Harry Reid says he misspoke in calling Sandy worse

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Monday that he "simply misspoke," when he said Friday that Hurricane Katrina was "nothing in comparison to what happened to the people in New York and New Jersey" from Hurricane Sandy.

In a short statement released by his office, the Nevada Democrat said he "simply misspoke" in comments Friday criticizing House Republicans for delaying legislative action to provide financial relief to areas of the Northeast hit by Sandy last October.

Reid said the government had responded within days to help the people of Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana after the onslaught of Katrina, but "we are now past two months with the people of New York."

Reid said he has worked hard with Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., "to ensure that the people of the Gulf Coast have the resources they need to fully recover, and I will continue to advocate on their behalf until the region is fully recovered."

On Monday, Sen. David Vitter, R-La., said that Reid "revealed himself to be an idiot" when he made his comparison between Katrina and Sandy.

Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., issued the following comment after Reid corrected his earlier statement:

"Leader Reid misspoke and he has clarified his statement," Landrieu said. "Sen. Reid has been a strong advocate for the Gulf Coast's recovery after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. I am confident that he will continue to provide extraordinary leadership and support to the people of Louisiana and the Gulf Coast moving forward, as well as champion the needs of the people of the East Coast in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy."

"Harry Reid's ignorant and insensitive statement is an insult to both the victims of Hurricane Katrina as well as those victims of Hurricane Sandy," Scalise said. "One of the things that disgusts people about politics is when Washington politicians try to exploit disasters to divide Americans and promote their personal agendas."

Jefferson Parish President John Young demanded that Reid apologizes for his remark. In a statement, Young said he was "infuriated" by Reid's comment and said residents of the parish and the rest of the Gulf Coast "demand an apology, not an excuse." Young repeated his demand for an apology on Twitter, even after Reid had issued his statement.