Senate majority leader breaks with Obama on mosque

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., who is currently locked in a tight fight for reelection, broke ranks with President Obama on Monday over whether a mosque should be built near Ground Zero.

"The First Amendment protects freedom of religion," Reid spokesman Jim Manley said in a statement. "Senator Reid respects that, but thinks that the mosque should be built someplace else."

The statement then tries to shift attention from the Mosque to legislation that would provide additional aid to 9/11 first responders. "If the Republicans are being sincere," Manley said. "They would help us pass this long overdue bill to help the first responders whose health and livelihoods have been devastated because of their bravery on 9/11, rather than continuing to block this much-needed legislation."

Reid's statement comes after his Republican challenger, Sharron Angle, called for him to take a stand on the issue. The significance of the statement is, at least, two-fold. The first is the obvious: The Senate Majority Leader breaking with the president.

Secondly, Democrats had been remarkably disciplined in keeping silent on this issue. Until now. By speaking out and disagreeing with the president, Reid has virtually guaranteed that every Democratic senator will be asked about the mosque. That also guarantees that this story isn't going anywhere.