Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid told a Nevada television station Friday that the Senate is unlikely to pass an assault weapons ban or a radical revamp of filibuster rules. But the Democratic leader was optimistic about changes to immigration laws, noting that it will be the chamberâs top priority this year. In the interview that aired on Vegas PBS this weekend, Reid, a gun rights supporter, struck a pragmatic tone on gun control measures. âLetâs be realistic. In the Senate, weâre going to do what we think can get through the House. And Iâm not going to be going through a bunch of these gyrations just to say weâve done something because if weâre really legislators, the purpose of it is to pass legislation,â Reid said. He said he wants to see what President Barack Obama wants to do by administrative means. Reid also expressed reservations about legislation to outlaw assault weapons, a measure that he has long opposed. âIs it something that can pass the Senate? Maybe. Is it something that can pass the House? I doubt it,â Reid said. âSo I think there are things that we know we can do.â http://cdn.rollcall.com/news/reid_d...ue&cdn_load=true&zkPrintable=1&nopagination=1
He does like making controversial statements on the floor of the Senate then seeing if he got on TV. He's also being accused of taking a bribe to block legislation. We'll see if that goes anywhere.
The NRA took a lot of heat for not opposing Reid's reelection. Their argument was that as odious as he is on most issues, he has always supported gun owners' rights. So they basically had no choice but to support him. Having the Sen. Maj. Leader owing you isn't the worst thing in the world either. Note that in the budget debate, we never heard this formulation about it being a waste of time to pass a bill the House won't pass.