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My column: Obama tries to look presidential in debate, instead elevates Romney
During a debate in 1998, a veteran Nevada incumbent could barely hide his disdain for his aggressive opponent on stage with him. He seemed aggrieved to even have to be there, could not conceal his air of superiority and eventually wondered aloud how his challenger, a veterinarian, thought he could interpret the Constitution if he spayed cats and dogs for a living. This reductio ad absurdum epitomized the frustration a U.S. senator named Harry Reid felt that night 14 years ago as he tried to pull away from a spirited challenger named John Ensign.
Congressional Leadership Fund pivots off jobs report, goes after Horsford, Oceguera
A conservative group is using this morning's jobs report to start robocalls in Nevada's two competitive congressional districts. The Congressional Leadership Fund calls assailing John Oceguera and Steven Horsford use some recent comments by Vice President Biden to tie the Democratic contenders to administration policies. Here's the script: With just 114,000 jobs added, it’s yet another failure of policies supported by Obama and John Oceguera.
New Romney ad features for UNLV Runnin' Rebel Greg Anthony, a disaffected Obama voter
Ex-UNLV basketball player Greg Anthony stars in a new Mitt Romney ad, claiming he voted for Barack Obama, but was disappointed the president didn't turn out to be a centrist. Anthony's ad comes after he already has acted as a surrogate for the GOP nominee.
Full NLRB order of Culinary victory over Station
I've obtained the entire 89-page decision from the National Labor Relations Board that affirms a year-old decision from an administrative law judge, who found scores of violations by Station Casinos against workers at their properities interested in affiliating with the Culinary Union. The end of the decision, posted here, finds the company "engaged in certain unfair labor practices," demands it "cease and desist" and then issues a lengthy order telling Station Casinos not to threaten or intimidate its employees in violation of federal law.
Two Nevada House seats listed in Top 50 competitive in country
Rep. Joe Heck's seat and a new House district in Nevada are among the most competitive in the country, the National Journal reports. Heck's CD3 battle with Speaker John Oceguera has dropped from 35th to 40th in the listing: "The overlapping turnout machines of Obama, Harry Reid and Shelley Berkley will help Democrat John Oceguera, but he's been an unsteady candidate."
Horsford uses Tarkanian's "crazy radicals" comment, brings in Sharron Angle in new ad
Congressional District Four hopeful Steven Horsford uses opponent Danny Tarkanian's own words in a new ad, comparing him to Tea Party types such as Sharron Angle. The spot, which you can see below, is an attempt by Horsford to marginalize Tarkanian and solidfy the Democratic base. Horsford has been calling Tarkanian a "tea party extremist" for weeks. The release of the ad comes a few hours before the pair will debate on "Ralston Reports" tonight. That ought to ratchet up the tension level.
Latino Decisions poll shows huge margins among Hispanics for Obama, Berkley in Nevada
A Latino Decisions poll taken late last month shows President Obama and Rep. Shelley Berkley with gigantic margins among Hispanics. The margins are even larger than you might expect, with Berkley lagging behind the president but still with time to consolidate the demographic that may be close to a fifth of the overall vote. The questions (full poll linked above):
Democrats smelling blood in Nevada Senate race?
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the Majority PAC both made buys today in Nevada to try to help Rep. Shelley Berkley in what Democrats for months fretted was a race going Sen. Dean Heller's way. The purchases are substantial and the Majority PAC buy is in Reno, where Berkley needs to do well to win. And by doing well, I mean not lose by too much.
Sands CEO explains Adelson's position on web poker; MGM Resorts boss warns of companies becoming the "Borders of gaming"
MGM Resorts International chief Jim Murren and Las Vegas Sands CEO Michael Leven sharply disagreed Wednesday on whether to allow the federal government to regulate Internet gaming. During a panel discussion on the state of the industry at the G2E Expo, Leven elaborated on the company’s – and his boss, Sheldon Adelson’s – position on web poker. Leven said there were three reasons that the company has concerns: ----Predictability of revenue. He suggested some cannibalism might occur. ----Leven said nearly all college kids would become web gamblers.
Republican State Leadership Committee unloads in quintet of key state Senate races
RSLC-SD09-NV-44 Union 1.pdf, RSLC-SS5-NV-005 Tax 4 AV.pdf, RSLC-SS6-NV-025 Lobby 4.pdf, RSLC-SS15-NV-064 Taxes 5.pdf, RSLC-SS18-NV-077 Taxes Absentee.pdf UPDATE: I had forgotten that Steve Wynn gave $475,000 to this group, per POLITICO. A national group has come in with a six-figure mail and online ad campaign designed to swing the Nevada state Senate to the GOP, with attacks on all five Democratic candidates. The mail pieces from the Republican State Leadership Committee are attached here and the online ads, which go to micro-sites if you click on them, are below.