The last day the Senate passed a budget was April 9, 2009. A baby conceived that day would have turned 2 years old last week, and probably would be able to say things the Senate’s Democratic majority has not brought itself to say concerning responsible budgeting, namely, “yes.”

As President Obama continues to shift the blame for his party’s gross irresponsibility by asserting falsely that House Republicans are putting party before country, the American people should be reminded that the Senate’s refusal to pass a budget is both deliberate and entirely political.

The Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call reported last summer that Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., was appointed by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to lead the Senate Democrats’ messaging operation. Roll Call reported that Schumer “persuaded rank-and-file Senators earlier this month to abandon their desire for a Democratic budget so the party could focus on a tighter message of protecting Medicare and eliminating tax breaks for the wealthy.”

Said a Democratic aide, “He led the fight in the Senate against releasing our budget. He backed the idea that a budget paints a giant target on your back unnecessarily when it’s not going to pass anyway.”

Democrats are hoping to win this fall’s elections by attacking Republican proposals while hiding their own, thus denying Republicans a target. It is precisely the sort of party-first politicking President Obama decries in public. And with most of the media helping out by looking the other way, it just might work.