Harry Reid defends unsubstantiated election allegations: 'Romney didn't win did he?'

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has no regrets over claiming in 2012, sans evidence, that Mitt Romney hadn't paid taxes in a decade.

"They can call it whatever they want," Reid said in an interview with CNN when asked if that claim amounted to McCarthyism. "Romney didn't win did he?"

With Romney hanging close in the 2012 election, Reid assailed the former Massachusetts governor's refusal to release years' worth of his taxes. He later claimed an anonymous investor with Bain Capital — Romney's old workplace — tipped him off that the GOP nominee "didn't pay any taxes for 10 years."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up