Senate Majority Leader Harry ReidÕs position at the center of the debate over the proposed overhaul of health care is generating cheers and jeers across the nation and in Nevada this week.
ÒSenate Majority Leader Harry Reid morphed into Santa Claus, giving out presents to the little boys and girls who were naughty and (not so) nice this year. Of course, he was not using his own money. AmericaÕs overused credit card, issued by the Bank of China, may have to be used one more time to pay for ReidÕs deals.Ó
— CNNÕs senior political contributor Ed Rollins. He also was
White House political director for President Ronald Reagan and
chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee
ÒSenate Majority Leader Harry Reid proved his skills as a behind-closed-doors negotiator by cutting a deal with Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson that gave Democrats the 60 votes they need to pass health care reform this week ... To Reid, the Senate is just a swap meet.Ó
— Kent Hoover, in a Portfolio.com story titled ÒHarry the Horse TraderÓ
ÒDid the road to passage really have to be this rocky? The shape of the legislation — and specifically, the fact that there were never going to be 60 votes in the Senate for a government-run public option — has been clear for months. So why did Reid insist upon taking the public option to the Senate floor as part of the initial bill he introduced, making the fight even messier and at times seriously jeopardizing DemsÕ chances of passing such a landmark bill?Ó
— Karen Tumulty for Time
ÒThe much-pilloried Harry Reid led an increasingly undemocratic and dysfunctional institution to a stunning victory for the majority party. He deserves an apology from any number of prominent Washingtonians.Ó
— Thomas E. Mann, Brookings Institution senior fellow, for Politico.com
ÒMondayÕs vote showed that Reid did just what his critics said he could not. He kept all of his Democratic colleagues together, even though he had to make compromises that many disliked ... ÔItÕs a total vindication of Harry ReidÕs strategy, which, believe me, he had on track all along,Õ said (Sen. Charles) Schumer, D-N.Y.Ó
— Alexander Bolton for The Hill
ÒThe SenateÕs health care bill is chock-full of favors, payoffs, special deals and exemptions, but Majority Leader Harry Reid is proud of his handiwork, calling it an art form — Òthe art of compromiseÓ ... But some Democratic senators view such a shameless defense of the billÕs pork elements as throwing them under the bus. Some senators obviously are more equal than others: Not all were able or willing to exploit their leverage to extract crass favors for their states.Ó
— John Fund for OpinionJournal.com
ÒIn the last week, Reid was very Johnsonian. When he was the majority leader, (Lyndon) Johnson constantly forced liberals to compromise, warning them to take what was possible rather than perfect or to lose everything. He also used legislative pork as a way to build coalitions that included legislators otherwise unwilling to support bills. This was how he pushed through bills the conservative coalition did not want.Ó
— Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public policy
at Princeton University, speaking to the Sun
Compiled by Sun reporter Dave Toplikar
Copyright 2009  Las Vegas Sun
