White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew on Sunday said that Senate Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is justified in his continued refusal to vote on a budget resolution, incorrectly stating that Republicans could simply block the measure by filibuster.
"He’s not saying that they shouldn’t pass a budget," Lew said on CNN’s "State of the Union." "But we also need to be honest. You can’t pass a budget in the Senate of the United States without 60 votes, and you can't get 60 votes without bipartisan support."
Only 51 votes are required to pass a budget in the Senate. As even the left-leaning Center for Budget and Policy Priorities points out: "The budget resolution…requires only a majority vote to pass, and its consideration is one of the few actions that cannot be filibustered in the Senate."
Democrats currently occupy 51 seats in the Senate, and 53 including independents Sens. Joe Lieberman (Conn.) and Bernie Sanders (Vt.), who frequently vote with Democrats.