Omnibus Spending Bill Recalls Obey Reform   Back in the 1980s,
budget expert Allen Schick half-jokingly predicted that given
the increasing use of omnibus bills, the day was not far off
when Congress would consider just one bill a year that would be
designated "H.R. 1-and-only."  About the same time, Rep. David
Obey (D-Wis.) was helping to advance that prophecy by
introducing a proposal to roll all tax, entitlement and
appropriations measures, plus the Congressional budget
resolution, into one massive bill each year. Those of us working
on the Rules Committee's Task Force on the Budget Process at the
time fondly referred to the idea as "The Obey-Wan Kenobie
Omnibus Budget Plan." Task Force Chairman Anthony Beilenson
(D-Calif.) initially embraced Obey's idea as a "terrific budget
bill plan" but soon realized that the force was not with him in
the Democratic Caucus.  The reason I mention all this now is
that Obey's vision is rapidly becoming a reality by default this
year without changing a jot or tittle of the