Up-or-Down Votes

It's taken for granted that a bill may enjoy the support of a majority of the Senate, but it probably won't pass. For most of American history, 51 votes meant success. Slowly but surely, without any discussion or debate, the threshold became 60. Now, 41 senators can simply decide not to let the chamber vote on bills they don't like.

In the context of the health care debate, this is obviously of critical importance. An ambitious, progressive bill could get 51 votes, but that's been deemed inadequate. Republicans will filibuster reform, and the Democratic caucus has 59 votes, not 60. It's left Dems scrambling to figure out how to use the reconciliation process.