To my colleagues in the Senate, my constituents in Nevada, and the American People,
It is with great sadness that I tender my resignation from the United States Senate today. Despite my soft-spoken, semi-effective attacks on this Administration and his Republican allies, it appears that I simply don't have what it takes to win. I cannot be trusted to approach a must-win battle with more than a whimper. I cannot be counted upon to rally a symbolic vote, let alone a filibuster. I cannot be accepted as the voice of the Senate Democrats, who insist upon mumbling together in a chorus of obscure mediocrity.
By now you have probably assumed that my decision is based upon Judge Samuel Alito's impending confirmation to the Supreme Court, but it is much more than that. Yes, it is true that I only managed to round up 25 votes against closing the debate on Judge Alito, but let me be clear, the debate was over a very long time ago--I failed a very long time ago--and for that I am ashamed.
I apologize.
As I exit the Senate for a lucrative life in lobbying and consulting, I have some advice for Democrats. We have to stop supporting political wimps like me. It seems so clear now, with a Republican in his second term in the White House and a Supreme Court packed with conservatives, that we have to start fighting. If I were to do it all over again, I wouldn't have approached the Alito confirmation with a concern for my Party's political future. Under my leadership, my Party followed a "Live to Die Another Day" strategy, which, of course, led to dying every day. For my part, I refuse to be the lead lemming anymore.
Finally, it is 2006, an election year. We, as Democrats, have a chance to go 1 out of 3 by winning this November. We shut our eyes and whiffed on our last two slow-pitch softballs--Bush's reelection and Judge Alito's record--and we cannot afford to miss this one. If we can't knock an electoral home run with the Republican Party so mired in corruption and scandal, then you know the rules--it's three strikes and we're out. Two more years of Republican dominated politics could easily set up eight more years of Republican control of the White House.
I am a soft-spoken man floundering in a political atmosphere that requires volume. But worse than that, I am an unclear man, unable to state unequivocally that we are under attack from the right. Judge Alito's confirmation today is a tremendous defeat for which I take responsibility. At least I've learned how to lose quietly--See you in New Hampshire in 2008!
Sincerely,
Harry Reid
Senate Minority Leader and Lead Lemming
Democrat from Nevada
Cross posted at The Baltimore Group.