Thread: Sen. Reid Hits the Ground Running in Uphill Re-Election Bid

DECEMBER 27, 2008
Sen. Reid Hits the Ground Running in Uphill Re-Election Bid
By T.W. FARNAM

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Harry Reid will command the biggest party majority of any Senate leader in a quarter century when the new Congress convenes in January. But the Nevada Democrat is already worried about his own re-election fight in 2010.

Sen. Reid, perhaps the most-vulnerable Democrat who will face re-election in a midterm race that is likely to favor his party once again, began interviewing campaign managers last week. The Senate majority leader also recently stepped up fund-raising.

Starting early could help Sen. Reid avoid the fate of his predecessor, Tom Daschle, who was Democratic leader for a decade before losing his re-election bid in South Dakota in 2004. The current Republican leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, narrowly won re-election in Kentucky this year.

Sen. Reid "saw what happened to Tom Daschle and Mitch McConnell," said Republican Sen. John Ensign, Nevada's the other senator. "He saw the consequences of being the majority leader or the leader of one of the parties."

Jon Summers, a Reid spokesman, said Sen. Reid knows he will be a Republican target in 2010 and has been preparing for his re-election campaign for some time. He added that Sen. Reid's leadership position in the Senate is an asset, not a liability. "Being the majority leader means he can do things no one else can."

Democrats have picked up a combined 13 seats in the past two election cycles. In 2010, more Republicans than Democrats are up for re-election, and Democratic incumbents appear to be well-positioned overall.

Sen. Reid, however, faces a potentially tough fight. A recent Research 2000 poll of likely voters put his approval rating at 38% and his disapproval rating at 54%, a possible reflection of voters' displeasure with gridlock and partisanship in Washington. And while Nevada broke for President-elect Barack Obama by 12 percentage points in November, the state voted for President George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004.

As Senate majority leader, Sen. Reid is expected to play a critical role in shepherding Democratic priorities through the Senate, with a full docket of legislation up for consideration in the first year of the Obama administration.

Sen. Reid traveled to the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico late last month to meet with campaign contributors. A spokesman for Sen. Reid said he expects to have $3 million in his campaign account at the end of the year, up from about $2.75 million on Oct. 1. Sen. Reid spent $7 million in his 2004 race.

Two Democratic Senate colleagues, South Dakota's Tim Johnson and Oregon's Jeff Merkley, have sent emails to their supporters seeking contributions to Sen. Reid's campaign.

"Republicans are going after Harry Reid's Senate seat in 2010, and we can't afford to lose a great Democratic leader," Senator-elect Merkley wrote in his email.

Who might square off against Sen. Reid is unclear. Nevada's Republican lieutenant governor, Brian Krolicki, declared his candidacy last month but was subsequently indicted for suspect accounting practices during his time as state treasurer. He has denied the charges.

Another potential GOP candidate is former Rep. Jon Porter, who lost his House seat representing an area outside of Las Vegas in November after serving three terms. The Research 2000 survey showed Sen. Reid beating Mr. Porter 46% to 40% in a potential 2010 race, an uncomfortably narrow margin for an incumbent.

Democrats say Nevada is a former swing state that has swung to their camp. The party now has a 100,000-person registration advantage there.

In 2004, the last time Sen. Reid was up for re-election, the number of registered Republicans and Democrats was about the same.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123033501646236333.html

With ANY luck, the people of NV will come to their senses, as he seems to have lost his, and kick this scum out of office. That will be a happy day in our lives.

I hope and pray he will suffer the biggest smackdown of his pathetic life!

I have relatives in Vegas who cannot wait to vote him out, especially for his blocking any enforcement measures on illegal immigration. Lots of Americans who lost their jobs at casinos, jobs that went to illegal aliens.

2010 is not soon enough. The residents of Nevada need to recall this wimp, he cannot stand up to big casinos. He quivers and caves like a worm.