The Dog That Didn't Bark in the Night

There's a clever insight into the way of things in a Sherlock Holmes story, in which the fictional detective points out to his not-very-bright chronicler that there's a clue in the dog barking.  "But . . " expostualtes Doctor Watson, "the dog didn't bark!"

"Exactly, Watson, the dog didn't bark!  That's the important thing."

Since the election of a Republican Senator last week an enormous pressure has been applied to the House of Representatives to "save the Health Reform Bill" by "passing the Senate bill" immediately and with no changes.  That is, with no public option, no Medicare extension, and on and on.

But the House of Representatives has done no such thing.  Hmmm.  There were more than 50 progressive Democrat Representatives who said that they would not vote to pass any health care reform without a "robust public option" -- remember?  I think that the silence from the House Democratic leadership is, as in Sherlock Holmes, the Dog That Didn't Bark.  They don't have the votes because there are enough progressives to kill the Senate bill.

It's a rather quiet victory for progressive politics, but a real one.