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Tributes poured in from political leaders after news broke Tuesday that former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid died at the age of 82.
President Biden said in a statement late Tuesday that although he and his former colleague in the Senate come from opposite sides of the country, they found a common bond based on “loyalty, faith, resolve and service.”
“If Harry said he would do something, he did it,” the president’s statement said. “If he gave you his word, you could bank on it. That’s how he got things done for the good of the country for decades.”
He called Reid one of the country’s all-time great Senators.
“A boxer, he never gave up a fight—whether in politics or even against cancer. A great American, Harry looked at the challenges of the world and believed it was within our capacity to do good, to do right, and to do our part of perfecting the Union we all love,” Biden said.
Former President Barack Obama said that without Reid he would not have been president, releasing a letter he had written to Reid in lieu of a statement.
“You were a great leader in the Senate, and early on you were more generous to me than I had any right to expect,” Obama wrote in part. “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.”
Former President Barack Obama hugs former Sen. Harry Reid before speaking during the National Clean Energy Summit 8.0 in Las Vegas, Nevada, Aug. 24, 2015. (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
Obama went on to describe himself and Reid as “a pretty good team.”
Former President Bill Clinton likewise mourned the passing of the former Nevada senator, calling him “one of the most effective Senate leaders our country has ever known.”
“He was a canny and tough negotiator who was never afraid to make an unpopular decision if it meant getting something done that was right for the country,” Clinton wrote. He also mentioned how Reid and his wife Hillary served together in the Senate and said he “will always be grateful for the opportunities I had to work with him as President.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer also extolled his predecessor, describing him as “one of the most amazing individuals I’ve ever met.”
Former U.S. Sen. Harry Reid speaks from the witness stand, Thursday, March 28, 2019, in Las Vegas. Reid testified in his negligence lawsuit against the maker of an exercise device. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Referring to Reid’s youth as a boxer, Schumer said Reid “came from humble origins, but he never forgot where he came from and used those boxing instincts to fearlessly fight those who were hurting the poor and the middle class.”
Schumer went on to describe Reid as “my leader, my mentor, one of my dearest friends.”
House Majority Whip James Clyburn, D-S.C., said he was saddened to hear of Reid’s passing and described him as “a giant, whose years of determined service on behalf of the people of Nevada strengthened our entire nation.”
Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., said, “Harry Reid was a mentor to me and a towering model of leadership, grit, and uncompromising service to others.”
A Democrat representing Nevada, Reid served as senate majority leader from 2007 to 2015. He became well-known for his use of the “nuclear option” in 2013, leading the charge to end the filibuster on executive branch nominees and judicial nominees other than to the Supreme Court.
Reid was first elected in 1969, serving in the Nevada Assembly until 1971. He then served as lieutenant governor of Nevada from 1971 to 1975 before being elected to serve Nevada’s first district in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1982. He was first elected to the Senate in 1987.
Fox News’ Michael Lee and Edmund DeMarche contributed to this report.
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