Report: Senior Dems laying groundwork for takeover if Reid loses

Two senior Democrats in the U.S. Senate are spending huge sums from their personal PACs to position themselves to become majority leader on the chance Nevada's Sen. Harry Reid is defeated this fall, according to The Hill.

The newspaper, which covers the inner workings of Congress, studied the latest fillings of the political action committees controlled by Sens. Richard Durbin, D-Ill. and Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

Durbin and Schumer are "laying the groundwork for a leadership race" should Reid lose, the paper said.

Durbin currently is the No. 2 Democratic leader behind Reid. Schumer is No. 3. Both men are Reid allies and this is one of the things that nobody talks about publicly.

"Both support Reid and do not want to do anything to undermine his re-election effort," The Hill reported. "But at the same time, they realize -- as do many political analysts -- that Reid faces a serious threat."