Monthly archive

Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval last week took credit for Nevada's economic recovery, suggesting his hands-off attitude and focus on economic diversification has boosted it faster than he anticipated, thus helping to justify his tax plan. Republican Sen. Dean Heller, eager to blame President Obama for national and local economic problems, on Thursday suggested Nevada's economy is not recovering well, thus helping to justify his partisan pounding. This amusing dissonance will continue, I'd guess...
UPDATED, 9 AM, 1/22/15: The secretary of state is "looking into the matter," spokeswoman Catherine Lu told me. She said the office is "reviewing the PAC filings" of Tony Dane's outfit that are outlined below. Meanwhile, in an email Thursday morning slugged, "Your (sic) no lawyer," Dane tells me: You missed the part when I told you that they hired me as a consultant.  All the money they paid me was mine.  You stated who’s money was put into the account, I answered Dane & Associates. Your...
A friend of mine argues that the only way for a fringe legislator such as Michele Fiore to prosper is for the media to give her attention. I get his point. But when someone is so manifestly ignorant and mendacious as is Fiore and can influence other lawmakers, especially freshmen susceptible to her nonsense, good media cannot do nothing. Fiore appeared Tuesday at a meeting of the Northern Nevada Republican Men's Club, which helpfully posted the video (see below, and her remarks start at about...
Ex-U.S. Senate candidate and voter fraud expert Sharron Angle met last week with newly elected Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske, who says she will propose a voter ID law. Cegavske spokeswoman Catherine Lu told me over the weekend that the secretary of state was in Ely and virtually unreachable. Since then Lu has declined to answer emails or phone calls about the meeting, which I have confirmed. My guess is Angle, who has said she would travel the country to ferret out the epidemic of voter...
Switch, the Southern Nevada data giant expanding in Las Vegas and and opening a facility in Reno, gave more than $200,000 in contributions toward the end of 2014, mostly to state lawmakers who will soon consider legislation that could affect the company. Much of the money came after the November election, including to Attorney General Adam Laxalt -- Switch boss Rob Roy had given $10,000 to Ross Miller, who lost to the new AG. But as you can see from the list below, Roy made sure that his money...
In an exclusive one-hour sitdown the morning after his State of the State, Gov. Brian Sandoval explained why he proposed the largest tax increase in history to pay for the broadest education reform agenda in history, suggested he has only a passing interest in other GOP plans for collective bargaining and construction defect reform and said Secreatry of State Barbara Cegavske falsely claimed his backing for her voter ID bill. I have already revealed some of that interview in my Gazette-Journal...
Las Vegas Councilman Stavros Anthony told Mayor Carolyn Goodman on Saturday that he plans to challenge her in the spring election. Two sources close to Goodman said Anthony informed her at a school opening that he plans to run. Anthony said he would not talk about a private conversation, but said, "I'm thinking about it." Why? "A lot of it surrounds the soccer stadium," Anthony told me. "I think we're spending way too much time on the soccer stadium downtown. We need to spend our energy on...
Acting presidential candidate Rand Paul argued Saturday that the government should “not be involved” in legalized gaming, obliquely criticized Gov. Brian Sandoval for expanding Medicaid and claimed he is “of two minds” on a Nevada nuclear waste dump but is “not afraid of radiation in a mountain.” In a brief interview after a speech to activists at the Atlantis hotel/casino in Reno, the Kentucky senator also acknowledged he had “not thought it through” on how to return federal lands to Nevada...
The governor has just started speaking (speech attached) , so here’s what you need to know: ►$1.1 billion above Economic Forum projections. About half from new taxes, half from not allowing sunsets to expire. Total general fund: $7.3 billion ►The new graduated business license fee, from $400 to $4 million depending on gross receipts, will raise about $450 million (designed to be $250 million a year). Also will be a cigarette tax boost of .80 a pack to $1.20 a pack; also a change in how slot...
I'll update this throughout the day with tidbits. 2:20 PM UPDATE: We are about 90 minutes away from the biennial media briefing, which is where the governor's staff lays out the budget plan, we ask obnoxious questions but can't write about it or put it on TV until the speech. It's always fun as we test the sense of humor of the chief of staff -- in this case, Mike Willden, who is a veteran of such media needling. But we all abide by the embargo -- not sure anyone has ever broken it, although I...

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