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**Written by Doug Powers

On Thursday, Jay Carney said he wasn’t sure how many Democrats would support President Obama’s “$1.6 trillion in tax increases, no debt limit and new stimulus spending” plan that is somehow supposed to reduce the deficit — and Harry Reid has taken it upon himself to make sure nobody ever does find out. Mitch McConnell tried to bring the Obama plan to a vote in the Senate either as an amendment or a stand-alone bill and Harry Reid swatted it down so fast you’d think McConnell had proposed a ban on cowboy poetry.

At a press conference, Jay Carney was asked about Reid’s aversion to allowing a vote on Obama’s proposal:

Reporters: Why is he afraid to put the President’s plan on the floor. Do you think you have democratic support?

Carney: We know that, and the filibuster is certainly an issue here, that we don’t have 60 votes in the Senate. So, I would not argue with the idea that the President’s proposal cannot at this time, or has not at this time, garnered Republican support. That’s what this debate is about. We are very confident that the Democrats support the principle that we need to have $1.6 trillion in revenue, asking the wealthy to pay more as part of a balanced package that the President has put forward. I understand that you’re going along with the gamesmanship here. We’re trying to be serious about these negotiations. We have put forward a proposal. We have seen no substantive proposal, especially on revenues, from the Republicans.

If, as Carney insinuated, the only opposition to the Obama plan are Republicans, why pass up a golden opportunity to demonstrate that over 50 Democrats — the majority of the Senate — are unified in their support for Obama’s “bring down our deficits in a balanced way by constantly raising the debt ceiling” proposal? It sounds like somebody has been asked to not allow a repeat of the Obama budget vote.

In fairness to Harry Reid, he’s been preoccupied with trying to get a popcorn waiver. First things first.

**Written by Doug Powers

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