Harry Reid, former Senate Majority Leader, to lie in state in US Capitol Rotunda
Former US Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, former Democratic majority leader, dies at 82
A formal ceremony will be held in the Capitol Rotunda on Wednesday, Jan. 12, Schumer’s and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s offices announced. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ceremony will be open only to invited guests.
“Few dedicated their life and career to working for and delivering for working families like Harry Reid, and it will be an honor to pay tribute to him in the Capitol next week,” Schumer said.
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The tradition of using the Capitol Rotunda to pay tribute to distinguished Americans began in 1852. Lying in state is a rare honor that has been bestowed on only 35 people in 169 years, according to the Office of the Historian.
The last person to lie in state at the Capitol was former Sen. Bob Dole, a decorated World War II veteran and Kansas Republican lawmaker, who passed away in early December at the age of 98. Until 2018, Dole had been the Senate’s longest-serving Republican leader, a post he held for nearly 11 years. He was also the party’s presidential nominee in 1996.
Others have included former Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in September 2020, U.S. presidents dating to Abraham Lincoln, vice presidents, members of Congress, military leaders and unknown soldiers from World Wars I and II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.
Before his time in the Senate, Reid served a single term in the Nevada state Assembly and then as chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission. In this role, Reid became well known for his clashes with the mafia, then a very real presence in Nevada casinos in the 1970s. One infamous exchange earned him a fictional portrayal in Martin Scorsese’s “Casino.”
Pelosi called Reid “a titan of public service” in a statement. “One of the most commanding and consequential Senate Majority Leaders in history, he forged extraordinary legislative progress: rescuing our economy during the Great Recession, protecting hardworking families with Wall Street reforms and moving our nation closer to our goal of universal health coverage.”
“It is my solemn honor as House Speaker to pay tribute to a legendary leader, a great American and my dear friend, Senator Harry Reid,” Pelosi concluded.
Contributing: James DeHaven, Reno Gazette-Journal