REID All About it: Harry Reid's TOP 10 Leadership Flubs

Wednesday, November 02, 2005
Reid All About It: Harry Reid's Top Ten Leadership Flubs

NUMBER ONE: Pulls "Cheap Trick" And Shuts Down U.S. Senate:

The Washington Post's Dana Milbank: "Democrats Did Not Deny It Was A Stunt: A Brazen Effort To Change The Subject From The Supreme Court Confirmation Of Sam Alito ..." (Dana Milbank, "Mad About You," The Washington Post, 11/2/05)

Milbank: "It Was A Cheap Trick ..." (Dana Milbank, "Mad About You," The Washington Post, 11/2/05)

CNN's Lou Dobbs: "One Minute This Afternoon The U.S. Senate Was Doing The People's Business, The Next, The Senate Was Shut Down In Absolute Secrecy." (CNN's "Lou Dobbs Tonight," 11/1/05)

Dobbs: "The Democrats' Strategy Of Shutting Down The Senate Is A Big Political Gamble. It Appears To Be A Blatant Attempt To Win Political Advantage From The Indictment Of Vice President Dick Cheney's Chief Of Staff, Scooter Libby, In The CIA-White House Leak Case." (CNN's "Lou Dobbs Tonight," 11/1/05)

The Weekly Standards' Fred Barnes: "I Thought This Was A Comedy. ... This Wasn't An Ambush This Was A Meltdown On The Part Of The Democrats." (Fox News' "Special Report," 11/1/05)

NBC's Mike Viqueira: "Well, My Understanding Of What Went On During The Course Of Those Two Hours That The Senate Was Closed Was That There Was No Debate Back And Forth And That The Classified Portion Was Never Actually Evacuated. In Other Words, The Chamber Was Never Swept By Dogs For Security Or Anything Of That Nature." (MSNBC's "Hardball," 11/1/05)

NUMBER TWO: Bows To Liberal Special Interests And Opposes John Roberts:

"The Senate Democratic Leader, Harry Reid Of Nevada, Said ... That He Would Oppose The Confirmation Of Judge John G. Roberts Jr. As Chief Justice, Surprising Both The White House And Fellow Democrats Still Conflicted About How To Vote." (Sheryl Gay Stolberg and David D. Kirkpatrick, "Top Democrat Says He'll Vote No On Roberts," The New York Times, 9/21/05)

"'He Got The Message Loud And Clear, Didn't He?' Kim Gandy, President Of The National Organization For Women, Said Of Mr. Reid ..." (Sheryl Gay Stolberg and David D. Kirkpatrick, "Top Democrat Says He'll Vote No On Roberts," The New York Times, 9/21/05)

"[R]eid Moved [To Oppose Roberts] Under Pressure From Liberal Activists, Who Were Demanding The Democratic Leadership Take A Strong Stand Against Roberts." ("Reid Says He Will Vote Against Roberts On Senate Floor," The Frontrunner, 9/21/05)

NUMBER THREE: Calls President Bush A "Loser":

While President Bush Is Traveling Overseas, Reid Tells High School Students "I Think This Guy [President Bush] Is A Loser." (Erin Neff, "Del Sol High School Appearance: Reid Calls Bush 'A Loser,'" Las Vegas Review-Journal, 5/7/05)

More From Reid's Uncivil Civics Discussion: '"I think President Bush is doing a bad job,' he added to a handful of chuckles. ... 'He's driving this country into bankruptcy,' Reid said, referring to the deficit. 'He's got us in this intractable war in Iraq where we now have about 1,600 American soldiers dead and another 15,000 injured.'" (Erin Neff, "Del Sol High School Appearance: Reid Calls Bush 'A Loser,'" Las Vegas Review-Journal, 5/7/05)

NUMBER FOUR: Establishes Taxpayer-Funded "War Room":

Reid Established "War Room" With As Many As 15 Staffers To Develop Unified Message For Democratic Caucus. "Reid plans to have as many as 15 staffers to join the communications center. As many as five of them might be new hires, a reflection of the emphasis Reid is placing on developing a unified message." (Geoff Earle, "Reid Makes It Clear He's No Daschle," The Hill, 12/1/04)

Staff From Various Democratic Leadership Organizations, Including Taxpayer Funded Groups, Folded Into Reid's "War Room." "The new Democratic leader is reestablishing authority over a variety of Democratic leadership organizations - the Democratic Policy Committee (DPC), the Democratic Steering Committee, and the Democratic Communications Committee - all of which are headed by other Democratic senators. Some staff from these groups could end up being folded into a new Democratic 'war room' being assembled to counter the GOP's political message." (Geoff Earle, "Reid Makes It Clear He's No Daschle," The Hill, 12/1/04)

Reid's "War Room" Located In Capitol Building. "Jim Manley, press secretary for Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., has been hired as staff director for the center, which will be located in the U.S. Capitol." (Steve Tetreault, "Reid Announces New Office Created," Las Vegas Review-Journal, 11/30/04)

NUMBER FIVE: Proudly Refuses To Apologize For Calling President Bush "Liar":

Reid Will Not Apologize For Calling The President A "Liar." Rolling Stone: "You've called Bush a loser." HARRY REID: "And a liar." Rolling Stone: "You apologized for the loser comment." REID: "But never for the liar, have I?" (Eric Bates, "The Gunslinger," Rolling Stone, 6/2/05)

Reid: "... I Apologized For The Loser. I Haven't For The Liar. But, You Know, It Looks Like You, With All Due Respect To You, That Maybe You Could Come Up With Something Else." CNN's Ed Henry: "But Do You Think It's Helpful To Push Forward..." Reid: "I've Answered The Question. I've Answered The Question." (CNN's "Inside Politics," 6/6/05)

NUMBER SIX: Calls Fed Chair Alan Greenspan "Political Hack":

Reid: "[I]'m Not A Big Greenspan Fan ... I Voted Against Him The Last Two Times. ... I Think [Alan Greenspan's] One Of The Biggest Political Hacks We Have In Washington." (CNN's "Inside Politics," 3/3/05)

NUMBER SEVEN: Threatens Republicans To "Go Behind The Pool Hall":

"Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) Has Challenged Republicans To 'Go Behind The Pool Hall And See Who Wins This One' Chuckling, He Said: 'We Could Do Some Real Harm.'" (James Kuhnhenn, "Harry Reid A Soft-Spoken Lawmaker With A Punch," Knight Ridder Newspapers, 3/2/05):

NUMBER EIGHT: Violates Confidentiality Of Judicial Nominee Henry Saad's FBI File On Senate Floor:

Reid: "Henry Saad Would Have Been Filibustered Anyway ... All You Need To Do Is Have A Member Go Upstairs And Look At His Confidential Report From The FBI, And I Think We Would All Agree That There Is A Problem There." (Charles Hurt, "Reid Cites FBI File On Judicial Pick," The Washington Times, 5/13/05)

"Furthermore, A 'Memorandum Of Understanding' Covering The Use Of FBI Background Reports Limits Access To Committee Members And The Nominee's Home-State Senators. Mr. Reid Would Fall Into Neither Category." (Charles Hurt, "Reid Cites FBI File On Judicial Pick," The Washington Times, 5/13/05)

NUMBER NINE: Makes Hollywood "Playboy-Producer" Top Policy Advisor:

"Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) Again Invited Billionaire And Megadonor Stephen Bing To An Exclusive Luncheon Of Senate Democrats Just Off The Chamber Floor Last Week Where The Group Was Plotting Message Strategy For The 2006 Campaign." (Paul Kane, "Bing Is Minority's Odd Man Inside," Roll Call, 10/11/05)

"Aides Said Another Reason Bing Was Able To Attend These Meetings Is Because Of His Ties To Democracy Corps, Created By Democratic Operatives Stanley Greenberg, James Carville And Bob Shrum. These Aides Said That As A Founder Of The Group Bing Deserved To Be In The Meetings ..." (Paul Kane, "Bing Is Minority's Odd Man Inside," Roll Call, 10/11/05)

Bing Described As "Playboy-Producer-Philanthropist." (Eric Alterman, "The Hollywood Campaign," The Atlantic Monthly, 9/04)

"A Determined Bachelor, [Bing] Lives In A Small Two-Bedroom Home In Bel-Air But Has Bought The Seven Adjoining Houses With The Intention Of Knocking Them Down And Creating Palatial Grounds. He's A Fan Of Strip Clubs, Has Been A High Roller In Las Vegas For Years ..." (Rachel Abramowitz, "A Player In Every Sense?" Los Angeles Times, 7/3/02)

NUMBER TEN: Praises Majority Leader On Senate Floor, Insults Him Behind His Back:

Reid On Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) On The Senate Floor:

Reid: "[I] Express My Appreciation To The Distinguished Republican Leader For His [Judicial Nominations] Proposal. I Am Happy To See We Are Working Toward A Solution To This Very Difficult Issue That Now Faces The Senate." (Sen. Harry Reid, Congressional Record, 4/28/05, p. S4464)
Reid: "But It Appears That My Distinguished Friend, The Majority Leader ..." (Sen. Harry Reid, Congressional Record, 5/17/05, p. S5250)
Reid: "I Hope The Distinguished Senator From Tennessee, The Majority Leader, My Friend ..." (Sen. Harry Reid, Congressional Record, 5/9/05, p. S4614)

Off The Senate Floor Reid's Office Sends Out Talking Points Calling For Members To Attack Sen. Bill Frist. "A set of Democratic talking points being distributed by the office of Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) urges Members to link Frist to [Majority Leader Tom] DeLay." (Chris Cillizza, "Democrats Seeking To Tie Frist To DeLay," Roll Call, 5/18/05)

Reid Attack Memo: "Arrogant With Power, Rewriting The Rules Is What The Republican Party Has Done Best In Recent Years." (Chris Cillizza, "Democrats Seeking To Tie Frist To DeLay," Roll Call, 5/18/05)