Current and former elected officials from both sides of the aisle are voicing appreciation for former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who died on Tuesday at the age of 82.
“During the two decades we served together in the United States Senate, and the eight years we worked together while I served as Vice President, Harry met the marker for what I’ve always believed is the most important thing by which you can measure a person — their action and their word,” President Biden said in a statement.
“If Harry said he would do something, he did it. If he gave you his word, you could bank on it. That’s how he got things done for the good of the country for decades.”
The president added that he and the first lady “send our love and prayers” to the entire Reid family.
“When Harry Reid was nearing the end, his wife Landra asked some of us to share letters that she could read to him. In lieu of a statement, here’s what I wrote to my friend,” former President Obama said in a statement on the passing of Reid, who died after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
“I wouldn’t have been president had it not been for your encouragement and support, and I wouldn’t have got most of what I got done without your skill and determination,” Obama wrote.
“The world is better cause of what you’ve done,” he added. “Not bad for a skinny, poor kid from Searchlight, [Nev.].”
Former President Clinton called Reid “one of the most effective Senate leaders our country has ever known.”
“Ever the boxer of his youth, he never shied away from necessary political fights, but believed compromise is vital for a functioning democracy,” Clinton said.
“Harry Reid was one of the most amazing individuals I’ve ever met,” Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a statement.
“He never forgot where he came from and used those boxing instincts to fearlessly fight those who were hurting the poor & the middle class. He’s gone but will walk by the sides of many of us in the Senate every day.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), who as GOP leader was often at loggerheads with Reid, said in a statement that he “will rightly go down in history as a crucial, pivotal figure in the development and history of his beloved home state.”
“The nature of Harry’s and my jobs brought us into frequent and sometimes intense conflict over politics and policy. But I never doubted that Harry was always doing what he earnestly, deeply felt was right for Nevada and our country,” McConnell said.
Reid served as majority leader from 2006 to 2014 before retiring from politics in 2017. He was elected Senate Democratic whip in 1998 and Senate Democratic leader in 2004, and became majority leader when Democrats took over the House and Senate
“To say @SenatorReid was a giant doesn’t fully encapsulate all that he accomplished on behalf of the state of Nevada and for Nevada families; there will never be another leader quite like Senator Reid,” Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) said.
In a statement, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said that in Reid, “America lost a titan of public service.”
“Senator Reid leaves behind an extraordinary legacy of patriotism and leadership that will benefit the Congress and Country for decades to come,” Pelosi said.
“Harry Reid was such a unique person with infinite layers of life experience. If he said he would do something, you could cross it off the list,” Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said. “And he expected the same from everyone, an endearing trait for anyone, especially someone in politics.”
“I am sad tonight but grateful for the friendship I had with Harry. We disagreed on many things, sometimes famously. But we were always honest with each other,” former Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said in a statement.
“In the years after we left public service, that honesty became a bond. Harry was a fighter until the end. RIP, my friend.”
“Even tho I am ideologically opposite I must say he did a good job representing the interests of Nevada in the US Senate As majority ldr he ran a tight ship,” Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said on Twitter.
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D), a protege of Reid’s who succeeded him in the upper chamber, said in a statement that he “was a champion for Nevada.”
“The American people are better off because of the leadership of Senator Harry Reid. He gave millions of Americans access to affordable health care and made such a difference to countless people,” Cortez Masto said.
“He was a beloved husband, father, grandfather, mentor and friend, and a true son of Nevada. His legacy will be forever connected to the history of our state, and he will be deeply missed.”
Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (Ill.), who served as Reid’s No. 2 during his time as majority leader, said that “Harry was the best.”
“He brought me into Senate leadership to be by his side nearly twenty years ago and trusted me to be his partner on the biggest political achievements of our lifetime,” Durbin said.
“In the last two years, he would always end our phone calls with ‘I love you brother.’ And that is what our forty year friendship became: a brotherhood, a trust, and a shared love for helping others.”
Condolences in particular poured in from across the Senate’s Democratic caucus:
“In his many years of service to the State of Nevada and our nation — as a state legislator, Lieutenant Governor, member of Congress, and Senator — Harry Reid demonstrated his deep commitment to his community, his Party, and his country,” Judith Whitmer, chair of the Nevada Democratic Party, said in a statement. “Senator Reid’s work to protect and conserve Nevada’s natural resources, one of his top priorities throughout his nearly 50-year career, leaves a lasting legacy across our landscape.”
—Updated at 10:40 p.m.