Controversy continued to swirl today around comments Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid made during the 2008 campaign about then-Senator Barack Obama, with some Republicans asking Reid to step down.

“This may sound hard to believe, but many people think Barack Obama is a Muslim just because his middle name is Hussein,” Reid is quoted as saying in the book ‘Game Change’ by Mark Halperin and John Heilemann, to be released Tuesday. “I wouldn’t be surprised if some people will refuse to believe he’s a U.S. citizen,” Reid is also quoted as saying.

Today Republican leaders echoed chairman Michael Steele’s demand that Reid quit, with a growing number urging that Reid be hired to replace Steele.

“Harry Reid is our kind of guy, based on these comments,” said former Sen. Trent Lott.

“Reid isn’t racist, he’s a realist. Enough of a realist to recognize a lot of the country is deeply divided on race — that’s the kind of political know-how Republicans can use in the top job,” said Lott, the former GOP Senate leader best known for his remarks at the late Sen. Strom Thurmond’s 100th birthday party in 2002.

Echoing Lott was Dale Robertson, a founder of the influential Tea Party movement. “Reid is someone who understands our party’s base,” said Robertson.

“Reid is a smart guy who can bring us to a whole new level. He could tutor us in English,” he said.

Robertson
“It’s spelled how? God, I’m such a moran.”