The "nuclear option" for the Senate after 2012.

[eomer]

16. No, reconciliation does not require 60 votes at any point and can be done more than once per year.

And, what's more, a reconciliation bill can include any number of unrelated measures.

There are some limits on what can be done through reconciliation but the ones you've stated are not true.

The main limit is that any measure must be budget-related to be included in a budget reconciliation bill. Another constraint is that there is a specific process that must be followed. But nowhere in that process are 60 votes required. I can also cite a year when more than one reconciliation bill was passed, I think during Reagan, if you need me to look it up.

In particular, something that could have been done and could be in the future through reconciliation is to raise taxes on the wealthy, including taxing capital gains and taxing trading transactions. These things could be done with just a simple majority in both houses without any step at which you need 60 Senators.

Edit to add: here is an explanation of the process that shows that 60 votes are not required at any point:

http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=155