I Admire Harry Reid

No, I really do. I know regular visitors to Observations have perceived my mild conservatism, and that there are some Democrats that I’m not fond of, and some Democrats whom I really am not fond of.

But Harry Reid has earned my respect. You see, Harry Reid is not your typical politician. And what is really interesting is that I would not have made that statement as little as 10 days ago, and I also would not have had the high admiration for Sen. Reid then that I have today.

What has produced this flattering opinion of the Senate Majority Leader that runs so sharply contrary to expectations? It is the fact that Sen. Reid sticks to his guns; he doesn’t waiver in the wind; he doesn’t stick a wet finger up to see which way the political winds are blowing; he ignores polls in making decisions in the Senate. Case in point: Despite approval ratings about the same as Scooter Libby’s, the man sentenced to prison for maybe lying in an investigation that shouldn’t have occurred into a crime that didn’t happen, and not far different from President Bush’s marks, Sen. Reid insisted in pushing aside Senate work on important matters to push ahead on a matter that not only isn’t important, but also isn’t the business of the U.S. Senate. Nosiree, Harry Reid isn’t going to be deterred by the fact that the attempt to hold a no confidence vote on Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is meaningless, or that even if he could get the Senate to vote to take the no confidence vote, it will have absolutely no effect on whether Gonzales remains in the AG’s position. You’ve got to admire that kind of independence in our elected servants.

But that isn’t all. Sen. Reid, against heavy opposition from the majority of Americans who want substantive changes made to our immigration policies and control established on our borders, unilaterally labeled the 12-to-40 million illegal aliens in the United States today “undocumented Americans.” Undeterred by the U.S. Constitution, which does not bestow such authority in the Senate Majority Leader, Sen. Reid plunged blindly ahead to reclassify these intruders as citizens who just don’t have the proper paperwork yet.

So, hip-hip-hooray! Hip-hip-hooray! Hip-hip-hooray! That’s three cheers for Nevada’s Sen. Harry Reid. He’s my D.C. Hero for this week.

Technorati Tags: Congress, Politics, Democrats, America