Reid compares health care delay to slavery, suffrage

Top Senate Democrat Harry Reid, frustrated with Republican intransigence on the health care overhaul, went as far today to compare the strategy of stall and scuttle to past efforts to stop women's suffrage and keep slavery alive.

And that analogy is raising eyebrows and hackles on Capitol Hill and beyond.

"Instead of joining us on the right side of history, all Republicans have come up with is this slow down, stop everything, let's start over," said Reid. "You think you've heard these same excuses before, you're right. When this country belatedly recognized the wrongs of slavery, there were those who dug in their heels and said, 'Slow down, it's too early. Let's wait. Things aren't bad enough.' When women spoke up for the right to speak up, they wanted to vote, some insisted, 'Slow down, there will be a better day to do that. The day isn't quite right,' " Reid said on the Senate floor.

"When this body was on the verge of guaranteeing equal civil rights to everyone, regardless of the color of their skin, some senators resorted to the same filibuster threats that we hear today," he continued. "History is repeating itself before our eyes. There are now those who don't think it is the right time to reform health care. If not now, when, madam president? But the reality for many that feel that way, it will never, never be a good time to reform health care."

That brought this broadside from, among others, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele.

“Today Harry Reid wandered far out of bounds with his absurd and offensive comments. Reid has now compared his quest to pass the Obama-Pelosi government takeover of health care to the effort to end slavery. This is inexcusable, deeply insulting and an arrogant abuse of the Democrat party's unchecked power in Congress. This is an elected official saying anything, doing anything, running roughshod over any citizen who opposes his left-wing effort to jam big-government run health care down our throats," Steele, who happens to be the first black GOP national chairman, said in a statement.

“Harry Reid is under immense pressure to pass this 2,000 page experiment on our nation’s health – an experiment that creates a new $1 trillion dollar federal entitlement program by cutting $500 billion from Medicare, all at a time when our country is in miserable debt and facing an extreme job crisis. The pressure has apparently led Senator Reid not only to make offensive and absurd statements, but also to lose his ability to reason.

“To suggest that passing this horrible bill is anything akin to ridding our country of slavery is terribly offensive and calls into question Mr. Reid’s suitability to lead. Having made this disgraceful statement on the floor of the United States Senate, Mr. Reid should immediately apologize on the Senate floor to his colleagues, to his constituents, and to the American people. If he is going to stand by these statements, the Democrats must immediately reconsider his fitness to lead them.”