Republicans to Nevada: "We're Just Not That Into You."

Could it possibly be any clearer?

For months, Nevada Republicans have giddily anticipated how today’s nationally televised presidential debate and subsequent Western leadership conference would draw the eyes of the nation to the state and establish its first-in-the-West caucuses as a key contest for GOP contenders.

Instead, most candidates spent the past week pledging to boycott Nevada’s Jan. 14 caucuses over a dispute the state is having with New Hampshire related to its primary date. [...]

But Mitt Romney and Ron Paul, who placed first and second in the Nevada caucuses four years ago, were the only candidates to hold public rallies by the eve of the debate (which will be aired at 5 p.m. on CNN).

“Most of the candidates, they’re going to use us as a great backdrop ... but you start looking at their plans, and there isn’t really much in there for Nevada,” UNLV politics professor David Damore said. “My fear is that we get sort of taken as a prop.”

Good point. What's really in there for Nevada? Look at Rick Perry's "energy plan" (which was completely copied from these Big Oil hacks), and one can see that all he offers is continued enslavement to the fossil fuel industry. Look at Mitt Romney's tax proposals, and notice that 73.9% of middle class families would see no benefit from his "middle class tax cuts" (which are really more capital gains tax cuts that benefit the super-rich). Meanwhile Herman Cain continues his xenophobic crazy talk, and Jon Huntsman won't even bother coming here because the Nevada GOP hurt the New Hampshire Secretary of State's feelings in moving its caucuses to January 14. And perhaps most puzzling of all, none of them have bothered to come up with any real jobs plan to get people back to work, or anything to help people save their homes from bank foreclosure?

Oh, and don't even get me started on Newt Gingrich...



Again, why do we even bother with these clowns? Isn't it obvious that these Republican candidates are just not that into us?

Corporate profits are now at a 60 year high, but small businesses are still struggling. Real estate tycoons are getting back into the speculation game, yet working class families are still losing their homes to foreclosure. Everything may be coming up roses for these Republicans' big campaign contributors, but folks out here in the rest of America are still struggling.

Think about it. Will we hear anything of consequence at tonight's debate? Are the Republican candidates really taking Nevada's economic worries seriously? Remember what we talked about yesterday on perception and reality. I'm sure the GOP candidates who actually bother to show up at The Venetian tonight will claim ability to wave a magic wand and make all our problems disappear, but look closer. Look past the empty rhetoric. And realize that actions speak louder than words, and that their actions clearly indicate they're just not that into us.