Sometimes you've got to take one for the team ... and maybe this is one of those times?

Last week, yet another poll showed that if the election were held today Harry Reid would get beat by a wooden spoon, a box of rocks or even Jerry Tarkanian's wayward son. Evidently a massive early onslaught of TV ads touting Reid's impoverished youth as an illiterate urchin begging for crumbs and splashing through the open sewers of Searchlight has failed to move voters.

The poll prompted all the news organizations in the English-speaking world to dust off the "Reid is in trouble" story that they've been running, with occasional tweaks and revisions, for the last year. All the coverage in turn prompted someone from out of state to send your Gleaner an email wondering who progressives might turn to ... wait for it ... "if Harry Reid decided not to run again."

Unless something happens with his health, I responded to my highly provocative correspondent, Reid is not getting out. No matter what the polls say.

But loving fantasy league politics as much as the next full-on dork, I also played along, with an off-the-top-o'-the-noggin suggestion that in the extremely inconceivable event that Reid bagged it, Democrats, including those of the progressive persuasion, may turn to ... oh never mind, it's not important. Harry Reid grew up on a diet of tumbleweeds and dirt clods in a hovel. He loves a Good Fight so much, he named his stupid book after it. "If Harry Reid decided not to run again," is an absurd premise.

"Should Harry Reid decide not to run again?" -- well, that's a legitimate question.

The case for Reid's reelection routinely shopped by his campaign and his many gushing apologists invokes stunned disbelief that Nevadans could lose the most powerful Nevadan in the whole history of ever.  

That argument is overstated (and, inasmuch as it assumes the Senate would continue to be led by a conservative Democrat, i.e., Reid, unimpressive to a radical commie secularist lefty like your Gleaner), though independent voters might be convinced to buy it, given time and relentless televised pounding.

Of course, the argument in favor of a surprise Reid announcement that he is not seeking reelection is simple: Reid might not be able to recover, no matter how many jillions he spends, and if and when he goes down, not only would one of those Republican nitwits be Nevada's senator, Reid could take the entire Nevada Democratic ticket down with him.

Comments

[A Done of Reality]

Harry Reid dropping out of the race would make it a free for all on both sides. Lowden and Tarkanian need Reid in the race more than anyone. If Reid pulls out, they will be quickly shoved aside. Heller probably runs, but if he doesn't many others will jump in. On the Dem side, Shelley, CCM, Ross, Buckley and maybe one or two others seriously look at it. Absolute free-for-all. That is what an open US Senate seat would mean - with a down-ballot set of dominos shaking things up here like crazy (if Shelley and Heller run, you'd have three huge CD races, PLUS the Senate and Gov races - and maybe Ensign's seat too - Ralston is practically having an orgasm if he is thinking about this).

But Gleaner is of course correct, for Reid to step aside he would need to be putting his party first. Good luck with that.

[ColinFromLasVegas]

I don't pay much attention to polls. Mainly because I am a member of a lot of voters that cannot be figured out for any certainty ever. As a member of the silent majority, I just look at the poll and have no opinion about it. And especially now in these scary times where Republicans want you afraid of everything to cause you shift your vote around to get them elected so they can make more money and represent the rich; and continue to screw the poor.

You alluded to it already, Glean, but, in my humble opinion, Nevada would suffer a catastrophic loss if Mr. Reid were not voted in again. Right now, on a national scale, Mr. Reid is spearheading something that has never, ever been done in such a sweeping manner in the history of the U.S. And that is all encompassing health care reform. When (not if, when) this happens, Mr. Reid will have a blank check to get anything he wants from the Federal Government. He's playing hardball politics and he's making a difference, not only for Nevada but nationally. And with this kind of clout, he can do Nevada good. I don't much pay attention to those who say otherwise. They usually get found out to have some political motive in spouting opposition crap. And they have absolutely no credentials and would be of no significance or help to Nevada if they were elected. I'd dare say they would be so junior the other Senators would be compelled to just ignore them.

So, if anyone thinks that voting in any one of whoever the nine candidates who oppose Mr. Reid, they will be doing themselves and Nevada an injustice. Because they won't have that type of hardball political clout like Mr. Reid will have (and possesses already).

[dave404]

1. Krolicki got a "get out of jail free" card; so he is in play.

2. How does "Senior Senator from Nevada, John 'I want your wife and I'll pay you for her' Ensign, sound?

May you live in interesting times!

[atdleft]

All is talk of Reid retiring or Reid losing next year is ridiculous! Who really thinks most voters are stupid enough to choose Suzy Lowdown or Lil' Tark Shark? I know Mr. Gleaner doesn't like Harry Reid... And yes, he isn't perfect. (Surprise, surprise.)

Still, wasn't he supposed to lose in 1986? And in 1992? And in 1998? And in 2004? This happens every 6 years, and every 6 years Reid wins yet again, either in a close race against a strong candidate or in a blowout against a total idiot. And so far, all I see on the Rethuglican side are idiots... :-)

[Tailspinterry]

Alex, I'll take "close race against a total idiot" for $1000.

[davge404]

atleft,

Knowing you are new to Nevada, vis a vis, Kalifornia, I'll excuse your ignorance of Nevada history in not knowing that the voters here will throw an incumbent senator under the bus in a heart beat!

Howard Cannon, a powerful U.S.Senator was knocked off his perch by dry goods salesman Chic Hecht, or as R-J columnist J.L.Smith describes it in his column dated May 27, 2009, "In 1982, Jacob "Chic" Hecht shocked Nevada's political experts by knocking off four-term U.S. Senate powerhouse Howard Cannon."

What was the mind frame of Cannon in 1982? Smith reminds us with this quote:
"I'm more likely to be run over by a Mack truck than lose to Chic Hecht," he [Cannon] told an associate."

Cannon was wrong! He was run over by Hecht and not a Mack truck! Anyone know Hecht's platform? Exactly!

I think Reid is up to his neck in electoral trouble and Nevada has already demonstrated a willingness to throw seniority out with the stink water of an incumbent!

It is reported today that though the immigration bill will not get a vote in 2010, Reid will keep it front and center in the senate in a blatant attempt to get Hispanic votes leading up to election 2010.

My hope is that the Ds have a primary for U.S.S., and in doing so will have ownership of the Uncle Harry campaign in the general election, otherwise it will be case of incumbent remorse!

Me? I encourage a citizen legislature [as envisioned by the Founders] and encourage all to end Reid's political career, which at a national level has lasted since 1982! He acts as if he if King of Nevada and that is not what is good for America or Nevada.

Thank you Harry for your good works, now come home and be a citizen.

[A Done of Reality]

Actually atdleft, Reid was not "supposed to lose" in 2004. His poll numbers were good, and Ensign helped clear the field for him. Harry returned the favor for Ensign in 2006. As for 1998, the closeness of that race was expected - Ensign was a Congressman at the time. The closeness resulted in their non-aggression and support pact.

Oh - welcome to Nevada. Tailspin is right - it will be a close race against a total idiot. If you value your money, you won't bet against the idiot. If you are rooting for Harry, pray for numerous '3rd party' candidates (which the Reid team is probably recruiting as we speak - along with the "none of these" option which will get lots of votes) - there is no way Reid gets to 50%, but if the anti-Reid vote gets split he has a chance (and that will be the point of all the negative ads he will run). He has no hope of winning over those voters (that is what this current poll shows) but tearing down the idiot could make people not vote for the idiot either). If Reid wins, he does it with 42% of the vote - not impossible, but that is about all he can get.

[NVRed]

You anti-Reid cyberleftists will purify our party into irrelevancy. Recruiting a primary candidate to run against Reid is UIthoven's number one priority, so go ahead and keep gleaning about this, and play right into his hands.
For those of us who pound the pavement, organize and yes, sometime fucking compromise, having Senator Reid in there for the next 6 years instead of Lowden or the others, is just a big NO BRAINER.
So please stop doing Sue and Bob's bidding, and lay off Harry!

[Nevada Ned]

Good reasons to dislike Harry Reid:
He's pro-war.
He's anti-choice.
He voted to bail out the big banks.
He make sure the mining industry doesn't pay its fair share of taxes.
The current health care reform bill really sucks. Big time.

Bad reasons to dislike Harry Reid:
He once blurted out "the war is lost". (It really is. Both wars!)
He told the RJ "I hope you go bankrupt". (Reid should be criticized for not being nasty enough to the RJ)

So, in the end why support Reid? The Republicans are even worse. So I'm resigned to holding my nose and voting for Reid. Who may lose, because of the economy. (Of course, if there were a policy to get people back to work (like the WPA of the 30's), and if Reid were leading THAT fight, he'd get 80% of the vote.)

[NVRed]

So Ned, what would "leading THAT fight" (a jobs policy to get people back to work") look like to you, specifically? If you punt on this, I'll know you for the lazy curmudgeon armchair pundit you appear to be.

[atdleft]

dave-

Yes, I remember that... But that was 1982! Nevada is a different state now. Obama won this state by over 12%.

And my overall point is that every year Reid is up for reelection, the immediate first reaction is that he will lose. His polling NEVER looks good... Except on election day, when it actually matters.

The only time Reid was really in danger was in 1998, when he was up against Ensign. Back then, Ensign was "hot stuff". Are you really telling me that Lil' Tark Shark and Suzy Lowdown are competent enough to run an Ensign 1998 like campaign?

NVRed-

I like to call them the "progressive puritans". When I was visiting friends & family in California last week, one of my old DFA friends was screaming about how Reid is lame and how much better Chuck Schumer would be as Majority Leader. As soon as I started telling him about Schumer's AIPAC history and (EXTREMELY!) close ties to Wall Street, his whole tone changed.

I don't think they'll ever be satisfied until Barbara Boxer or Russ Feingold or Bernie Sanders is Majority Leader. And don't get me wrong, I love them all myself! (Sometimes, I still miss being able to say Boxer is my Senator.) Unfortunately, however, the makeup of the Senate just won't allow this to happen.

And for us in Nevada, why would we want to give up having Reid in this post? Would we rather be nuked by Yucca Mountain going wrong? Would we rather see more exurban sprawl (remember who got much of the land around us turned into park land)? Would we rather not see Medicaid and SCHIP expanded?

They remind me of the Naderites of 2000. Sure, they made sure Gore lost (even when he still won)... But look who they helped make President instead for the next 8 years.

[Good point!]

"As soon as I started telling him about Schumer's AIPAC history .... his whole tone changed."

Right. Because we loves us the peeps who murder kids in pizza parlors, intentionally bomb civilian areas and dance in the streets when Americans are mass murdered. And we HATE the peeps who accidentally kill an innocent being used as a human shield when they are desperately trying to defend themselves.

[Nevada Ned]

Dear NVRed:

I have in mind the WPA, the Works Projects Administration, a new deal agency that was the largest employer in the country. It employed 3.3 million workers at its maximum. They built highways, public buildings, and much much else.

Here in Southern Nevada, Hoover Dam was a WPA project. It allowed Las Vegas to grow even during the Great Depression.

There are plenty of things that need to be done in this country, and millions of people that need jobs. I think another WPA would be popular, although not with some private companies who don't want government competition.

For details about the WPA, see

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Works_Progress_Administration

Obama's "stimulus package" was a mixed bag: besides being too small, a lot of it was tax breaks to business. That creates no significant number of jobs.

[Nevada Ned]

Dear NVRed:

More information about the achievements of the WPA can be found in the book by Nancy Rose, "Put to Work".

http://www.monthlyreview.org/books/puttowork.php

-Nevada Ned

[Happygirl]

Considering what the alternatives are (Sue Lowden? Danny Tarkanian? Puh-leeze!), it's better Reid remain in office.
However, he needs to shape up and get tough.

[Dan]

As a conservative, I really hope Reid goes down. I actually think Reid is a nice guy but his policies are bad.
However, there are so many sound bites the GOP canidate, whoever it is, will use against Reid. Included are his thoughts about visitors to the capitol, his latest comments about slavery and the health care bill and so many others. How many jobs Reid has cost Nevada is another advertisment. He has decided to take the most radical political positions when Nevada is not the most radical state in the union. If he was a senator from the East Coast, he wouldn't be in any trouble, but he is from the West and it is a totally different animal.
Hopefully, I hope in the next 2 years we will have 2 new senators from Nevada.

[Rich]

"As a conservative, I really hope Reid goes down."
And who do you have in mind nto replace him, Dan? Another fornicating conservative like Ensign? Please spare me.

[immigration law firms in las vegas]

Obama's "stimulus package" was a mixed bag: besides being too small, a lot of it was tax breaks to business. That creates no significant number of jobs.

[Happygirl]

Dan: If you wanted empty-headed GOP bots like Sue Lowden or Danny Tarkanian, fine.
I have the feeling a majority of Nevadans don't..
Oh, and gee, thanks for your brilliant politcal insight about the West.
Wow. we're underwhelmed.
And we get it: You're a conservative. You've mentioned it a million times. How nice for you.
We don't care.

[Happygirl]

Oh, and Dan, one more thing: What exactly, has everybody favorite spray-tanned, fornicating, cry-baby hypocrite John Ensign done to bring jobs to Nevada?
We're waiting for your brilliant insight ...

[dave404]

Reading the comments about Tark and Lowden remind me of all that is wrong w/ those seeking elective office: Where are the great minds and why aren't they seeking to serve the community?

The above question reminds me of a class taught by Dina Titus, a course on the American presidency, loh, those long decades ago: Why don't great people run for office?

The vested (and paying) interests win out over a dimwitted, uneducated, uninformed electorate every time! For example, a certain sausage company was a case study covered in marketing classes at Harvard University back in the 1930's. The company packaged its same old sausage, but re-branded it as "new and improved" and sales increased!

It is a sad day, and it is a sad day, when our choice for the United States Senate is between two dimwits and a fella, one who has served in Congress since 1982, and still has not lead us to a bright future, but continues his school yard fight with the "other gang", while our standard of living crashed and will never return! Would any of you want to be a 21 year old fresh out of college today?!

Don't get me wrong, fuck Ensign and all the rest of the Republicans! However the system is broken, mostly thanks to Gingrich, Atwater, Rove, Delay, Hastert, Frist and Lott! But, lifetime election to the Congress or the presidency is not healthy....

America is on the verge of going European: mounting debt, imperialism abroad (though they can't afford it anymore), limited energy self sufficiency, entitlement costs out of control..and here is Reid, now at the tiller, doing nothing to steer us from the rocky shoals...and our current option is the kitchen help, lying stupid in the bilge, reading from a Hannity/Beck/Limbaugh script.

I say it is a false choice.

[Dan]

Maybe, Happygirl, you need some reading glasses or reading lessons. I said I hope we have 2 new senators. But hey, intelligence was never your strong suit.
And yes, Tark or Lowden could do better than Reid, especially with a GOP majority, which it is shaping up to be. Reid has killed jobs in Nevada- he hasn't created jobs, no matter what he says. What exactly has Reid done for Nevada that other politicians have not done? Reid is about as incompetent for Nevada as Gibbons. Hell, Reid is still talking about his days fighting the mob- nothing about the future. Seriously, what has Reid said about the future of Nevada? Nothing.

[Happygirl]

Dan: You are an asshole. Drop dead. Go to hell.
We're done with your sorry ass. And I don't need reading glasses, but you need to take your GOP-boot-licking mask off.

[Happygirl]

And of course, "Mr. Principled Conservative" can't answer what good John Ensign has done for Nevada, only that he's not a "nice" man.
Dan, you naive fool: If that's what you base voting on someone for, you might as well stay home.
In fact, why don't you do my home state a favor and stay home on election day next year?

[Dan]

Gee, Happygirl, PMS? Again, I have called for Ensign to not run again and he is a piece of crap. I have no respect for the man. What part of that don't you
understand?
Even if I stay home, it won't matter because your man you are whorring for is toast. No matter what he does, he loses to some people he should not lose to. And no, I don't like Lowden either, but she can beat him.
So, continue to be a whore for Reid, I really don't care because in the end, he would have done bad things for the U.S. and when he loses he will live off a huge pension and free medical care for the rest of his life, something that you can only dream about. Do you think he honestly cares if he wins or loses? And you know damn well, Harry will move to DC or it's surrounding area and never live in Nevada again. But he's your boy.