The man who served as Senate majority leader for eight years and was one of the driving forces behind theAffordable Care Act has died. He died at the age of 22.
The Senate Democratic caucus has been led for more than 15 years by the same person. He was first elected to Congress in 1983 and became a senator in 1987. He served as majority leader from 2007 to 2015 after being named senate majority whip in 2001. He was the senate minority leader.
Chuck Schumer of New York confirmed the death of the Senate leader in a Tuesday message.
He wrote that he was a tough-as-nails, but caring and compassionate man who went out of his way to help people who needed help. He will still be walking by the side of the Senate every single day.
It was not clear what caused the death.
Mike O'Callaghan, a former boxing coach of the man, tapped him as his running mate in the 1970 Nevada gubernatorial election. After four years as lieutenant governor of his state, he tried to get a job in Washington. His first bid for Congress failed, but he stayed in Nevada as chairman of the state's gaming commission, a job that landed him in hot water with Las Vegas mob bosses. During this time, he received death threats and once found a bomb in his family's car.
After leaving the position, he ran for Congress again in 1983, this time as the representative for the state's 1st district. One of the two Nevada representatives was a Democrat. He became the junior Nevada senator four years later and held that position for 30 years before becoming the Senate's majority leader for at least eight years.
One of the longest-lived majority leaders in history, the bold lawmaker who would rarely turn down a challenge, was named after him. He left behind a legacy of respect for both Democrats and Republicans in the nation's capital.
He once told The New York Times that he was a strange guy.
Harry was a studious boy from Searchlight, Nevada, before he became a politician.
The Chairman of the Senate Appropriations sub-committee on Legislative affairs was listening to the Secretary of the Senate.
The photo was taken by Laura Patterson and was used in the Roll Call.
There was no indoor toilet or hot water when he was a child. He told the New Yorker in 2005 that his brother Larry broke his leg but the family couldn't afford to take him to the doctor. The third of four sons was raised by his parents who drank heavily. His father committed suicide.
He told the New Yorker that he always wanted to leave. I knew that when I was a child.
Searchlight had 13 brothels, but no high school, so a teenager named Reid would hitch a ride to Henderson, where he would retire and live his last days in. He met Landra Gould, a sophomore, during his junior year. Her parents were against their dating because she was Jewish and he was not religious. The future father-in-law was punched in the face by the boxer. Her parents accepted her relationship soon after the eloped.
She's never changed. She is 74 years old. She could win a contest. She is nice. She has been a great wife to me. "I wish there was a way I could say how lucky I am to everyone," he said. They had five children, four sons and one daughter.
He graduated from Utah State University with degrees in political science and history, thanks to athletic scholarships. He received his juris doctorate degree from the George Washington University Law School while he was a police officer.
As his boxing teacher's running mate, he jumped into national politics.
The Nevada State Democratic Party Annual Convention in Las Vegas on Saturday, April 17, 2004, saw the presentation of the Howard Cannon Lifetime Achievement Award to US Sen. Harry Reid by actor Martin Sheen.
R. Marsh Starks.
After law school, he joined the Nevada Assembly. Mike O'Callaghan asked him to run for lieutenant governor in 1970. He won. He ran for mayor of Las Vegas in 1983, after his first Congress victory. The seat of retiring Republican Sen. Paul Laxalt was held by the Democratic nominee.
From 1999 to 2001 and from 2003 to 2005, he was the Democratic minority whip. He was majority whip from 2001 to 2003 and minority leader in 2005. He was the majority leader until 2015. In January 2015, Republicans regained control of the Senate, and then again in January 2016 when they regained the minority leader role. The Democratic leader announced his retirement in a video. The Washington Post said in a story that he had been both the Senate's "warrior and dealmaker."
McConnell told the Post that if there was one thing he knew about Harry, he wouldn't give up easily.
During the Obama era, the Senate passed theAffordable Care Act with an iron fist. He was a firm believer in the legislation because of his experiences growing up.
My dad was never given a chance. He was always depressed. He said that he was a secretive man. Everyone can understand why I have been an ardent supporter of the law.
In his home state of Nevada, he secured the designation of 5.1 million acres of federal land as protected land.
The Democrats who came after him criticized part of his political legacy. The "nuclear option" was used by the Senate in order to break the stalemate over the approval of Obama's judicial nominees. The 60-vote threshold for Supreme Court nominations could be lowered to a simple majority if the Senate were to prevent the use of filibusters.
McConnell changed the Senate rules to make it easier to get Supreme Court nominations. This helped the GOP when they were able to get through the nominations of both Amy Coney Barrett andBrett Kavanak.
In an interview with The New York Times, he said he didn't regret the move.
He told The Times that they could say what they wanted. I had no choice because we had over 100 judges that couldn't approve us. Either Obama's presidency would be a joke or a success.
After retirement, he couldn't stop talking about Washington politics.
The portrait of Sen. Harry Reid was unveiled on Capitol Hill.
AP Photo/ Evan Vucci
He began having health problems near the end of his term.
He was blind in one eye after an exercising accident. He claimed he was going to run for reelection after the incident. He said he was ready for retirement in 2015. He had a cancer diagnosis in May of last year.
While in Nevada, he stayed in touch with the political world, jumping on calls with Nancy Pelosi of California and Dick Durbin of Illinois, who were once his top lieutenant in the Senate. The Times reported that he would talk to Schumer, who was also his top lieutenant.
During a interview with The Times, the man who was out of office criticized then- President Donald Trump.
He told the news outlet that he thinks the president is the worst. There's not even a close second to him, we've had some bad ones.
In The Las Vegas Sun, the 36-year Senate veteran wrote that he was pushing for a bold Democratic policy agenda after President Joe Biden took office.
We have done it before, such as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that I helped pass in 2009, and the New Deal. "If we have the political will, we can improve the lives of millions of families today and build a stronger, better and more prosperous country for generations to come."
