Harry Reid's new task: Mending fences with all the Republicans he's annoyed

Some Republicans say Reid poisoned his relationship with their party by waging controversial attacks against GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney. They were most angered by Reid’s charge that Romney had not paid taxes in ten years, attributing the information to an anonymous source.

“I do think he lost more credibility with Republicans because of his aggressive comments during the campaign,” said Ron Bonjean, a Republican strategist and former leadership aide who served in the Senate and House…

Former Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who served 18 years with Reid in the Senate, predicted Reid’s partisan rhetoric would not damage negotiations with Republicans on avoiding the “fiscal cliff.”

“Not at all,” Gregg said. “We have what I call a once-every-four-year period where the music stops and everyone has their portfolio of power. Governing comes first and politics comes second. The window lasts for about eight months. All the payers involved played aggressively in political roles. They have to change hats and govern. Harry Reid is very capable of doing that.”