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Here is the actual analysis of “the nuclear option”:

http://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/45448.pdf

Do a Search or Find in that document for ‘reconciliation’. No hits. That’s because reconciliation has existed for many years, and has been used many times, but isn’t “the nuclear option”, regardless of what an uninformed reporter or Michael Steele might say while acting stupid.

“The nuclear option” was a phrase coined by Senator Lott with regard to the filibusters Senate Democrats were employing to keep the majority Republicans from voting on President Bush’s judicial nominees.

The phrase only applied to that legislative process of invoking cloture with less than 60 votes. Lott proposed to step the vote downward, first trying to invoke cloture with a 55 vote majority. If that failed, Lott proposed to reduce the number of votes required in subsequent votes until they reached 51, if needed.

So, to review, THE nuclear option was a phrase coined by Trent Lott for a Senate procedure that would have modified Senate rules for invoking cloture to end the minority’s filibuster of the President’s judicial nominees.

OTOH, reconciliation is an established Senate procedure that has existed for many years, but is supposed to only apply to a narrow set of budget bills.

BTW, if Reid were to try to apply reconciliation to the health care reform bill, Republicans would shut down the Senate. Almost all Senate business requires unanimous consent to proceed. Republicans would demand a unanimous consent vote, and no other Senate business would be able to proceed until one side blinks.