Ron Wyden’s idealism hits political reality

Ron Wyden’s idealism hits political reality-politico: At a lunch with fellow Senate Democrats last week, an eager Ron Wyden was ready to pitch his plan to permanently deal with a perennial Washington problem: the “doc fix.” But when Wyden stood up to be recognized at the start of the lunch, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid looked the other way, seemingly ignoring his new Finance Committee chairman. When Wyden tried to speak, Reid cut him off, allowing several other senators to address the caucus instead. Finally, Reid let him talk, with aides later explaining that he was simply trying to give Wyden plenty of time to address his colleagues.