in politics has had a worse run-up to Nov. 4 than Harry Reid. Polls indicate the Senate majority leader might have a change of title foisted upon him—or, in the fevered dreams of some Republicans, perhaps be left with no title at all as he sees a grim Schumer reaper shadowing him.
Back home in Nevada, Reid’s vaunted political machine has not driven Democrats to the polls and a GOP sweep of statewide offices seems possible, the Blame Reid Firsters already have begun whispering.
And as unflattering pictures of him appear in battleground states across the country and his ninth political life seems set to expire, Reid has to confront the possibility that he might lose the Senate, his leadership position and his Nevada invincibility, all in one potentially fateful evening.
Yet, no one has had more funeral notices retracted over the course of a political career than Harry Mason Reid, whose resilience and toughness, forged in the crucible of his hardscrabble childhood, seem serially to have given him new political life when death seemed inevitable.
The pre-mortems already are being written, with reporters looking ahead to a Republican Senate, senators whispering they need someone new and conservatives relishing the schadenfreude of a coup to topple Reid.
Reid declined to be interviewed for this article, but his spokeswoman, Kristen Orthman, told me, in what has become something of a mantra as the vultures circle: “Democrats will maintain their majority, but regardless, Senator Reid will remain Democratic leader. He is running for reelection in 2016.”
At this point, Orthman’s guess—or spin—on all of that is as good as or better than most. In the 28 years I have known Reid and in his four decades in politics, his indomitability has been his signature feature, his ability to win when he should lose, his knack for saying the damnedest things but not being consigned to defeat because of them.
But never have the political headwinds been so strong—thanks in part to the languishing approval numbers of the president he has served as a loyal legislative general, but also because of Reid’s Senate stewardship, which has made him an issue in many campaigns and induced senators and candidates he has helped to muse openly about not voting for him as leader.
Still, we’re talking about Harry Reid here—so I find all of this comical and familiar. None of those senators would dare oppose him, and this kind of chatter happens every cycle about this time, forcing Reidites to swat away the speculation.
What many do not realize is how close Reid’s leadership team is. And while New York’s Chuck Schumer is most frequently mentioned as the Brutus of the piece (Illinois’ Dick Durbin is a less often talked about coup leader), there is an old rule of thumb that they all know: If you try to kill the king, you better kill him.
No one has a more deserved reputation for ruthlessness than Reid, who plays his game of chess with candidates in Nevada and elsewhere as his pawns. And like a grandmaster, he will not hesitate to sacrifice one or more if he thinks it can help him to checkmate the other side.
It’s not that Reid isn’t prepared to lose. It’s that he refuses to do anything but plow forward.
As usual, one of his confidants could not resist the boxing metaphor for the ex-pugilist: “Considered [losing]? Yes. Thinks it will happen? No. Always knew this cycle would be uphill (6th year itch, Obama numbers at all time low, massive spending on the other side). He’s used to being up against the ropes.”
Read more: http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/11/harry-reid-midterms-112450.html#ixzz3I4SkE9DY
Back home in Nevada, Reid’s vaunted political machine has not driven Democrats to the polls and a GOP sweep of statewide offices seems possible, the Blame Reid Firsters already have begun whispering.
And as unflattering pictures of him appear in battleground states across the country and his ninth political life seems set to expire, Reid has to confront the possibility that he might lose the Senate, his leadership position and his Nevada invincibility, all in one potentially fateful evening.
Yet, no one has had more funeral notices retracted over the course of a political career than Harry Mason Reid, whose resilience and toughness, forged in the crucible of his hardscrabble childhood, seem serially to have given him new political life when death seemed inevitable.
The pre-mortems already are being written, with reporters looking ahead to a Republican Senate, senators whispering they need someone new and conservatives relishing the schadenfreude of a coup to topple Reid.
Reid declined to be interviewed for this article, but his spokeswoman, Kristen Orthman, told me, in what has become something of a mantra as the vultures circle: “Democrats will maintain their majority, but regardless, Senator Reid will remain Democratic leader. He is running for reelection in 2016.”
At this point, Orthman’s guess—or spin—on all of that is as good as or better than most. In the 28 years I have known Reid and in his four decades in politics, his indomitability has been his signature feature, his ability to win when he should lose, his knack for saying the damnedest things but not being consigned to defeat because of them.
But never have the political headwinds been so strong—thanks in part to the languishing approval numbers of the president he has served as a loyal legislative general, but also because of Reid’s Senate stewardship, which has made him an issue in many campaigns and induced senators and candidates he has helped to muse openly about not voting for him as leader.
Still, we’re talking about Harry Reid here—so I find all of this comical and familiar. None of those senators would dare oppose him, and this kind of chatter happens every cycle about this time, forcing Reidites to swat away the speculation.
What many do not realize is how close Reid’s leadership team is. And while New York’s Chuck Schumer is most frequently mentioned as the Brutus of the piece (Illinois’ Dick Durbin is a less often talked about coup leader), there is an old rule of thumb that they all know: If you try to kill the king, you better kill him.
No one has a more deserved reputation for ruthlessness than Reid, who plays his game of chess with candidates in Nevada and elsewhere as his pawns. And like a grandmaster, he will not hesitate to sacrifice one or more if he thinks it can help him to checkmate the other side.
It’s not that Reid isn’t prepared to lose. It’s that he refuses to do anything but plow forward.
As usual, one of his confidants could not resist the boxing metaphor for the ex-pugilist: “Considered [losing]? Yes. Thinks it will happen? No. Always knew this cycle would be uphill (6th year itch, Obama numbers at all time low, massive spending on the other side). He’s used to being up against the ropes.”
Read more: http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/11/harry-reid-midterms-112450.html#ixzz3I4SkE9DY