Harry Reid Dies at 82 - Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Who Overcame Poverty as a Child
Wednesday, December 29, 2021
{images_1}Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who rose from an early life of poverty to become the Majority Leader of the United States Senate, died Tuesday. He was 82.
Reid died after a four-year battle with pancreatic cancer, his wife, Landra Reid, said in a statement.
“We are so proud of the legacy he leaves behind both on the national stage and his beloved Nevada,” she said.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTAs the Senate’s top Democrat, Mr. Reid successfully blocked President George W. Bush from privatizing Social Security, and later helped enact the 2010 health-insurance law known as the Affordable Care Act. He also led a push to change the Senate’s procedures to confirm executive-branch nominees and most judges with a simple majority, a momentous move that permanently altered the chamber’s character.
Reid was born on Dec. 2, 1939, in Searchlight, NV, to "an alcoholic miner and a mother who took in laundry from brothels and card dealers at casinos," according to the WSJ.
His close political ally former President Barack Obama credits Reid, in part both with his winning office and with getting Obamacare passed.
“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,” Mr. Obama wrote to Mr. Reid in a letter the former president shared on Twitter on Tuesday night.
Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) in a statement said,
“Harry Reid was the kind of fighter I love: a fighter who knows how to win. Harry never wavered in his commitment to do what's right — especially for the people of Nevada. He led the Senate with courage and conviction, fighting every day for a more just America. I will never forget the night in 2008 when he first asked me to come to Washington. After the big banks crashed the economy, Harry wanted me to help oversee the bank bailout. I figured out that when Harry calls, say yes.
"Harry was a good man. He gave me a chance to serve, and he supported me every step of the way. I will miss him.”
