Commentary by Jim Bagwell: After mishandling budget, it is time for Reid to resign

Only a few short months ago I said I would begin my own little campaign of calling for our senior Senator to resign if he did not begin to use his leadership position in a responsible way by leading his party to balance the national budget.

Well it is time.

Last fall the nation's electorate resoundingly spoke by electing candidates that promised to cut spending and balance our nation's budget. Across this great land candidates were elected to the House of Representatives to balance the budget that Harry and Nancy wouldn't touch.

It still is amazing to me that the Democrats did not pass a budget back in early fall prior to Oct. 1. We all know why they did not. Majority Leader Harry Reid, and his entourage were afraid of the reaction of the electorate if they passed a multi-trillion dollar budget that continued huge deficit spending prior to the election. The election results would have been much worse for the Dems if they had passed that budget. Six months later, Harry and company would have you believe that Speaker John Boehner, R-OH, and the Republicans are the problem. Nancy and Harry had the votes prior to November, again why didn't they do their job?

I recently saw that Harry stated, "if the proposed Republican budget passed it would cause 700,000 jobs to be lost." Did he pull that number out of the sky? Harry must be the best economist around because he was right on the money when he stated a year ago that we would have less than eight percent unemployment by this time. News flash Harry, this nation is in trouble and you are a significant part of the problem.

Harry is now playing the name game and blaming the Tea Party. He is great at playing class warfare and scaring the elderly. I only wish he were as good at solving problems. My best guess is if we do not act fast and with some resolve all of us will starve. Four dollar-plus a gallon gasoline will do more to harm seniors and our economy than a 5 percent cut in Social Security. Where does Harry and friends expect to get the money to support this bloated budget if you and I are broke? Oh, we can have some of that pie in the sky that Harry has been dishing out.

The Debt Commission suggested the very cuts that Representative Paul Ryan has introduced for the 2011-2012 budget year. If we do not control spending and entitlements we are asking for our very serious debt problem to become an irreversible debt crisis. Do you remember the statement during the 2008 Presidential campaign, that the budget deficit would be "cut in half" by the end of the first term? My memory, as poor as it is, was that now President Obama made that statement. He must have meant to say "doubled." Does it bother you that the President and Harry act as if the Debt Commission never existed?

Does the Senate Leadership look competent to you? How about the President? He is only asking Reid and Boehner to act like adults. His definition or mine? What are the consequences of failure to control the deficit?

Harry, you are no longer leading so it is time to do the right thing and get out of the way.

• Jim Bagwell of Carson City is a Vietnam veteran and graduate of the FBI National Academy who worked 31 years in law enforcement. He and his wife, Lori, own Charley's Grilled Subs.