With the death of US Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) the Democrats lose their sixty-seat filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. This will make the passing of Obama agenda legislation – specifically healthcare – more difficult until Massachusetts seats its next Junior Senator, who promises to be a Democrat.
The loss of even one Democrat in the Senate is cause for concern for Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) because he has a rogue element within his Democrat caucus, the Blue Dog Democrats. In Washington, it is all about counting the votes at any given moment on any piece of legislation. As they say, politics makes for strange bedfellows.
In the US House of Representatives the Democrats have a lock on the majority. According to the Office of the Clerk of the US House of Representatives, the congressional profile stands at: 256 Democrats, 178 Republicans, 0 Independents and 1 Vacancy. These numbers give the Democrats, as a party, a 78 vote majority in the House.
In the Senate, Democrats have a lock on a majority as well: Democrats number 57, Republicans have 40 seats, and Independents and Independent Democrats have one seat each.
In addition to the fact that it matters which party is in the majority, in both chambers of Congress, it also matters who the parties elect as their leaders.
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Frank Salvato also serves as the managing editor for The New Media Journal. His writing has been recognized by the US House International Relations Committee and the Japan Center for Conflict Prevention.
