Will new Senate minority leader bridge the divide?

WASHINGTON — The most powerful Democrat in Congress next year will be a soft-spoken Mormon who shuns self-promotion and opposes abortion and banning assault weapons.

But because of Nevada Sen. Harry Reid's atypical political qualities, many observers predict he will be effective as the Senate's new minority leader in bringing together Democrats and bridging their partisan divide with Republicans.

No one is expected to challenge Reid for the minority leader's job when the Senate meets next week. He announced he had secured enough votes from colleagues shortly after current Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., lost his bid for re-election.

"I actually have found Harry Reid very good to work with, and I think Republican leaders enjoy a very constructive working relationship with Harry Reid — much more so than Sen. Daschle," said Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore.

"Reid is a good choice to succeed Daschle," said Thomas Mann, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank. "He knows the Senate and its rules; he is very hardworking; he has good political instincts, and he will help his party colleagues decide when to make a stand in opposition and how best to do it."

Reid, who turns 65 next month, has spent the past six years as Daschle's chief lieutenant. He will have to balance being a pragmatic dealmaker against being the last line of defense against GOP initiatives that members of his own party consider too extreme.

"He knows how to make government work," said retiring Sen. John Breaux, D-La. "That is something Democrats have to be perceived as being able to do."

Reid has warned he will not be overly deferential to President Bush. He said in a post-election statement that his priorities include improving the environment and making education and health care affordable — not mentioning the GOP's goals of legal reform, tax cuts and partial privatization of Social Security.

"I will not shirk from my responsibility to stand up and fight for Nevada values and Democratic principles," Reid said.

Reid is best known for leading the move in 2001 to persuade Vermont Sen. James Jeffords to abandon the Republican Party and become an independent, allowing Democrats to control the Senate until the GOP regained the majority in the 2002 elections.

"This guy is as partisan as they come," syndicated radio host Rush Limbaugh said on his show Monday, according to a transcript on his Web site.