How the "Slaughter Solution" Has Been Used In The Past

I wrote the other day about how the Slaughter Solution is unconstitutional based on Article I, Sections 1, 5, and 7, and relevant case law in Clinton v. City of New York.  However, this tactic has been used successfully in the past by both parties.

Now, to recap, what Nancy Pelosi wants to do here is provide your representatives with a curtain of plausible deniability in that they would indirectly pass the healthcare reform bill by incorporating it by reference in their reconciliation amendment without directly voting on it.  In other words, your representative can vote for the amendment and pass the bill, yet not be on record as having supported the bill.  Make sense?  Not at all.

This tactic has been used in the past by both parties to deem legislation as passed when making technical fixes and major amendments.  However, it has never been used to deem legislation as passed through such a minor amendment as reconciliation.

Here's a couple of examples of how it has been used according to the above linked document:

• DEMOCRATS  On August 2, 1989, the House adopted a rule (H.Res. 221) that automatically incorporated into the text of the bill made in order for consideration a provision that prohibited smoking on domestic airline flights of two hours or less duration.
   
• REPUBLICANS  On March 19, 1996, the House adopted a rule (H.Res. 384) that incorporated a voluntary employee verification program — addressing the employment of illegal immigrants — into a committee substitute made in order as original text.
   
• REPUBLICANS  H.Res. 239, agreed to on September 24, 1997, automatically incorporated into the base bill a provision to block the use of statistical sampling for the 2000 census until federal courts had an opportunity to rule on its constitutionality.
   
• REPUBLICANS  A closed rule (H.Res. 303) on an IRS reform bill provided for automatic adoption of four amendments to the committee substitute made in order as original text. The rule was adopted on November 5, 1997, with bipartisan support.
   
• REPUBLICANS  On May 7, 1998, an intelligence authorization bill was made in order by H.Res. 420. This self-executing rule dropped a section from the intelligence measure that would have permitted the CIA to offer their employees an early-out retirement program.
   
• REPUBLICANS  On February 20, 2005, the House adopted H.Res. 75, which provided that a manager’s amendment dealing with immigration issues shall be considered as adopted in the House and in the Committee of the Whole and the bill (H.R. 418), as amended, shall be considered as the original bill for purposes of amendment.