Harry the Field Mouse

In the past, we've described Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid as a "field mouse." Really, what's the first word that pops into your head when you think of Reid? Besides "mouse", honestly, the second word for me would probably be "weak." Harry Reid is a weak leader, and you can read it on his face, not to mention in his meek words and even meeker actions.

This all was evidenced once again with the most recent events in the Roland Burris-Rod Blagojevich Senate saga. After Burris' appointment was made, and up through the last few days, Reid has talked very tough, intimating that he would do whatever he could to ensure that Burris would not serve in the United States Senate. Indeed, this stance made a great deal of sense, as any appointment by the disgraced Blagojevich would potentially taint national Democrats in the Senate and elsewhere. However, already today Reid seems to be beginning his perhaps-inevitable backtracking, noting that he is willing to "negotiate" the matter with Burris.

Reid's backtracking is not a great shock, given that he possesses limited means to block an individual legally appointed to his seat. In Illinois, despite his considerable troubles, Blagojevich today remains in office, and as a result, under state law he may still make appointments to vacant U.S. Senate seats. So, Burris, despite being a huge distraction and a potentially enormous liability, is coming to Washington, and there is little Harry Reid or anyone else can do about it. Therefore, one cannot fault Reid or other party leadership for not upending the appointment, or even trying to talk tough in an attempt to deter Burris from taking the job he covets.

All of that being said, this latest episode does nothing to strengthen Reid's weak standing. In simple terms, Reid's threat and then heady retreat hardly make the Senate Majority Leader's position look strong. This is another incident in a series of recent and fairly-recent stories that have made Reid look weak and uninspiring. More importantly, they bring into question whether Democrats should have confidence that Reid is the man who should guide the 59 Democrats in the Upper Chamber towards ratifying the new President's agenda. In my un-expert opinion, they should not. But unfortunately for savvy Dems, do not look for Reid to be ousted from his position any time soon, unless he is defeated for re-election in 2010 (a distinct possibility, but nonetheless far in the distance). The prospect of tossing out a leader with a strong majority and a new popular President is extremely unlikely to occur, even if Chuck Schumer or Dick Durbin would be a far better option.