Harry Reid Questions 'Mental Capacity' Of His GOP Colleagues

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said recently that if the upcoming 112th Congress fails to address comprehensive immigration reform, it will be the result of the GOP's insufficient "mental capacity."

During an interview with the New York Times, Reid did a little forecasting about the legislative limits of the next Congress.

For his part, Mr. Reid predicted, "We'll get some things done," naming comprehensive immigration legislation as one possibility.

If Republicans' vulnerability among Hispanic voters does not persuade them to compromise, he noted, "they have real problems with their mental capacity."

Others have said that the Senate's failure to pass the DREAM Act is a bad omen, as far as the future of immigration reform is concerned.

The legislation, which offers a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who entered the country as children, was slammed by opponents as an "amnesty" bill that didn't address the more urgent need of securing the border.

While some still hold hope that the DREAM Act's powerful allies will succeed in pushing forward comprehensive immigration reform, it appears that more states are turning to harsh immigration enforcement laws inspired by Arizona's controversial measure signed into law earlier this year. Further complicating the reform effort is a new wave of state legislators taking aim at "birthright citizenship."

Comments

[hummering]

02:10 PM on 01/07/2011

There are no undocumented immigrants. There are thousands and thousands etc. of Illegal Aliens, who have no problem with starting here by breaking our laws.....Illegall...illlllleeeeeggggaaaaalll = means violating the law. What is so hard to understand?

[TexasTreader]

10:47 PM on 12/28/2010

Yeah, I'm gonna have to go with "no" on any bipartisanship. Harry Reid might as well practice with his Shake-Weight for the next 2 years.

[Keth30]

11:17 PM on 12/28/2010

Why did you have to put that image in my head!

[TexasTreader]

11:30 PM on 12/28/2010

I was wondering when somebody would get that.

[rotorhead1871]

11:14 PM on 12/22/2010

thats a good defense, since many have been questioning Harrys cranial rectumitis....for some time now...and laying the responsibility for immigration on the 112th, when demos had the big majority since 2008 is JUST PITIFUL.......OB and company should have put immigration in front of health care and THEY KNOW IT.....shooting at the 112th---NOW--- about immigration is super rotton demo politics....and that is THAT!!!!

[murphysgirl]

08:06 PM on 12/21/2010

As of Jan. 4th, the 112th Congress will be labeled as the most dysfunctional congress in our nation's history..I shudder to think how badly whackadoodles such as Rand Paul, Pat Toomey and Marco Rubio will sully the halls of the Senate..

[Keth30]

10:41 PM on 12/28/2010

Well, that's quite a prediction. Why don't we stick with facts and take a look at the 111th a little more closely.

http://www.ketknbc.com/news/pov/congratulations-111th-congress

The 111th congress outspent the previous 110 combined. That is quite an accomplishment.

[The Lone Stranger]

07:43 PM on 12/21/2010

The GOP has realized the nearly half of all voters are below average in intelligence and specifically targets their message to this demographic.

However, when their leaders seem dumb, this generally is just a thin excuse, a cover for evil malicious intent .

[Keth30]

10:47 PM on 12/28/2010

Nice try. Actually, it obvious to most thinking humans that the democrats pander to the uneducated with lifetime entitlement packages, selling them a form of slavery that keeps them in a repeating cycle of poverty. Not knowing any better, they think the more entitlements they receive from the democrats, the easier life will be, when in fact, it's just the opposite.

Helping the poor is noble, but giving them a job, could just save their life.

[Hakumen]

07:41 PM on 12/21/2010

It isn't just their mental capacity but their moral capacity as well.

[JDZSB]

07:28 PM on 12/21/2010

This country has a more or less open borders policy no matter what our laws say. We have "sanctuary" cities and all kinds of government programs to support any legal or illegal immigrants in the country. It starts at the federal level, particularly under Holder and Napilatano, and goes down through the state level in liberal states like California and Washington. There has to be a "come to Jesus" open and deliberate national debate on our immigration policies and enforcement. It is not working well and it is causing increased polarization in the country that should be and could be behind us. To me, the first step that has to be taken is to secure our borders so that we can control the level of immigration. We have had amnesty programs in the passed, etc. but the problems continue to exist and actually get larger and more complex as the population of illegals in the country grows. We need to rationally deal with this problem, but to me, let's shutdown the borders first, and then work it out in a fair and rational manner. Dropping some back room legislation like the DREAM act onto the public during a lame duck session is not the way to deal with these issues no matter how rational they may be.

[kimbanyc]

06:13 PM on 12/21/2010

What Mental Capacity?

[duhtruth]

05:09 PM on 12/21/2010

I don't think he questions the Rethug mental capacity. He know that their mental capacity is great enough to make their supporters look like fools.

[smpj]

05:03 PM on 12/21/2010

Why do some democrats seem to be genetically inclined to ascribe mental incapacity to those who disagree with their political views? Anyone in a position of responsibility with arrogance so foolish is hard to fathom.

[Twinz48]

05:55 PM on 12/21/2010

You appear to have missed the point

[The Lone Stranger]

07:39 PM on 12/21/2010

he evidently is genetically predisposed that way.

[LindaBennett2]

07:43 PM on 12/21/2010

It's the mental capacity thing.

[LooseCaboose]

03:43 PM on 12/21/2010

The Republican mindset is fixated on two things only: Power and Money - these determine there logic, therefore they have none. Their standard tactics are to acuse, attack, defuse and change the subject, redefining whatever terms they use in spite of the dictionary.
They practice the primary principles of propaganda: Make statement of misinformation, repeat, repeat, repeat, louder and louder, no matter what is said return to the two to six word chain of misrepresentation.
They cannot be worked with, all will see this in January when the Tee-Hee Potty
waves their lunacy point blank in the face of the nation and the congress. Though we face little but further obstinacy, it will be a good show of insanity. Amusing? In a shocking sort of way I guess.

[The Lone Stranger]

07:40 PM on 12/21/2010

Actually it's only reallly just Money. Power is a tool they use to get it.

[wardropper]

03:40 PM on 12/21/2010

They know that there are issues with their mental capacity, but it doesn't bother them in the least...

[jthinker]

03:38 PM on 12/21/2010

I vote for secession from the "mentally incapcitated" red states to form an actual progressive country.

[wardropper]

04:04 PM on 12/21/2010

That's the most inspiring idea to come out of the USA for thirty years!
Of course slavery will be reinstated within weeks of this move, but when the red sympathizers from Washington eventually move south we'll be able to breathe again in the New States of America!

This fanned guy has the answer, folks.
I look forward to hearing more of this idea.

[hummering]

02:17 PM on 01/07/2011

of course you would!

[rentedgraymatter]

03:30 PM on 12/21/2010

and they question (or ought to) his patriotism

[Tom Joad]

03:22 PM on 12/21/2010

...now we're on the same page...