Harry Reid biography

(Reid had become a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or the Mormon church, as a young man.)

As Senate majority leader,

Reid emerged as a leading figure in the fiscal cliff economic crisis later that year. The tense negotiations between Republicans and Democrats over spending cuts and tax increases became a bitter political battle as 2012 drew to a close. Reid once again didn't mince his words when attacking Republicans for not acting in the best interest of the country. He criticized his Republican counterpart in the House of Representatives, claiming that House Speaker John Boehner was not doing enough to make a deal happen. Reid said that Boehner was more interested in keeping power than averting an economic disaster. According to MSNBC.com, Reid said that the House is "being operated by a dictatorship of the speaker, not allowing the vast majority of the House of Representatives to get what they want."

Apparently, Boehner had some choice words for Reid when the pair ran into each other at the White House. Some reports stated that Reid was cursed out by Boehner. Reid, however, didn't let party politics prevail. He helped draft a version of the fiscal cliff legislation, which was then reviewed by his Democratic and Republican peers. The Senate passed the bill on January 1, 2013. The House followed suit later that day.

Personal Life

Reid has been married to Landra Gould since 1959. They have a daughter and four sons.

Reid and his wife converted to Mormonism while Reid was attending college. Some Republican Mormons have argued that Reid's political positions are at odds with his faith, including his opposition to the church's funding of California's Proposition 8, a state constitutional amendment prohibiting same-sex marriage that was passed in 2008, later found to be unconstitutional. Reid addressed many of these criticisms while delivering a speech at Brigham Young University in Utah in 2007, making connections between his Democratic and Mormon beliefs.

Reid suffered a stroke in 2005. He was involved in a car crash in 2012, sustaining minor injuries.

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