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Saturday, July 24, 2010

LIVE from Las Vegas: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid faces the netroots

Alright, here we go... the session that everybody here at Netroots Nation has been (perhaps grimly) looking forward to... Ask the Leader Harry Reid.

The session will be moderated by our very own Joan McCarter, a contributing editor for Daily Kos who lives and works in Seattle.

Joan has just walked out on stage to introduce Senator Reid.

She reminded us that four years ago, when the first YearlyKos was being organized, Senator Reid was the first prominent elected Democrat to agree to speak to us, giving the convention valuable credibility and legitimacy.

She didn't explicitly say it, but the message to the convention hall seemed to be: Senator Reid respects us. So let's show him some respect.

And hopefully people will.

UPDATE, 3:35 PM: A humble looking Reid walked onstage after Joan's introduction, and began by doing something very, very, very classy: Recognizing Lt. Dan Choi, who is seated here with us at one of the front tables.

The convention gave Choi a standing ovation.

As Reid began speaking, the room fell completely silent, with attendees listening quietly and carefully in order to hear everything Reid said.

(The Senator is very soft-spoken, so his voice doesn't echo around the hall like Ed Schultz's or some of the other speakers that we have).

"There are times, I'm told, when I get on your nerves," Reid declared a few minutes into his speech, breaking the tension in the room.

He added, "And I'm here to tell you, you can get on my nerves."

Laughter and applause filled the room.

Reid went on. "You shine much-needed light on fear tactics and misinformation," the Majority Leader reminded attendees. "It's because of your voice that we've been able to do so much for so many."

Reid proceeded to defend his own record as Majority Leader, noting that he did get the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and the Restoring American Financial Stability Act through the Senate (although, not without tremendous difficulty, and a huge expenditure of time). He mentioned his far right wing opponent, Sharon Angle, and expressed his hope to move energy legislation to the President's desk.

It looks like he's about to wrap up his remarks and join Joan at the table for the question and answer.

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