Insights From The Cheap Seats

The first Friday of every month in Las Vegas is always a festive time. If you're into the arts, you can venture downtown to the First Friday Art Festival or, if you’re a conservative, you can venture south on Las Vegas Blvd to Stoney’e Rockin’ Country  where, from 5p-7p, you will find Citizen Outreach and 840 AM KXNT co-hosting the First Friday happy hour.  There is no doubt that if you’re a conservative activist in Southern Nevada it is the place to be, and a must on almost any successful campaign.

Last night’s gathering proved to be no different with the usual suspects showing up.  It is always good to see a nice crowd in a non-election year!  The main attraction was potential Presidential Candidate Herman Cain from Atlanta, GA. Cain came to Las Vegas after the First Presidential Debate of the Republican Primary season, held the night before in South Carolina where he was declared the star of the night.  This evening, I examine two of the speeches from last night’s event - headliner Herman Cain and the short speech given by Sen. Brower from Reno.  

This was my first opportunity to hear him speak at an event (view it by Clicking Here).  Brower, as many of you are aware, is running in the Ballot Royale Special Election to replace soon-to-be Senator Dean Heller in Congressional District 2, which is scheduled for September 13.  Brower, a former assemblyman and U.S. District attorney, has hired “Team Heller,” a.k.a. November, Inc., so many would believe he is primed to put a “W” on the board.   A candidate with such promise must be ready for “Prime Time” and, in conservative circles, First Friday (especially with Herman Cain speaking) is absolutely a “Prime Time” Friday night.  I was excited to hear Brower; many spoke very highly of him, even rumoring him to be a creditable candidate to run against Reid in 2010, something that clearly never materialized.    So, Friday night’s speech for Brower was clearly one of the first for this young Congressional Candidate and, like most candidates, he will grow during this experience.  You could tell he was nervous and, I hope he never loses the nerves as they tend to keep a candidate real. If he gets comfortable and loses that fear, he may make a mistake or forget how special it is to be running for elected office!   Chuck Muth gave Brower the opening he wanted - to get introduced to Southern Nevada conservatives - and Brower probably took it one step too far.  It is ok to have grown up here and have family here, but when you’re running for a Congressional District that represents all 17 counties of NV and, after redistricting, I don’t care what map you look at, will not have Las Vegas in it any more, to announce that your “heart is here in Las Vegas” was not a good move. Memo to Brower, there is a North vs. South divide in Nevada and those in the North would prefer their Congressman have his “Heart” up there. Now, I am not from the North so this is just a wild guess.  This morning after watching the video that was provided by Red Point Strategies, Inc, a local political consulting firm in Las Vegas owned by yours truly, Jon Ralston pointed out that Senator Brower might have rediscovered his conservative roots. Ralston implies in the tweet quoted below that Brower, at one time this session, had indicated he was open to possible tax increases.  If that is indeed the case, I assure you that the conservatives will look more closely at the Senator to make sure his rhetoric matches the reality.  I hope he does not fall into the Angle trap of “Don’t read my lips, read my record,” because we must not forget before being a Senator, Brower was an Assemblyman.   

@RalstonFlash:  Two things about @GregBrowerNV: Once considered possible tax vote -- now in #nvcd2 race. Also: Only sen. absent when Ds briefed on tax plan.

Brower also took the chance while at Stoney’s to sign the Americans for Tax Reform: Tax Payer Protection Pledge.  It was a rare opportunity because ATR leader and godfather Grover Norquist was in town for the evening’s festivities.  You can view the signing by: Clicking Here

Cain, who is of Godfathers Pizza fame and a former conservative radio talk show host, has made a number of trips to Las Vegas in the past couple months. And, prior to that, back in 2009, he was the main speaker at the April 15th TEA Party rally that was held at Sunset Park.  You would think with all these trips to Nevada, he could pronounce the states name correctly?  Sadly last night, however, like so many aspiring National Politicians (I know, I know. He is a businessman not a politician, but no one on Team Cain sent me the talking points and, come on, you’re running for POTUS! You may not be a career politician, but you are now a politician!) before him, he came into Nevada and mangled the state's name.   Outside of that, last night’s speech was fairly uneventful. I have heard Herman speak at a number of events and this one does not rank up there at all. It lacked energy, direction and, most notably, the confidence of someone who had the Huffington Post saying “sent shockwaves” the night before at the debate.  Even Frank Luntz who conducted a focus group immediately following the debate,   was in awe of their response: “I have never had this kind of reaction until tonight,” Luntz said. “Something very special happened this evening.” Clearly, Herman was the winner.  The speech and performance I witnessed friday evening (view it by Clicking Here) was not the speech of a winner. It was a speech of, well, something else.  I am going to chalk this one up to the fact that he was tired and worn down.  Also, in his defense, Stoney’s usually has a tough crowd. No one comes right up to the stage so the energy is hard to feel. Instead, people stand way back at the bar, a good 50 ft away. This is a really hard place to be a politican and give a great speech. Some can do it, but most can’t. 

I think, though, that Mr. Cain needs to look really closely at his campaign team. He needs to find a group who understands their role, which is to put the candidate in the right places at the right time as well to make sure that when they are in those place, they are fresh and on their game. Clearly, last night Herman was off his game. He needed more rest. His team is running him ragged. It is a shame too, a missed opportunity. The room was ready for him and when you’re the underdog, you can’t miss too many.  Team Cain, get your guy some rest or he won’t make it 'til Iowa.  

In other news, Congressman Joe Heck, D.O., also gave a short speech at this First Friday event and it can be viewed by Clicking Here.  Joe Heck can always find the energy in the room. It does not take much to get this guy fired up.  As the year wears on, I am sure we will have some more opportunities to focus on Congressman Heck, but this speech, while good, was just his typical Washington Update, nothing special to report.   

  Statement from Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki today:

  “One of the great opportunities in my professional career was the privilege of working in Washington, DC in 1994 with one of Nevada’s finest representatives in Congress – Barbara Vucanovich. It is this very same seat, Nevada’s 2nd Congressional District, in which a series of remarkable events have led to a unique and extraordinary opportunity to serve the citizens in this sprawling district currently covering ninety percent of Nevada. It is, however, an opportunity that I shall leave for others to pursue and I will not be a candidate in this special election.

  “It has been said that politics is about timing and that opportunities are usually few and far between. I believe both of those statements are true, and while I appreciate the countless number of people from all over Nevada and across the country who have encouraged me to run, now is not the time.”

  “Although I am committed to continuing my public service to the people of Nevada and consider it absolutely critical to elect more conservatives to Congress – my family, my party and my responsibilities as Lieutenant Governor must come before this great opportunity.”

  “I have been blessed with a supportive wife and three incredible young daughters who are the foundation of my world. They are a remarkable, politically-tested family willing to make a family sacrifice to encourage my continued service, but respect and support my decision to forego this opportunity.

  “I firmly believe that political parties have a role in elections and I fully support the Nevada Republican Party’s lawsuit to protect their ability to nominate the candidate of their choice. Voters rely on parties to vet candidates and put their best choice forward. Robbing voters of that knowledge, and the political parties of that process, seems shortsighted.

  “Lastly, my responsibilities as Lieutenant Governor are to the current legislative session, in which I serve as the President of the Senate, and to my work as Chairman of the Nevada Commission on Economic Development. This state is facing a fiscal crisis of historic proportions, and all participants in the legislative process should be completely devoted to its successful and thoughtful conclusion. The demands to immediately raise federal campaign funds and to organize a campaign team would be, in my opinion, unconscionable distractions during the final weeks of the Legislature or during any subsequent Special Legislative Session should it be necessary in the months ahead.

Insights From The Cheap Seats For Thursday May 5th

As I mentioned yesterday, the Nevada GOP was considering a lawsuit to try and stop the Ballot Royale that Ross Miller has set in motion.  Today, the Nevada GOP got around to filing the lawsuit that John Ralston refers to as "The Stop Sharron Angle Lawsuit."

The Las Vegas Sun has been nice enough to post a copy of the full complaint for your viewing pleasure and it can be found by: Clicking Here

In addition to the complaint, the Las Vegas Sun has also posted a copy of the Nevada GOP's request for a preliminary injunction, which can be found by: Clicking Here

Nevada GOP's Statement:

“The Nevada Republican Party this morning filed a lawsuit in Carson City, asking the district court to enjoin the Secretary of State from placing the names of candidates that have not been properly nominated by their party on the special election ballot. Our stance has remained consistent. We believe that Nevada’s election law and tradition clearly ensure major party central committees are the nominating body for their own candidates. We are fighting for a fair election and constitutional rights of association, in compliance with Nevada law and the U.S. Constitution. Whether it is politically expedient or popular is not the issue, the Nevada Republican Party is willing to take the necessary steps to stand up for the rights of all Nevadans in the interest of protecting the integrity of our election process." - Mari Nakashima, Communications Director for the Nevada Republican Party

In other news today, the Democrats released copies of their proposed plan for Congressional redistricting:

Democrat Plan Links: Statewide Map |  Clark County View | Statistical Table

GOP Plan Links: Statewide | Clark County View | Statistical Table

John Ralston's Flash about the Democrats plan on redistricting

CD1 (hello, state Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford) is a North Las Vegas-centered district, CD4 takes in the other urban area (hello, ex-Rep. Dina Titus) and CD3 extends up to Churchill County (Rep. Joe Heck vs. John Oceguera?)

Andrew Doughman of the Nevada News Bureau has penned two stories about the various maps and they can both be found here:

Democrats Unveil Proposed Congressional District Maps

Don't miss this story, come July the CCRP will have new leadership.

@RalstonFlash: Straw poll idea from GOP is newsworthy not because it will happen, but because shows how desperate the Republicans are. #ballotroyale #nvcd2

@RalstonFlash: A potential #nvcd2 frontrunner told me straw poll idea being sold as possible "because Sharron Angle agreed to it." Shockingly, not so.

@elizcrum: MT @RalstonFlash ...Some in GOP trying 2 organize "private primary" in #nvcd2, get all candidates 2 agree to abide by results / #herdingcats

@elizcrum: RT @MelissaTweets: And the chances of that working are oh, slim and none? / Right. And Slim is vacationing in Utopia. #nvcd2 #nv02

@elizcrum: GOP source says the rumor (that the idea to have a "private primary" in #nv02 is backed by county chairs, some on the exec board) is false.

@elizcrum: Different GOP source says "the person spreading the rumor is the same person who came up with the hare-brained idea." #herdingrabbits

@elizcrum: Clarification: Yes, someone IS floating the idea of a "private primary" in #nv02. Same person saying exec board, county chairs support idea.

@elizcrum: Naturally the rumor has spread, so now multiple people on the GOP central committee are saying "everyone wants" a private GOP primary.

@elizcrum: Bottom line, Tweeps, w/out party support, any "private primary" will be little more than a straw poll + a petition of endorsement. #bigdeal

@elizcrum: .@NVLegTroll 5 sources confirm discussions among central committee members. 0 sources confirm claim of cty, state party support. #nv02

@RalstonFlash:@HotlineJess Think your instincts correct. One GOP strategist called it "goofy," which is understatement. Idea is to open up to all GOP!

I am speechless!  I cannot tell you how exciting it is to see that the Nevada GOP, acted swiftly to go get Kate Marshall!

"Kate Marshall is a reckless politician who brought the Treasurer’s office to an all time low when she blew $50 million in taxpayer money on a Wall Street gamble. Whether it’s making a sloppy investment, or foolishly depending on their advice, Marshall has a history of choosing big banks over the interest of Nevada taxpayers. Nevadans across the state are tightening their belts and fighting to keep their businesses open, we can’t afford to send an ambitious Marshall to Washington while we’re still paying for her past mistakes."

-- Mari Nakashima, Communications Director for the Nevada Republican Party