Politico reports that the Senate just passed the 3.5 trillion dollar Obama budget, hours before his prime time address in celebration of his first 100 days. The bill included language that made it legal to invoke reconciliation if health care reform stalled, meaning that Obama will only need 50 votes - instead of 60, a supermajority - to get Obamacare through the Senate. Whether or not Democrats will actually use the measure is still unknown, though Specter's defection makes it a lot less likely they'll need to do so.
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