House Budget Committee Chairman Jim Nussle seems to think so, according to the AP's Alan Fram.

The Republican chairman of the House Budget Committee chastised the GOP-run Senate on Tuesday for producing a fiscal outline with too much spending and cast doubt on whether Congress will complete a budget this year.

The remarks by Rep. Jim Nussle, R-Iowa, reflected a frustration by some of the House's more conservative leaders with the more moderate Senate. Last year, the two chambers failed to produce a budget after moderate GOP senators joined Democrats in demanding curbs on tax cuts that House Republicans rejected.

Nussle's comments also came as the Senate, in the middle of its debate over a nearly $2.6 trillion budget for 2006, faces efforts by lawmakers of both parties to prevent cuts in Medicaid, community development, Amtrak and other programs. Following President Bush's lead, the House and Senate budget committees have produced budgets that could lead to cuts in those programs.

The budget, in and of itself, is not inherently important for the Republicans to pass. The government can continue to function with appropriations and taxation bills independent of the budgeting process (which was created in 1974).

The more significant result of the possible failure to pass a budget on the part of the Congressional Republicans is the wasted opportunity of enacting controversial measures not subject to the filibuster. Although the Democrats can generally block moves such as the one by Ted Stevens to open up the Artic National Wildlife Reserve to oil drilling with only 41 votes, if the measure is tacked on as an amendment to the budget (and the budget is passed), the Democrats would need 51 votes to block (filibusters are not allowed in the budgeting process).

Although the GOP might be able to round up 50 votes (plus Dick Cheney's tie-breaking vote) for a number of measures, including ANWR, massive tax cuts for the wealthy, and substantial benefit cuts to veterans and the poor, if the two Houses of Congress can't reconcile their two versions of the budget -- Nussle seems to indicate that this is the case -- such moves will be much more difficult down the line. Either the Republicans will have to start to understand the realities of being a governing coalition or they're going to lose their mandate from the American people come November 2006.