Former Senate Majority Leader Harry ReidHarry Mason ReidHarry Reid says he’s cancer free White House gets jolt from strong jobs report Murkowski, Mattis criticism ratchets up pressure on GOP over Trump MORE (D-Nev.) said Nevada should replace Iowa as the nation’s first caucuses after Iowa’s “debacle” last week, in an exclusive interview with Vice.
“Iowa has forfeited its chance to be number one. I don’t think that’ll happen anymore,” Reid told the publication.
He also noted the lack of a diverse electorate in both Iowa and New Hampshire, where Sen. Bernie SandersBernie SandersThe Hill’s 12:30 Report: Milley apologizes for church photo-op Harris grapples with defund the police movement amid veep talk Biden courts younger voters — who have been a weakness MORE (I-Vt.) won the first-in-the-nation primary Tuesday evening.
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“Since the debacle in Iowa, [pundits] have been talking about, Nevada should be the first state. Why? Because we’re a state that’s heavily diverse,” Reid added. “It’s really a state that represents what the country is all about. So I think that Iowa really was an embarrassment to everybody.”
Nevada’s caucuses on Feb. 22 are the next contest for the winnowing Democratic field.
Reid, who still wields considerable political influence in the state, told Vice he had recently spoken on the phone with Sens. Amy KlobucharAmy KlobucharHillicon Valley: Biden calls on Facebook to change political speech rules | Dems demand hearings after Georgia election chaos | Microsoft stops selling facial recognition tech to police Democrats demand Republican leaders examine election challenges after Georgia voting chaos Harris grapples with defund the police movement amid veep talk MORE (D-Minn.) and Elizabeth WarrenElizabeth WarrenWarren, Democrats urge Trump to back down from veto threat over changing Confederate-named bases OVERNIGHT DEFENSE: Joint Chiefs chairman says he regrets participating in Trump photo-op | GOP senators back Joint Chiefs chairman who voiced regret over Trump photo-op | Senate panel approves 0B defense policy bill Trump on collision course with Congress over bases with Confederate names MORE (D-Mass.), as well as former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete ButtigiegPete ButtigiegScaled-back Pride Month poses challenges for fundraising, outreach Biden hopes to pick VP by Aug. 1 It’s as if a Trump operative infiltrated the Democratic primary process MORE, and that while he had not spoken with Sanders in “several weeks,” he regularly spoke to Sanders’s campaign manager, Faiz Shakir, who previously served as a senior adviser to Reid.
Reid told the publication he has made up his mind on who he will cast his vote for but said he would vote early to avoid anyone knowing his choice.
Reid also addressed the candidacy of former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, who will not compete in the Nevada caucuses but has advanced in the polls amid a barrage of TV advertising.
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“You have to recognize, the man — he really was a good mayor of a huge, huge city, the largest city in America. I like him, I’ve always liked him. Nobody’s done more on guns and climate than he has. No one.”
However, Reid, who in 2012 falsely claimed to have information indicating then-Republican presidential nominee Mitt RomneyWillard (Mitt) Mitt RomneyMilley discussed resigning from post after Trump photo-op: report Trump on collision course with Congress over bases with Confederate names Attorney says 75-year-old man shoved by Buffalo police suffered brain injury MORE had paid no taxes for years, said Bloomberg must release his tax returns as soon as possible.
“I believe going back to Eisenhower and Truman, they showed us their taxes, and the only one that hasn’t is Trump. So I think tax returns are something that’s part of the ballgame,” Reid told Vice. “Any presidential wannabe should do it.”
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