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| Harry Reid, Nevada Senator Retiring |
He will retire at the end of this term, which means he has 22 months left in office to aggravate Republicans. Nonetheless, the announcement is still a big blow for Democrats, who will be losing their Senate leader.
Among Senate members, Reid was Obama’s strongest supporter. He was constantly looking for ways to fast track the most radical pieces of the President’s agenda. Not surprisingly, the President praised Reid as “one of my best partners and best friends.”
Obama shares Reid’s distaste for working with Republicans and trying to find ways to compromise. Since his party’s defeat in the mid-term elections, the President has moved aggressively to the left and refused to collaborate with Republicans on a variety of issues. Sadly, Reid has encouraged the President’s obstinacy every step of the way.
Since the massive Democratic Party losses in the mid-term elections, Reid was demoted to Minority Leader. It must have been quite a change for Reid, who was accustomed to getting his way as Majority Leader.
Reid ended the filibuster for judicial nominations and prevented multiple House bills from being debated on the Senate floor. He ran the Senate as his personal fiefdom and did little to share power with Republicans.
While Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has been willing to “reach across the aisle” and share some power with Reid, it is not the same as having total control. In recent months, Reid has seen the most radical pieces of the Obama agenda being thwarted by Republicans, so it must have been frustrating for this dyed in the wool liberal.
The Senate Minority Leader is also still suffering from the effects of a severe exercise injury. He said the “down time” involved in his recovery gave him an opportunity to contemplate his future. According to Reid, “I have had time to ponder and to think. We’ve got to be more concerned about the country, the Senate, the state of Nevada than us and as a result of that I’m not going to run for re-election.”
While Reid presented this as a selfless decision based on what is best for the country, in reality, he must have come to the conclusion that he would not win re-election. Looking ahead to 2016, it is an uncertain political landscape.
Reid was facing a serious challenge to win re-election in Nevada, a state that Republicans were already targeting in the upcoming election. Reid is the only statewide elected Democrat left in Nevada, so he likely figured it would be better to retire than to lose.
At 75 years of age and a tough campaign looming, Reid made the safe call to end his 34 year congressional career. It was the best decision for a country that is moving away from the hard core liberal policies of Harry Reid and Barack Obama.
The announcement also highlights the need for congressional term limits as 34 years in Congress is far too long. Reid is the poster boy for term limits, typical of the politicians in Washington D.C. who overstay their welcome.
A two term limit of 12 years should be enough for any politician to make an impact on Capitol Hill. After that amount of time, it is essential for politicians to leave office so newcomers can bring new energy and ideas to the position.
So, congratulations to Harry Reid for this decision, it is just too bad that it is 22 years too late. Just imagine how much damage he did in all of that time in power.
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Jeff Crouere is a native of New Orleans, LA and he is the host of a Louisiana based program, “Ringside Politics,” which airs at 7:30 p.m. Friday and 10:00 p.m. Sunday on WLAE-TV 32, a PBS station, and 7 till 11 a.m. weekdays on WGSO 990 AM in New Orleans and the Northshore.
For more information, visit Jeff's web site at www.ringsidepolitics.com or email him at jeff@ringsidepolitics.com.
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