Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) has written a letter to House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) to offer what he describes as a “sensible, reasonable compromise” to end the political stalemate over the budget: Pass a clean, six-week resolution to fund the government, and the Senate will agree to go to conference in the hope of negotiating a broader budget deal.

“I propose that you allow this joint resolution to pass, reopening the Government,” Reid writes. “And I commit to name conferees to a budget conference, as soon as the Government reopens.”

House GOP leaders have made clear that they oppose bringing a clean spending resolution to the floor; doing so would likely spark a revolt within the conference. As party leaders prepare to meet at the White Hosue later today, neither side has budged from its position.

Reid opens his letter by comparing conservative opposition to Obamacare to the liberal opposition to the Iraq War during the Bush administration, and congratulates himself for keeping the government open during that time. “I could have taken the steps that you are taking now to block Government funding in order to gain leverage to end the war,” he writes. ”I faced a lot of pressure from my own base to take that action. Bud I did not do that. I felt it would have been devastating to America.”