Report: Reid loses budget ruling

This may be a bit wonky, but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has lost a procedural ruling issued by the Senate parliamentarian that Politico reports this morning could have political ripples through the spring and beyond.

Despite pressure from Republicans, Reid has been saying the agreement that Congress passed last summer allowing more government borrowing on the debt also contained caps on spending that make it unnecessary for the Senate to form a separate budget for fiscal 2013.

But newly appointed parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has decided the deal does not preclude the Senate from considering other budgets.

"The written opinion, shared late last week with a handful of Democratic and GOP senators, gives Republicans significantly more leverage to push for votes on budgets of their choosing," Politico reported.

Republicans charge that Reid is refusing to advance a Democratic budget because he is unwilling to expose Dem senators to awkward votes in an election year, including expected GOP bids to repeal health care reform.

"The ruling could force vulnerable Democrats to cast tough votes that hurt them in November, a situation Reid and other leaders are eager to avoid as they work to protect their fragile majority," Politico observes.

"The MacDonough ruling essentially means any senator can place a budget proposal on the Senate calendar. Reid still controls the floor and could choose not to bring them to a vote, though the political optics of such a move could be damaging," it said.

According to the report, Democratic aides are shrugging off the parliamentarian's ruling, calling it "small potatoes."

Republicans in the House passed their fiscal 2013 budget last week, a sweeping and controversial plan to shrink the government, simplify the tax system and overhaul Medicare and Medicaid. Democrats up to and including President Barack Obama have attacked it.