there are 51 senators ready to approve the final measure, but it will faces challenges under the Byrd rule that would require 60 votes to overturn.

[bigdarryl]

22. where the hell did you hear that from.The news reportsd are saying its going to be signed in two day

then it goes to the Senate for the fixes nothing about it going back to Congress

[tritsofme]

23. The Senate bill will become law when President Obama signs it.

The reconciliation bill also passed by the House tonight will go the Senate where it will face some procedural hurdles that will modify it. I think it is extremely likely there will be one more final vote in the House before the reconciliation fix can be signed into law, however the Senate bill will already be the law of the land regardless of what happens to the reconciliation fixes.

[Unvanguard]

24. Of course they do. It's going to happen. n/t