Jonathan Cohn has a five-part “inside account of health care reform’s triumph” at The New Republic. It’s got lots of interesting tidbits. I was struck by this passage from part 2:
bq. “There are very few institutionalists left in the Senate,” says a senior Democratic aide. “Very few members remember the Russell Longs and the way deals were made in the Senate for a long time. Ted Kennedy and Max Baucus are two of those folks.”
What makes a Senator an “institutionalist”? Are they defenders of the institution, a la Robert Byrd? Are they the “workhorses” (as opposed to “showhorses”)? Are they simply people willing to work at making a deal, a la Kennedy? Some combination thereof? And where did they go? Why?
I’m interested in anyone’s thoughts.