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Harry Mason Reid Jr. (; December 2, 1939 – December 28, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Nevada from 1987 to 2017. He led the Senate Democratic Caucus from 2005 to 2017 and was the Senate Majority Leader from 2007 to 2015.
After earning an undergraduate degree from Utah State University and a Juris Doctor degree from George Washington University, Reid began his public career as the city attorney for Henderson, Nevada, before being elected to the Nevada Assembly in 1968. Gubernatorial candidate Mike O'Callaghan, Reid's former boxing coach, chose Reid as his running mate in 1970; following their victory Reid served as the 25th lieutenant governor of Nevada from 1971 to 1975. After being defeated in races for the United States Senate and mayor of Las Vegas, Reid served as chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission from 1977 to 1981. From 1983 to 1987, Reid represented Nevada's 1st district in the United States House of Representatives.
Reid was elected to the United States Senate in 1986 and served in the Senate from 1987 to 2017. He served as the Senate Democratic whip from 1999 to 2005 before succeeding Tom Daschle as Senate Minority Leader. The Democrats won control of the Senate after the 2006 United States Senate elections, and Reid became the Senate Majority Leader in 2007. He held that position for the final two years of George W. Bush's presidency and for the first six years of Barack Obama's presidency. As majority leader, Reid helped pass major legislation of the Obama administration, such as the Affordable Care Act, the Dodd–Frank Act, and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. In 2013, under Reid's leadership, the Senate Democratic majority controversially invoked the "nuclear option" to eliminate the 60-vote requirement to end a filibuster for presidential nominations, other than nominations to the U.S. Supreme Court. Republicans took control of the Senate following the 2014 United States Senate elections, and Reid served as Senate Minority Leader from 2015 until his retirement in 2017. Reid is Nevada's longest-serving senator, surpassing John P. Jones's record by two days.
Reid was succeeded as the Senate Democratic leader by Chuck Schumer, whose leadership bid had been endorsed by Reid. Along with Alben W. Barkley and Mike Mansfield, Reid was one of only three senators to have served at least eight years as majority leader. Harry Reid International Airport, which serves the Las Vegas Valley, was named after Reid on December 14, 2021, two weeks before his death from cancer. The airport was previously named after Pat McCarran, one of Reid's Senate predecessors.
Since Searchlight had no high school, Reid boarded with relatives away, in Henderson, so that he could attend Basic High School, where he played football and was an Amateur boxing.Smith, Christopher (June 9, 2001). . Salt Lake Tribune. While at Basic High, he met future Nevada governor Mike O'Callaghan, who was a teacher there and served as Reid's boxing coach. Reid attended Southern Utah University and graduated from Utah State University in 1961, where he double-majored in political science and history. He also minored in economics at Utah State's School of Commerce and Business Administration. He then attended George Washington University Law School while working as a police officer for the United States Capitol Police, and he earned his Juris Doctor in 1964.
Reid served as chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission from 1977 to 1981. When Jack Gordon offered Reid a $12,000 bribe to get approval of new games for casinos, Reid brought in the FBI to tape Gordon's bribery attempt and arrest him. After FBI agents interrupted the transaction, as prearranged, Reid lost his temper and attempted to choke Gordon, saying "You son of a bitch, you tried to bribe me!" before agents stopped him. Gordon was convicted in 1979 and sentenced to six months in prison. Reid presided over the 1979 hearing that refused to issue a gaming license to casino operator Frank Rosenthal because of his ties to organized crime groups such as the Chicago Outfit and particularly his close personal association with mobster Anthony Spilotro. Reid later stated that "Rosenthal was the only person that I was ever afraid of." Rosenthal loudly and publicly confronted Reid after the hearing, telling gathered reporters that he had performed many personal favors for Reid. Reid conceded under heated interrogation from Rosenthal that the two men had met for lunch at his Stardust Resort and Casino and that he had asked Rosenthal to cover up undesirable news stories. FBI wiretaps captured mobsters claiming that Reid was under their control, causing governor Robert List to feel pressure to ask Reid to resign. However, List believed Reid's assertions that the accusations were baseless. In 1981, Reid's wife found a Car bomb attached to the family station wagon; Reid suspected it was placed by Rosenthal or Gordon, although this has never been proven in court.
Reid was instrumental in the establishment of Great Basin National Park, sponsoring the bill creating it in 1986 and ensuring the protection of Wheeler Peak and groves of bristlecone pine.
Ensign was elected to Nevada's other Senate seat in 2000. Ensign and Reid had a very good relationship despite their bitter contest in 1998. The two frequently worked together on Nevada issues until Ensign resigned his Senate seat in 2011 due to an ethics scandal.
In 2010, Reid won the Democratic nomination with 75% of the vote in the June 8 primary. He then faced a very competitive race in the 2010 general election. Reid engaged in a $1 million media campaign to "reintroduce himself" to the state's voters. He defeated Republican challenger Sharron Angle in the November 2 election, 50.3% to 44.6%.
In January 2015, Reid suffered severe injuries in an exercise accident. On March 27, 2015, Reid uploaded a video to his YouTube account announcing that he would not seek reelection in November 2016. Reid endorsed Senator Chuck Schumer from New York to succeed him as Minority Leader. Former Nevada Attorney General and fellow Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto was elected to succeed Reid as a U.S. senator from Nevada.
On January 1, 2017, two days before the end of his term, Reid surpassed Senator John P. Jones to become the longest-serving U.S. Senator from Nevada.
Liberal critics argued that Reid allowed Senate Republicans to create a 60-vote bar for passage of bills without a Democratic filibuster. Conservatives criticized Reid for his extensive use of the procedural tactic known as "filling the tree" to prevent amendments on important bills.
The United States Air Force facility Homey Airport, commonly known as Area 51, is located on Groom Lake in Reid's home state of Nevada, and has been rumored to house materials allegedly retrieved from the 1947 Roswell UFO incident. When interviewed in the aftermath of publicity surrounding the AATIP, Reid expressed pride in his accomplishment, and was quoted as saying "I think it's one of the good things I did in my congressional service. I've done something that no one has done before." Reid explained the reasoning behind his sponsorship of the program by saying "I'm interested in science, and in helping the American public understand what the hell is going on" and stated that "hundreds and hundreds of papers" have been available since the program was completed and that "Most all of it, 80 percent at least, is public" adding "I wanted it public, it was made public, and you guys have not even looked at it."
A 2009 letter by Reid was published by KLAS-TV investigative journalists George Knapp and Matt Adams, where the Senator states that AATIP has made "much progress" with the "identification of several highly sensitive, unconventional aerospace-related findings" that will "likely lead to technology advancements" and recommends the creation of a special access program for specific parts of AATIP.
Reid's invocation of the nuclear option on judicial nominations was controversial as, on April 6, 2017, Senate Republicans similarly invoked the nuclear option to remove the Supreme Court exception created in 2013, allowing the Trump administration to appoint Justices on party lines. This was after Senate Democrats filibustered the nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court of the United States and after the Senate Republicans had previously refused to take up Merrick Garland's nomination by President Obama in 2016. Senate Session C-SPAN.org Retrieved February 14, 2021
A series of investigative reports in the Los Angeles Times suggested that Reid had introduced legislation and imposed pressure on regulatory agencies to advance the business interests of his close friend Harvey Whittemore, a Nevada attorney-lobbyist who contributed heavily to Reid's campaigns and leadership fund and who employed Reid's son Leif as his personal attorney. With Reid's help, Whittemore was able to proceed with construction of a $30 billion planned golf course development, Coyote Springs, a project heavily criticized by environmental groups for reasons including its projected effects on several endangered species. Whittemore served a two-year prison sentence after being found guilty in 2013 of funneling $133,400 in illegal contributions to Reid's reelection campaign.
Reid spearheaded several initiatives while in Congress. In 2006, Reid co-sponsored the Prevention First Amendment with Hillary Clinton, which would fund abortion prevention efforts such as giving women broader access to contraception. The bill faced Republican opposition and failed. In January 2007, Reid brought a Senate ethics reform bill to a vote to bar congressional members from accepting gifts, meals, and trips from lobbying and organizations employing lobbyists, to bar Senators from borrowing private jet for travel, and to compel Senators to disclose names of sponsors, or authors, of bills and projects. The bill passed 96–2. In the 111th Congress, Reid shepherded the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) through the Senate.
Reid was initially a centrist Democrat, and he held Pro-life views and supported gun rights and opposed illegal immigration. He was considered fiscally liberal and socially conservative. He believed that Roe v. Wade should be overturned, and in 1999, voted against an amendment that supported Roe. In 1998, he stated that he believed in a restricted right to abortion, stating that "abortions should be legal only when the pregnancy resulted from incest, rape, or when the life of the woman is endangered". He voted several times to ban the intact dilation and evacuation, or "partial-birth abortion" procedure. Reid supported embryonic stem cell research. Over the time, Reid shifted his support towards more Progressivism views.
Regarding same-sex marriage, Reid initially believed that "marriage should be between a man and a woman", but abandoned that position in favor of same-sex marriage in 2012.
In regard to local issues, Reid firmly opposed construction of the proposed Yucca Mountain federal nuclear waste repository in Nevada. Reid initially opposed the legalization of online poker, but in 2010 it was reported his position had evolved – a move some argued was influenced by "the hundreds of thousands of dollars Las Vegas casinos contributed to his re-election campaign".Beam, Christopher (December 10, 2010) "Don't Hate the Player – or the Game" , Slate.com Reid called immigration reform one of his priorities at the 110th Congress. He supported the DREAM Act (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act), which would give certain high school graduates who had arrived in the U.S. illegally, conditional legal status so they could attend college or enlist in the military. They could then obtain permanent legal residency after completing two years of military service or two years of college.
Reid supported use of force in the Middle East, but in September 2007, called for a drastic change in strategy. In January 1991, Reid voted to authorize the first Gulf War, "Slim Senate Majority Is Expected But House Backing Appears Solid" . The New York Times. January 12, 1991. quoting John F. Kennedy's 1963 State of the Union speech on the Senate floor, saying "the mere absence of war is not peace." The quote in question can be seen via a Google News archive search . He also voted in support of the 2003 invasion of Iraq. In March 2007, he voted in favor of "redeploying U.S. troops out of Iraq by March 2008", and later that year, said, "As long as we follow President path in Iraq, the war is lost."
Reid was a strong advocate of recognizing the Armenian genocide.
Reid was a staunch defender of Obamacare both online and in speeches. He advocated outlawing prostitution in Nevada.Ball, Molly (February 23, 2011) Harry Reid's prostitution lecture bombs , Politico
On May 15, 2013, Reid revealed to reporters that his niece is a lesbian as he spoke about his hope that the Employment Non-Discrimination Act would be signed into law.
target="_blank" rel="nofollow"> With new monuments in Nevada, Utah, Obama adds to his environmental legacy, Washington Post (December 28, 2016).Juliet Eilperin, With Obama's help, Harry Reid leaving an indelible mark in the Nevada desert , Washington Post (July 7, 2015). He successfully secured the designation of about of U.S. federal land in Nevada as protected land, shielding them from development. Among these were the Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument,Amber Phillips, A monumental push: Reid plans to designate two more areas for protection , Las Vegas Sun (April 19, 2015), the Basin and Range National Monument, and the Gold Butte National Monument.
Reid was also the champion of the Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act, 1998 legislation that has redirected more than $4 billion in proceeds from the sale of public lands in Nevada to conservation initiatives, environmentally sensitive land acquisitions, new parks and trails, and capital projects for federal land management agencies.Birenbaum, Gabby, Phenomenal boon: How Nevada's signature public lands law ushered in growth, conservation Nevada Independent (13 August 2023).
Reid was criticized as one of the main culprits for the failure of the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference, as the Democrats' majority in Congress during that time had not been used to enact climate-protection legislation prior to the conference.Christina Larson, Annie Lowrey: Who Killed Copenhagen? An FP Whodunnit. In: Foreign Policy, 16 November 2011.
In 2015, Reid received a lifetime achievement award from the League of Conservation Voters, and the following year he was honored by the Conservation Lands Foundation for "historic contributions to conservation." CLF Statement on Senator Harry Reid's Historic Contributions to Conservation , Conservation Lands Foundation (December 8, 2016).
Reid was elected to the Gaming Hall of Fame in 2001. In 2013, adviser Jim Margolis said of Reid, "He is unique in this city. And you see it in so many different ways. Is he the best TV talking head? No. He'd be the first to tell you that. Should he smile more? Yes. Should he say goodbye on the phone when he's done talking to you? Probably. But those are things you'd assume are part and parcel of a polished figure in Washington. That is not Harry Reid."
Reid was known for his skills in political organizing and getting out the vote, and his voter coalition known as the "Reid Machine" was credited with being the driving force behind several statewide Democratic wins, including Hillary Clinton in the 2016 United States presidential election in Nevada and Catherine Cortez Masto's election to succeed Reid in the concurrent Senate election. A veteran of the Reid political machine, Megan K. Jones, has gone on to be a senior advisor to vice president and 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris.
Harry Reid (formerly McCarran) International Airport, which serves the Las Vegas Valley, was named after Senator Reid on December 14, 2021, just two weeks prior to his death.
Reid lived in the Anthem area of Henderson, Nevada. Reid (who was raised Agnosticism) and his wife (who was born to Jewish immigrant parents and grew up in Henderson) converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while he was a college student. In a 2001 interview he said, "I think it is much easier to be a good member of the Church and a Democrat than a good member of the Church and a Republican." He went on to say that the Democrats' emphasis on helping others, as opposed to what he considered Republican dogma to the contrary, is the reason he was a Democrat. He delivered a speech at Brigham Young University to about 4,000 students on October 9, 2007, in which he expressed his opinion that Democratic values mirror Mormon values. Several Republican Mormons in Utah contested his faith because of his politics, such as his statements that the church's backing of California's Proposition 8 wasted resources.
Reid was the co-chairman of the Board of Selectors of Jefferson Awards for Public Service. In April 2015, Reid confirmed former U.S. Senator Larry Pressler as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Funeral Reid's funeral was broadcast live on CNN and MSNBC with tributes by Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer and performances by Brandon Flowers and Carole King. He was interred in his family plot in Searchlight.
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