The current fight over health-care reform in the Senate is a continuing sign of the hyper-partisanship in that body.

Regardless of how far changes to health care go, no Senate Democrats are expected to vote in favor of the bill — just as no Republicans gave the thumbs-up to the Affordable Care Act.

Extreme partisanship in the Senate isn’t anything new, but it’s not as common as you may think.

Attorney and former Senate aide Ira Shapiro wrote about the late 1970s Senate in his book "The Last Great Senate." We spoke with Shapiro about expectations for the Senate.