As far as I can tell she wasn’t joking.
Update: Busted.
… On November 30th, Krugman wrote about the CBO report, relying on Gruber’s analysis. He, too, concluded it was “good news for reform advocates.” That same day, Harry Reid took to the floor of the Senate that same day, saying “just a few days ago an MIT economist — one of the nation’s foremost economists — a man by the name of Jonathan Gruber, analyzed our bill and concluded it will help Americans pay less and get more.”
Reid read from the piece on the floor of the Senate, saying that it provided substantiation from Gruber “who is one of the most respected economists in the world” that the Senate bill would reduce the deficit. Nancy Pelosi touted “the Gruber analysis” on the Speaker’s website.
Update: Plays the sexist card in 3… 2… 1…