Harry Reid Does His Hillary Impression

Does this guy gargle with Absorbine, Jr??

Reid slams Santorum

Minority Leader Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) exchanged harsh words with Republican Conference Chairman Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) on the Senate floor yesterday, accusing him of practicing “crass politics.” In an unusually personal speech, Reid said, “I will not be lectured about civility by the junior senator from Pennsylvania who has repeatedly disrespected veterans.”

Earlier in the day, Santorum asked Reid to “show some leadership and some civility,” saying Reid had acted in a “partisan fashion” after Reid questioned the credentials of Veterans Affairs Secretary Jim Nicholson on veterans issues. Reid later apologized for failing to acknowledge Nicholson’s past military service.

Then Harry followed it up with this gem:

Santorum wants an end to ethnic slurs
By Carrie Budoff
Inquirer Staff Writer

First, they compared him to John Gotti. Then, they described him as the Godfather.

As Sen. Rick Santorum's Democratic critics look for ways to cast his role in the lobbying reform debate, they have invoked what several Italian American groups are calling ethnic slurs to describe Santorum - the son of an Italian immigrant and the highest-ranking Italian American in the Senate, according to his staff.

"If Sen. Santorum were Jewish or Hispanic or African American, these stereotypical allusions to his heritage would be unthinkable," said Dona De Sanctis, deputy executive director of the Order Sons of Italy in America, which describes itself as the largest national Italian American organization with 600,000 members. "Why is this permitted with an Italian American senator?"

They want an apology, starting with Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nevada), who said on Jan. 18 during The NewsHour With Jim Lehrer on PBS that "having Sen. Santorum talk about reform is like having John Gotti talk about doing something about organized crime."

But that's OK,..Sen. Santorum appears to be getting the last laugh again:

Santorum siphons off some unions
At an AFL-CIO unity rally for Democrat Robert P. Casey Jr., there were defections. But most units still support him.
By Carrie Budoff
Inquirer Staff Writer

Democrat Robert P. Casey Jr.'s usually airtight support among labor unions sprang a leak this week.

When leaders of the Philadelphia AFL-CIO called a meeting Tuesday to unify behind Casey, the officers left divided. Casey earned the overall endorsement, but three unions and Pat Gillespie, president of the Building and Construction Trades Council, backed Sen. Rick Santorum (R., Pa.) over the Democrat.

The alliance with Santorum might seem contradictory - the senator has a 12 percent lifetime congressional voting record with the national AFL-CIO. But Gillespie and the dissident unions decided that, although they might not agree with him on everything, Santorum has brought construction jobs to the city and fought hard for the Delaware River dredging project, which proponents say will boost the region's port economy.

"I'm just looking at what is best for my members," said Mike Fera, president of the Philadelphia-based Cement Masons and Plasterers Union Local 592.