Sen. Harry Reid said Wednesday he’s seen obstruction from Republicans and has no intention of adopting those tactics when he lands in the minority next year.
Mr. Reid, the Nevada Democrat who will go from being majority leader to minority leader, said he will work “in good faith” to make the Senate operate smoothly, and said that means rejecting the obstruction he said the GOP pioneered while they were in the minority.
“I have no desire to engage in that,” Mr. Reid said in opening the Senate for the lame-duck session, which will see a number of retiring or defeated senators vote on major issues from kick-starting the war in Iraq to addressing immigration.
Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Kentucky Republican who will flip positions with Mr. Reid and become the new majority leader next year, said the test of bipartisanship begins now. He said that all depends on President Obama, who will send the signals that tell his allies in Congress whether to cooperate or block action.
“I think President Obama has a duty to help build the trust we all need to move forward together, not to double-down on old ways of doing business,” Mr. McConnell said. “That’s why I think moving forward with the unilateral action on immigration he’s planned would be a big mistake.”
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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