Reid vows to continue fighting for Nevada

Benjamin Grove

Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2004 | 11:13 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., vowed today to balance his duties as the Senate's top Democrat with his duties to serve Nevada.

Reid on Tuesday was unanimously elected by Senate Democrats to be their new leader.

He will replacing Tom Daschle of South Dakota, whose opponent, John Thune, ousted Daschle by arguing that the veteran lawmaker had forgotten South Dakota.

Reid said he would continue to serve Nevada as he did as the minority whip, the Senate's No. 2 Democrat.

"I really don't think it will be any different than what I've been doing," Reid said in an interview today.

He promised to continue his long-running fight against turning Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, into the nation's high-level radioactive waste dump.

Reid is working with Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Pete Domenici, R-N.M., to finalize the current fiscal year's budget for Yucca. Reid vowed to continue to work to slice the project budget each year.

The legal and legislative battles over constructing a national nuclear waste repository at Yucca will continue to be a problem for President Bush because people will lose faith in the government's ability to establish a safe project, Reid said.

"What they should do is just save money and leave (waste) where it is," Reid said.

Reid said he had a number of other Nevada-specific projects in the works that would demand his time in the next session, which begins in January. Those include Walker and Colorado River issues, and other special programs, including transportation projects in the state, that would require federal funding.

"We have some very, very big projects, and then we have some small ones," Reid said. "But they are all big to the people that get the money."

Reid said he is making plans with the Democratic National Committee and other strategists to help the Democratic Party do a better job of articulating its agenda to voters, which will be a big challenge given that Republicans control Congress and the White House. Reid noted that the Democrats are making big strides in reclaiming some of the talk radio market from conservatives.

Reid's $8 million leader's office budget will allow for some new hires, including several in his communications office, and 200 resumes have already been received.

"Our message is going to get out more than it has in the past," Reid said.

Reid said his leadership style will evolve.

"Everyone knows my close personal relationship and affinity with Sen. Daschle, but I'm a different person," Reid said. "But people will be able to see in a few months how we differ."

Reid this week is meeting with senators on both sides of the aisle and is intimately involved in negotiations on a huge omnibus spending bill pending in the final days of a lame duck session. Lawmakers are hoping to finish business as early as the end of this week.

Reid has been inundated with media interview requests. He planned interviews on three CNN shows today.

Reid said he would do "as much as I have to" in terms of national media interviews but said he would share the media spotlight with colleagues.

"I do have a lot of people (Democratic senators) who are willing to go to the cameras," Reid said. "I'll lateral the ball when I feel it's appropriate."

Reid today reiterated that he planned to work to bridge partisan divides in the Senate.

"But remember the Senate wasn't set up by the founding fathers to be easy," Reid said. "It was set up to make government better. That's what the bicameral legislature is all about. I represent millions of people out there and I want to make sure that the initiatives the majority has, that we keep in mind the millions of people that we represent."

Reid said he had no comment on who he would like to become the next Energy Secretary, whose department oversees the Yucca Mountain project. Secretary Spencer Abraham resigned this week.

"It doesn't matter," Reid said. "They take their orders from the president."

On another topic, Reid said he recommended Republican Attorney General Brian Sandoval to President Bush for a federal judge job this week because he was a qualified candidate.

"I like Brian Sandoval," Reid said. "He's a fair, honest man."

But Reid added that, under a Democratic administration, his first choice would have been U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Linda Riegle. Reid recommended her to President Clinton for a job as a federal judge in Nevada, but the nomination stalled and died in Senate in 2000, shortly before President Bush took office.

Reid said he was not motivated to recommend Sandoval because it takes a talented Republican off a political track to higher office.

"He's a free agent," Reid said. "No one twisted his arm. I called and asked him if he wanted this and he said yes."

Republicans this week were closely eyeing Reid and their Democratic colleagues.

Reid and the Democrats will have to "redefine" their agenda, said Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., if they expect to make progress with Republicans. Reid faces a big challenge in creating party unity after dramatic losses on Election Day, Allard said.

"He's partisan, but I wouldn't say he's highly partisan," Allard said of the new Democratic leader.

Reid continues to gather praise from fellow Democrats. Rising Democratic star and senator-elect Barack Obama, D-Ill., said he happily gave his support to Reid when Reid called him shortly after their Election Day victories.

"I think he has the right mix of toughness and openmindedness that the caucus is looking for," Obama said. "Sen. Reid has seen hardship in his life and he is not likely to get rattled under difficult circumstances, and certainly right now, the Democratic caucus is looking for that kind of leadership."

Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., said he was "in mourning" for a week after the elections because of the losses by so many Democrats, including Kerry.

But Reid was rallying the troops already, he said.

"By the end of today's caucus, my spirits had lifted significantly," Carper said.

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