美参议员里德拒绝辞职要求

The Democratic leader of the US Senate, Harry Reid, says he will stay in office despite calls for his resignation.

美国参议院民主领导哈利·里德称，尽管收到辞职要求，他将会继续留任。

President Obama says he has accepted Harry Reid's apology

Racially人种上 insensitive remarks he made privately about President Barack Obama appeared in a new book.

Senator Reid has apologised for saying two years ago that America would accept Mr Obama because he is "light skinned" and doesn't have a "negro黑人 dialect方言，土话".

President Obama has accepted his apology, but Republicans say Senator Reid should step down下台，辞职.

President Obama said on Saturday that as far as he was concerned the issue was now closed.

But several prominent Republicans have suggested that's not good enough.

The party's chairman Michael Steele said there should be consequences后果，影响 for talking about race using what he called "anachronistic时代错误的 language that harkens倾听，留心 back to the 1950s and 60s".

He also complained about a double standard noting that when a Republican Senate leader, Trent Lott, made racially controversial remarks in 2002, he was forced to resign his position.

Senator Lott appeared to suggest that America would be better off情况富裕，更舒适 under segregation.

Senator Reid spent much of the weekend calling African-American politicians and civic leaders and several have joined senior Democrats in expressing their support for him.

He is a popular target for Republicans as he is vital to President Obama's legislative agenda and he is facing a tough re-election battle in his home state of Nevada.

But Senator Reid's office insists he won't step down.