By now you have probably hear that the "Gang of Six" senators -- three Democrats and Republicans -- who are trying to strike a grand budget bargain is getting smaller. A spokesman says Sen. Tom Coburn, (R) OK, decided to "take a break" from the Gang yesterday. Others say he left after a shouting match over the deeper cuts he proposed in Medicare.
Budget wonks everywhere were counting on the select six to pull a grand bargain out of their talks. What happened?
In my experience, gangs don't do well in the Senate and for a few good reasons:
- 1) They wear the wrong tattoos. Street gangs make sure you know who's friend and who is foe. Party ties are the only real gang tattoos that matter in the Senate.
- 2) The task is always hard. Independent, bipartisan "gang" agreements are not easy to reach on tough issues.
- 3) The gangs are trying to usurp the legislative process and that creates tension with the real gang leaders who can actually cut deals.
- 4) Gangs are often used for cover -- to show bipartisan leanings, without actually acting on them.
Of all these, the key reason the Gang of Six failed is #3. When it comes time to declare whether you are "in or out," senators go with the biggest gang there is -- their party.
Source: http://www.pbs.org/nbr/blog/2011/05/the_gang_of_six_five_and_the_b.html
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