No offense meant to patriotic tourists
To the editor:
Much has been made of my comments at the opening of the Capitol Visitors Center. Anyone who took the time to watch my statement or read it in full knows the point I was making: I’m always pleased when the Capitol is filled with citizens eager to learn about our country’s great history and the work we do in that historic building.
It is a symbol of freedom to people around the world. That’s one reason why Nevada Sen. John Ensign and I host a weekly breakfast in the Capitol itself for Nevadans visiting Washington.
It is no secret that Washington gets terribly hot and humid during the summer, the peak season for tourists. Before the opening of this center, visitors to the Capitol were forced to wait out in the heat (or the bitter cold during the winter) for long periods of time before going through security and entering the building. The days of freezing in the cold and sweating in Washington’s humidity while waiting to enter the Capitol are over.
Thanks to this wonderful new visitors center, security is stronger and visitors are more comfortable. The center offers a relaxed, temperature-controlled environment where visitors can learn more about the legislative branch and our nation’s history.
A trip to Washington is a special one for so many Nevadans, and they deserve a world-class facility like this one. I hope your readers will come and see it for themselves.
SEN. HARRY REID
WASHINGTON, D.C.
THE WRITER, A NEVADA DEMOCRAT, IS MAJORITY LEADER OF THE U.S. SENATE.
Next time, Senator Reid, heed the advice of your staff. If it weren’t for the odoriferous perspiration of hard-working Americans whose tax dollars paid for that visitors center, you would continue to have us stinkin’ tourists around to mask the foul stench of partisan politics that you pride yourself upon.
I’ll be in D.C. for a family reunion this coming June, and plan to make the weekly Nevada breakfast. I promise to bathe and wear deodorant beforehand.
