President Joe Biden and former President Barack Obama inundated former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid with praise at his funeral Saturday.
Biden said that Reid was one of the most talented leaders he served alongside in Congress during his remarks at the Las Vegas funeral, praising Reid for his ability to get things done in remarks that followed a speech by Obama, who delivered the ceremony’s eulogy.
“The thing about Harry is he never gave up. He never gave up on anybody he cared about,” he said. “Let there be no doubt, Harry Reid will be considered one of the greatest Senate Majority Leaders in history.”
FORMER SENATE MAJORITY LEADER HARRY REID DIES AT 82
Biden recalled how Reid congratulated him on his election victory. He said he consulted Reid when he decided to run for president and that the Nevada Democrat encouraged him.
The president highlighted Reid’s accomplishments, crediting him with helping to save Medicare and Social Security. He also praised him for fighting against putting nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain.
He said that Reid was determined to use political power to do good for people, a point that echoed Obama’s characterization of Reid’s fortitude during contentious political negotiations.
The former president praised Reid for his ability to work with people he disagreed with, describing him as a pragmatist.
“At a time when Americans across the political spectrum apply strict purity tests to our politicians demanding they toe the line on just about every issue, at a time when compromise was portrayed as weakness, Harry had a different view,” Obama said. “In a battle between perfection and progress, Harry always chose progress.”
Obama said Reid played an important role in his decision to run for president.
“He was one of the first people to encourage me to run for president believing that despite my youth, despite my inexperience the fact that I was African American, I could actually win,” Obama said. “I owe him a debt I cannot repay.”
Despite the words of praise, Reid was occasionally at odds with the Obama administration during his tenure in the Senate. Biden and Reid reportedly had disputes with each other during the Obama administration. During a budget standoff in 2013, for example, Reid demanded that Biden be left out of negotiations with Republicans fearing he was too soft, Politico reported at the time.
At one point during his Saturday remarks, Obama mocked the notion put forth by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that Reid never spoke ill of his colleagues.
“I don’t know about that Nancy,” he said, drawing laughter.
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Reid served as the Senate majority leader from 2007 to 2015. He retired from the Senate in 2017 and died at the age of 82 of pancreatic cancer on Dec. 28.
He will lie in the Capitol next week. There will be a ceremony for him there on Wednesday, according to Pelosi.
