Reid says farewell to Armed Services Chairman

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said he’d miss Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), who is retiring at the end of the year.

Reid recounted a story on the thoughtfulness of the “level-headed mediator.”

{mosads}Reid is an avid fan of Mark Twain, who started his writing career in Nevada. Reid said Levin knowing this, he gave the Democratic Leader a rare double-signature, where Twain signed both his pen-name and his given name of Samuel Clemens. 

“That’s the gift that he gave me and that was so fitting. It fits my office perfectly and it means a lot to me,” Reid said on the Senate floor Monday. “What he did for me is an example of who Carl Levin is and how he thinks of people.”

Reid applauded Levin’s work keeping corporations in check and shepherding the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) through reauthorization each year. Reid said he regrets that he didn’t listen to Levin when voting for the Iraq War. Levin opposed that measure.

“He’ll be missed here in the Senate,” Reid said. “I wish him the very best.”

Reid also gave farewell remarks on retiring Sen. John Rockefeller (D-W.Va.). Rockefeller spent 30 years in the Senate.