NV-04: A Surprising Turn

Earlier this year, Jim Rogers surprised many with his endorsement of Danny Tarkanian. Many kept asking why someone who's cared so much and done so much for public education would endorse someone who really doesn't care about our schools. Well, I guess this was a relationship that was doomed to fail. Last week, Rogers wrote this.

With one statement, Danny Tarkanian removed himself from the group of politicians I will support in the upcoming election. Tarkanian, in a debate with Horsford, said he didn’t believe higher education should be a right. He said new provisions to subsidize college education would not be wise because of the economic problems facing the country. This is an outrageously ignorant statement. Only higher education has the ability to prepare our citizens to make the American economy recover. Tarkanian’s views would continue to spiral the downward plunge of the American economy.

Indeed, Baby Tark actually did say that. And he's reiterated his support for the "Balanced Budget Amendment", which is less about actually balancing the federal budget and more about defunding public education while also gutting Medicare & Social Security to death. Perhaps this weighed on Rogers' decision (redo) as well.

Oh, and there was also this.

Jim Rogers, the mercurial television station owner and former head of the Nevada System of Higher Education, has changed horses in the Congressional District 4 race.

Once a blistering critic of Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford, D-North Las Vegas, he now said in an interview he is supporting him over Republican Danny Tarkanian.

“Of the two, he’s the better candidate,” he said. “I still have problems with Steven. But, you know, those are more irritating than substantive.”

He sent a letter to Horsford on Thursday saying he would not support Tarkanian because “my enthusiasm for his candidacy has waned” as he learned about Tarkanian’s “understanding of the critical issues facing Nevada.”

Rogers also said Horsford committed to bringing a “full service medical school” to Southern Nevada.

“I am also pleased by your written commitment to me to bring expanded health and medical services through a new complex to be built in Southern Nevada which will be anchored by a full-service medical school,” Rogers said.

You know, it helps to work with someone who actually wants a working government. Steven Horsford gets that. And it finally dawned on Rogers earlier this month that Horsford gets that... And Tarkanian does not.

That's really the story of this NV-04 race full of crazy twists and turns. One candidate actually understands the office he's now running for, while the other simply does not.

NV-04: From Delusional to Shameless & Hypocritical

So today, it happened. It finally happened. Why am I not surprised?

Danny Tarkanian finds himself in the hot seat yet again. And this time, it's over "funny money" he's been loaning to his own campaigns.

The Nevada Democratic Party has filed a complaint with the Federal Elections Commission against Republican congressional hopeful Danny Tarkanian.

The complaint filed Thursday questions Tarkanian’s legal standing to forgive a $250,000 loan he made to his failed 2010 U.S. Senate campaign after a judge signed a $17 million judgment against him.

It also questions the legality of other transactions, including a subsequent $40,000 loan made to his U.S. House campaign.

Democrats allege the GOP nominee for Nevada’s 4th Congressional District lacked legal control over his personal funds after a federal judge in May signed the judgment against Tarkanian and other members of his family stemming from a failed real estate deal.

On Monday, we discussed Danny Tarkanian's inability to take responsibility for his own actions. And we're seeing this on full display yet again today. Even though he's been spending the past two tears facing a $17,000,000 (!!!) FDIC judgment over a shoddy plan to develop am "equestrian resort" 35 miles from Palm Springs, CA, Baby Tark keeps pretending that this is "no big deal" and he can keep behaving as if it doesn't exist.

But here's the problem: It does exist. And Baby Tark just can't wave a magic wand to make this $17,000,000 judgment go away.

Earlier this month, The Sun's Patrick Coolican pointed out the eye popping reality of what happened.

As my former colleague Michael Mishak reported during Tarkanian’s failed 2010 Senate bid, Tarkanian was approached by a friend and business partner in 2007 to invest in Dignitary Downs, an “equestrian destination resort” in Anza, Calif., complete with a 200-room hotel, restaurant and jockey school.

The Tarkanian family company, Diamond Properties, would play the role of “hard money lender.” It would borrow money from La Jolla Bank, using its own property as collateral, and then lend it to the developer at high interest. This was faddish during the boom, especially for “unconventional” development schemes —such as, say, a horse resort — that couldn’t get regular financing.

Tarkanian personally guaranteed the loan from La Jolla Bank, which means he was on the hook. He used a nearly 9-acre undeveloped parcel near the M Resort as collateral. Needless to say, it’s worth a fraction of what it was in 2007.

Horse resort ... Anza, Calif. ... hard money loan ...2007 ... La Jolla Bank: This is a thickly stacked failure sandwich.

Almost immediately, the developer went into default. Sadly, there would be no horse resort after all.

Meanwhile, La Jolla Bank failed and was seized by the FDIC, the independent government entity that insures depositors and supervises the soundness of banks, managing them when they fail.

And once La Jolla Bank was seized by the FDIC, Danny Tarkanian was then required to pay back the $17 million he borrowed in order to invest in a (supposedly) soon to be developed "horse resort" 35 miles away from Palm Springs. But so far instead of owning up to this EPIC FAIL of a development scheme, Tarkanian keeps running away and pretending like it doesn't exist.

Seriously, is this the kind of person Nevada wants to send to Congress? Coolican asked that earlier this month, Harry Reid asked it earlier this week, and I have to ask it now. If Danny Tarkanian refuses to take responsibility for his own development debacle, how can he be responsible with the entire budget of the federal government?

What makes this disgusting is seeing how Baby Tark and his teabagger buddies have been attacking Steven Horsford for his family's past tragedies. Yet while Tarkanian and the G-O-TEA attack Horsford, they keep conjuring up more excuses for the $17,000,000 FDIC hot mess. They must truly have no shame.

NV-03/NV-04: Richard Ziser Strikes Yet Again!

He's back! If you thought we were finally done with him, then you're about to be proven wrong. Richard Ziser is back in full force this election season. And in fact, he has a brand new "Values Voter Guide" to prove it. And yes, there are some truly scary answers in there...Thanks to Joe Heck and Danny Tarkanian!

Let's see what's in it:

- Both Heck & Tarkanian want to reinstate "Don't Ask Don't Tell" and discrimination against LGBTQ servicemembers in the military.

- Both Heck & Tarkanian oppose ENDA, meaning they approve of workplace discrimination against LGBTQ workers.

- Both Heck & Tarkanian oppose marriage equality and the repeal of DOMA, meaning their talk of "state's rights" is hogwash and they want the federal government to tell states and communities which relationships deserve respect & which don't (such as gay & lesbian couples).

- Both Heck & Tarkanian support defunding Planned Parenthood and all the women's (and men's, too!) health care services they provide.

- And both Heck & Tarkanian oppose comprehensive immigration reform.

Well, now we know why both candidates missed Las Vegas Pride last month. And we know why Joe Heck doesn't like to talk about LGBTQ issues. And we know why Danny Tarkanian doesn't like to talk about immigration reform. And we now know why both Heck & Tarkanian are afraid to talk about women's health.

We now know Richard Ziser loves them both. And that's downright scary for a whole lot of Nevadans.

NV-04: From Delusions of Grandeur to Revolting "Humor"

Yesterday, we saw another NV-04 debate.

Horsford, a Democrat and the majority leader of the Nevada Senate, emphasized his record as a job creator who has been able to help the state cut the budget. One of Tarkanian’s prevailing themes was what he’d do to help protect the American taxpayer.

Neither candidate delved too deeply into social issues, although Beckerman asked them about their stances on birth control and the morning-after pill.

Horsford said he supports a woman’s right to choose; Tarkanian said he respects people who have opposite opinions on the topic.

When Beckerman asked about Medicare, both candidates said they would defend the services the program provides.

“I don’t believe that we should allow our parents and grandparents to be out on their own,” Horsford said. "A voucher says, ‘Here’s a set amount of money for you to go out and meet your health care needs. Above that, you’re on your own,’ ”

Tarkanian said he would not cut benefits to seniors but has advocated presidential running mate Paul Ryan’s plan.

Like the previous debate, Danny Tarkanian tried to tap dance away from the actual issues at hand. Of course, this is pretty much Danny Tarkanian's entire MO. He pretends he "wants to talk about the real issues at hand", but his campaign is actually most comfortable toying with "the darker side of identity politics".

So today, none other than Harry Reid himself spoke up and called out what should be obvious about this race.

Tarkanian and his family are subject to a $17 million judgment to pay the Federal Deposit Insurance Company in the wake of a collapsed real estate deal.

“So simply, voters need to understand this,” Reid said on a conference call with reporters. “Wouldn’t it be kind of embarrassing to the state of Nevada to have somebody back there with a $17 million judgment against them? A judgment by the federal government?” [...]

Last week, the FDIC moved to begin seizing the Tarkanian family’s Nevada assets to put toward the $17 million judgment after his lawyer failed to file an opposition in time. Tarkanian’s lawyer has since filed that opposition and an Oct. 22 hearing is scheduled on the matter.

Tarkanian claims he and his family are the victims of fraud in the deal to develop an “equestrian destination resort” in Southern California. They borrowed money from La Jolla Bank to lend to the developer, using their own personal property as collateral for the bank loan.

But then the developer went broke and the bank collapsed, leaving the Tarkanian family responsible for paying the FDIC back.

Tarkanian denies he will be forced into bankruptcy prior to the election, noting he’s pursuing all legal means to appeal the judgment. But he acknowledged the possibility exists after the election, for both himself and his family members who were part of the deal.

He's liable for $17 million (!!!) in a FDIC judgment. He can't give a real answer to any of the real questions on the important real issues of the day. He's still awfully beholden to "tea party" extremists. And he's trying the ugliest and most desperate kind of "campaign tactics" to win. And we're really supposed to offer some kind of respect and gravitas to Danny Tarkanian?

This is way beyond mere "delusions of grandeur". In some ways, what's happening in NV-04 right now is downright revolting.

NV-04: From Delusional to Just Plain Desperate

Last night, Rachel Maddow pointed out the disturbing trend of G-O-TEA Congressional candidates campaigning on racially charged "wedge issues".

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As soon as I saw this, I started thinking about what's been happening here in Nevada as Danny Tarkanian continues his campaign of nonstop race baiting. No really, think about it. He's been bashing President Obama and Steven Horsford on immigration reform while he touts his support from anti-Latino and anti-immigrant hate groups. And while he suggests Horsford isn't "black enough", Tarkanian can win African-American voters because he plays basketball! So far, Baby Tark's campaign has been nothing short of appalling in its embrace of this kind of ugly "campaigning".

And now, Baby Tark and his allies are throwing a temper tantrum because Horsford is calling them out on what they're doing.

Horsford, the first African-American state senate majority leader, called on Tarkanian to condemn a blog post by conservative operative Chuck Muth that mocks a tweet Horsford sent about the anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation.

“Steven Horsford continues to play the race card (he’s black) with this mindless, irrelevant re-tweet of a White House tweet on Saturday,” Muth wrote on his blog of Horsford’s tweet about the Emancipation Proclamation. “Sounds like somebody’s scared by last week’s poll showing him losing the urban vote to his white-bread Republican opponent, Danny Tarkanian.”

In his blog post, Muth also chides Horsford for using “two black kids” playing basketball in one of his television ads. Horsford has criticized Tarkanian for implying he can win the black vote because of his work with black youth through his non-profit basketball clinic.

The children in Horsford’s ad are his own.

“This shot was of me playing with my children in our backyard,” Horsford said in a written statement. “And to refer to my kids as just some ‘black kids playing basketball’ is extremely offensive. My children will be off limits in this campaign. I won’t accept my kids being exploited as pawns in a political game and these racially charged attacks must stop.”

This is what Chuck Muth is attacking.



And even though Baby Tark's campaign is now pretending to be offended by what Muth said, Muth is only piggybacking off Tarkanian campaign messaging. And even though Danny Tarkanian pretends to want to "talk about the important issues we face", the reality of this race is far from that. No really, he's deliberately race baiting to distract from the real issues.



Baby Tark and Muth can cling onto faulty data for as long as they want, but the real fact of the matter is that Mitt Romney is tanking here in Nevada... And Dean Heller is at greater risk of going down with Romney than ever before. Danny Tarkanian is their fellow G-O-TEA traveller, he's at risk of going down along with the both of them. So in a desperate move to save his own skin, Baby Tark is tossing these racial attacks at Steven Horsford. And apparently, he can't tell that his pure desperation is showing.

NV-04: "Newspaper" Strikes Yet Again!

Last Friday, Las Vegas' local "newspaper" embarrassed itself again with a horribly flawed "poll" showing an implausible "victory" scenario for Joe Heck. Today, the "newspaper" has a new NV-04 "poll" showing Danny Tarkanian leading Steven Horsford 45-42.

Here's why the "newspaper" is wrong (yet again!). Just like last week's results, Survey USA's internals make absolutely no sense. Believe it or not, this "poll" claims Baby Tark is winning Latino voters by 8! Shockingly, it also claims Baby Tark is winning with young voters and urban voters, and that he's winning 13% of African-American voters. Sorry, but this is simply not happening.

The sample also skews older and more male than the final electorate will probably be, especially since this is also a Presidential Election. All in all, this just looks incredibly sloppy and totally unbelievable. And what I said last week still stands today.

So why did this happen? Well, when a "newspaper" becomes accustomed to accepting sloppy "reporting", this is the result. Believe it or not, its polls were actually starting to make sense when it teamed up with UNLV's polling institute. It's a shame that the "newspaper" actually dumped a solid local outfit for this garbage.

It's one thing for the "newspaper" to continually attack Steven Horsford in its editorial page. But when it breathlessly copies from Republican press releases and put those smears in the news section, that's simply not journalism. And when that same "newspaper" publishes incredibly flawed "polls" with horridly bad samples, that's just a bad joke.

No Se Puede, Republicanos

Look who's talking now. Desperate to look "moderate", Dean Heller is smearing Vaseline on the camera in hopes of deceiving Nevada Latinos. And guess who he's following down this path?

The Dean Heller and Mitt Romney campaigns seem to be taking their Hispanic voter outreach strategies from the same playbook.

Mitt Romney’s Hispanic supporter coalition is called “Juntos con Romney” (Together with Romney), and Heller’s is “Juntos con Heller.”

In July the Romney campaign released an ad featuring Craig Romney, the GOP presidential candidate’s son who spent time in Chile, addressing voters in Spanish about his father’s character.

On Friday, the Heller campaign came out with its own Spanish-language ad with a family member’s testimonial on the candidate’s core values. Heller’s wife, Lynne, in a similar style to the Craig Romney ad, speaks in Spanish directly to the camera.

So why are Dean Heller and Mitt Romney doing this? Look at their record.

In the past, Heller has sponsored legislation to limit election ballots to English-only, to mandate that the Free Application for Federal Student Aid only be filled out in English and to make English the official national language. He also previously supported a bill to end birthright citizenship.

Despite what his campaign spins, the fact of the matter is that Dean Heller has never really cared about Nevada's Latin@ communities. It's bad enough that he wants to take away many Americans' Constitutional right of birthright citizenship. It's even worse that he's often played to "tea party" xenophobia by pushing "ENGLISH ONLY!!!" nonsense. He's even gone out of his way to oppose the DREAM Act!





But again, it's not just Heller. And it's not just about immigration. Really, Mitt Romney has led the way for the entire G-O-TEA in setting an agenda that's downright hostile to Latin@ families. And unfortunately for him, the Obama campaign isn't letting him get away with it.



And what's even worse for Romney and Heller is that their own party continues to remind all of us of their true agenda. Joe Heck has continually worked against the best interest of all Nevada working families by voting to undermine Medicare, Medicaid, college student aid, and more. And in case that wasn't enough, he's declined to endorse the DREAM Act while speaking in support of Arizona's discriminatory SB 1070.

Oh, and that's not even the end of it for the Nevada G-O-TEA. Danny Tarkanian has actually tried to distance himself from his own record, but he only embarrassed himself further because he had earned the endorsement of the virulently anti-immigrant Minutemen in his last campaign for Congress (when he ran for US Senate in 2010). And just weeks ago, NV-01 G-O-TEA sacrificial lamb nominee Chris Edwards blew his own anti-immigrant cover after inartfully trying to smear Dina Titus as such.

All in all, there's really nothing about Mitt Romney, the leading Nevada Republicans, or their party's platform that's attractive to Latin@ voters. That's why they must deceive and distract. Yet despite all that Vaseline they want to smear onto the cameras, they can't fool an entire community to vote against their own best interest by voting for a party keen on xenophobia and anti-immigrant hysteria.

NV-04: Delusions of Grandeur & Insults to Intelligence

So Danny Tarkanian's fan club didn't like me calling out Baby Tark for his cheap shots. Well, too bad. I have to call it as I see it. And frankly, I've seen nothing but duplicitous spin and empty, meaningless rhetoric that just confirms the gnawing suspicion I've had of the candidate and his campaign for some time.

I find it funny how he ran so far to the right when he found it politically convenient, but all of a sudden we're now supposed to believe he's better on comprehensive immigration reform than President Obama. Give me a break!

Believe it or not, the $10,000 donation from John Ensign's PAC and the ongoing personal financial scandals are not the worst stories for Danny Tarkanian's campaign. Actually, the worst story for his campaign is the ongoing saga of this incredibly vapid candidate who will stoop to the lowest levels and cravenly flip-flop as many times as possible to gain some kind of political advantage. Really, can Baby Tark run for anything without touting his famous last name?

And he keeps proving my earlier point. Sure, he's mired in some nasty financial scandal. However, what discredits his campaign even more is the incredible vapidity of it.

And we're seeing the vapidity on full display again today. Jon Ralston tweeted earlier this morning that Baby Tark is actually doing a fundraiser with none other than local scam artist and crackpot extraordinaire Wayne Allyn Root! Wow. All too often, truth can be stranger than fiction. And when one thinks about it, one can clearly see that Wayne Allyn Root and Danny Tarkanian make the perfect political match.

And all too often, politics can be reduced to such a farce. Such is the case with Danny Tarkanian. Since he doesn't seem to have anything else to fun on, he resorts to empty rhetoric, misleading mud slinging... And of course, his famous last name.

Really, has Nevada ever seen a campaign like this before? And will we ever have to endure something like this again?

NV-04: Horsford's Ad... & Baby Tark's Cheap Shots

Today, Steven Horsford released his first TV ad of the cycle. As you can see below, it's incredibly personal.

“I grew up on these streets,” Horsford says as he drives through the West Las Vegas neighborhood in which he grew up.

“Right here is where we lived,” he says, pointing to a small mustard-colored corner house.

“And, there, that’s where my dad was shot and killed,” he says, driving past a non-descript strip mall. “I drive by it every day on my way to work.” [...]

Horsford’s father was killed when he was 19. Horsford interrupted his college education to care for his younger siblings while his mom struggled with a drug addiction.

He’s now a father of three.

“My family now grounds me in what’s really important,” Horsford says in the ad. “So, when politicians say we can’t fix the mortgage mess, our economy and our schools, that Nevadans have to live with less, well, I say no way.

“We’re gonna fight for our future and I’m not going to back down.”

But is it controversial?

Frankly, I see it as powerful testimony. Steven Horsford's life has been far from easy. Yet instead of letting family tragedies hold him down, Horsford kept working. And he eventually worked his way up to where he is today. I mean, isn't this a little something we call "The American Dream"?

Apparently, that's not how "Delusions of Grandeur" Master Danny Tarkanian sees it. Fresh from insulting over 40% of Nevada's population, he's now set to insult pretty much anyone who's experienced family tragedy and has the courage to talk about it. No really, look at this.



What kind of candidate mocks someone sharing his personal story and explaining how it's made him a better person? I guess Danny Tarkanian is that kind of candidate willing to stoop that low.

So this dude really has the nerve to criticize Horsford's ad? I guess this is all he has left without the delusions of grandeur.

How The West Will Be Won: How to Score in NV-04

Last week, we opened our new series on critical Western swing (Congressional) districts with a closer look at the always critical ground game in NV-03. Today, we're swinging north to Nevada's newest Congressional District. While this year may be NV-04's grand debut, it combines all the quintessential elements of Nevada's unique demographic and political landscape to create a different kind of swing district.

Below, we'll examine what had made Republicans so dominant throughout much of the district in the not too distant past... And why Democrats are feeling so upbeat about it now.

Perhaps the wildest surprise of the June primary was what happened in NV-04. While Danny Tarkanian managed to win the G-O-TEA primary, he faced a much stiffer challenge from State Senator Barbara Cegavske (R-Spring Valley) than most pundits had expected. And in perhaps the biggest blow to Baby Tark, his famous last name (his dad is the famed former UNLV
basketball coach, while he himself was a star UNLV basketball player in the early 1980s) fell flat in his home turf of Clark County! Oh yes, Cegavske actually narrowly won the Clark (Las Vegas Metro) part of the district, while Tarkanian ultimately had to count on outsized margins in the Rural Nevada part of the district to put him over the top.

So wait, how did this happen? Let me explain.

Redistricting meant Nevada was set to gain a Congressional District. And ultimately, that resulted in this rather unique district.

NV-04 is an interesting district in that it runs through all the cross sections of Nevada's topography and demography. It stretches from the tranquil rural confines of Yerington and Ely to the bustling urban atmosphere of Las Vegas and North Las Vegas. It includes hard hit, poverty stricken neighborhoods, like Pahrump, as well as Nevada's wealthiest neighborhoods, like Summerlin. It includes some of the whitest and some of the most minority-majority communities in the state. And despite the 10% Democratic voter registration advantage, it's a district that both parties are fighting for.

Although 85.2% of NV-04's registered voters reside in Clark County, the rural parts of the district have an outsized influence over the district. Why? They turn out in big numbers, while some of the Clark County areas (in particular, the poorer and minority-majority urban core of the district) tend to produce lower voter turnout. This turned out to be Danny Tarkanian's "Ace in the Hole" in the Republican Primary, and he's clearly hoping it will be his secret to success this fall.

However, there's a reason why Barack Obama (2008) and Harry Reid (2010) both won NV-04 handily. Just take a look above. There are more Democratic voters in the district. And as long as they turn out, Democrats win.

This is what really seems to scare Danny Tarkanian's campaign. After all, why else would Danny Tarkanian so cravenly and clumsily attempt to run away from his own "tea party" approved record? Even Baby Tark himself must be realizing that "TEA" won't be fueling any realistic win in NV-04.

So Steven Horsford has some challenges ahead of them, but they're certainly achievable. While the rural areas vote heavily, the numbers in Clark County are still far greater. Basically, as long as North Las Vegas and the urban core of Las Vegas turn out I'm large numbers, and as long as Horsford can at least keep it close in Summerlin and Northwest Las Vegas, he can win in November.

And that's pretty much how to score in NV-04.

NV-04: Sorry, Baby Tark, But We're Just Not Delusional Like You.

He's back! And this time, he's giving us a real whopper.

Just in case you thought Danny Tarkanian couldn't possibly think of even more stupid shit to flow out of his mouth like verbal diarrhea, you're being proven wrong today. In fact, he's completely contradicting himself (yet again) and he doesn't even seem to notice. So what is Baby Tark saying now? Believe it or not, he signed a "pledge to protect Social Security & Medicare".

OK, so why is this so controversial? And why should you be outraged? Let me explain.

Well, actually I should let Baby Tark explain for himself.



Danny Tarkanian himself said he wanted to privatize Social Security. And in case that's not enough, he reiterated his interest in gutting Social Security just this month!

Tarkanian remarked that the eligibility age for drawing Social Security needs to be raised. He explained that when the Social Security program was first created the life expectancy of recipients was 19 years less than now. He wants a grace period for people nearing retirement but that it could be adjusted for younger workers.

And in case that isn't bad enough, Danny Tarkanian has also endorsed the "Balanced Budget Amendment". Remember that? If enacted, this unbalanced nonsense that "tea party" darlings Dean Heller & Joe Heck love so much would force upon us massive cuts in Social Security, Medicare, and so much more.

And to top it all off, Baby Tark actually has the gall to lie about Steven Horsford and President Obama. Despite the constant debunking of the G-O-TEA lies about the Affordable Care Act and what it actually does, Baby Tark is going there. I guess he hasn't learned from Joe Heck and his attempts to lie his way out of the political dilemma Paul Ryan (along with Mitt Romney now!) has put his entire party into.

Clearly, Danny Tarkanian is desperate. His "tea party" extremism isn't wearing well with NV-04 voters, so he's now trying to make us forget everything he ever promised to the teabaggers. Sorry, Baby Tark, but we're clearly not as delusional or forgetful as you.

NV-04: Delusions of Grandeur Go National

Remember when we discussed this last Wednesday? It looks like Baby Tark has just tripled down on his race baiting!

[Danny] Tarkanian told the Las Vegas Review Journal last week that he could reach the black community in the district, touting his ties to local basketball programs. His father, Jerry Tarkanian, is a legendary former University of Nevada-Las Vegas basketball coach, and Tarkanian played for UNLV in the early 1980s.

“My dad’s worked in that community for a long time. And my mother has,” Tarkanian said. “My basketball academy, which is very close to the district, has a lot of players and families in that district that are in our academy now for 10 years.”

Nevada Democrats fired back, accusing Tarkanian of using “patronizing stereotypes” about the black community.

Tarkanian defended himself at a fundraiser, captured on a cell-phone camera and posted by a local CBS affiliate.

“They didn’t say what the racist comment was — I’m still trying to figure out what it was,” Tarkanian said. “Should we not work within the black community? … We could be like Steven Horsford, who’s not doing anything with that community — and you know, pretend we’re black and maybe try to get some votes if that’s where it is. It’s that extent that they’re going to.”

Yet again, Baby Tark doesn't know when to stop. He's lied about his own record on immigration to "appeal to Latino voters". He's claimed he "knows the black community" because he knows how to shoot hoops. And now, he's accusing Steven Horsford (who, by the way, is actually African-American) of "pretending to be black".

Wow. The Nevada Republican Party must be running a great workshop on minority voter outreach! (/snark)

I've asked this before, but I truly feel compelled to ask this question again. Could there possibly be a Congressional campaign more vapid, more meaningless, and more offensive than Danny Tarkanian's? The only one that comes to my mind is if Sharron Angle herself moves to NV-04 to run in Tarkanian's place. But at this point, that may not be necessary. After all, Danny Tarkanian himself is doing a great job following Sharron Angle's lead in pursuing "tea party" extremism and campaigning on racial tension.

But hey, at least Baby Tark made the national news! I just wonder if these are the headlines he really wanted to make.

NV-04: Delusions of Grandeur? Or Just Plain Demented?

There he goes again. Danny Tarkanian is back. And this time, his delusions of grandeur are more ridiculous and offensive than ever before!

Last time we checked on Baby Tark's quixotic quest for NV-04, he was busy lying about his own record on immigration in a disgustingly craven attempt to "woo Hispanic voters". This time, he's working to "woo black voters".

At Hispanics in Politics last month he said Black people have been fooled into voting for Democrats, and he was here to help. You know, cause us colored folk are ignorant and child-like, lacking the sophistication to make important political decisions, thus we need the helpful hand of non-Blacks to keep us on the straight and narrow.

The Tarkanian campaign truly believes that because he played basketball and his dad led many a Black man to victory, that somehow that will lead Black folk in congressional district four to vote for him.

Do Black people love basketball so damn much, they're willing to totally forget that Mr Tarkanian is an aggressive supporter of the Tea Party (the same Tea Party the NAACP* said was racist) with policy positions that rival Sharron Angle’s?

Do Black people love basketball so much that they’re willing to overlook the fact that Mr Tarkanian thinks racial profiling is effective police work?

Do Black people love basketball so much that they won't care that Mr. Tarkanian's wife complained just yesterday about people tweeting about the Voting Rights Act?

Team Tarkanian thinks that answer is yes, because again: Team Tark thinks Black people are stupid.

So now, Danny Tarkanian thinks African-American Nevadans will just love him because he's the son of "Tark the Shark" and knows how to shoot hoops himself?! Now I know Baby Tark himself is vapid enough to believe that, but I'm even surprised to see that his campaign staff really believe that this is "effective black community outreach". After all, there's nothing that historically oppressed minority communities appreciate more than being treated as complete imbeciles. (/snark)

The voters of NV-04 truly deserve better than this. Why on earth would any candidate believe he's winning voters by insulting their intelligence? And why on earth should Southern Nevada's communities of color be subjected to someone like Danny Tarkanian who believes he knows what's best for them more than they do?

The way Baby Tark is going, I can't wait to see how he tries to appeal to Asian-American, disabled, and LGBTQ voters! (/snark)

NV-04: Los Delirios de Grandeza de Baby Tark

Wow. I almost forgot saying this nearly 3 years ago.

Excuse me while I step aside to ROTFLMAO. I know, I know, we shouldn't take this for granted. [...]

But come on, this is just too good to resist a good giggle at. If a guy who just happens to be Jerry Tarkanian's son is the best the GOP can do, then they're (still) in deep sh*t.

I said that in August 2009, when Lil' Tark Shark was briefly the G-O-TEA favorite to go against Harry Reid in 2010. Remember how that went? I guess he doesn't.

After all, he's back for more. And today, Danny Tarkanian tripled down on his delusions of grandeur at Hispanics in Politics in Las Vegas. Apparently, he's now taking advice on "Latino outreach" from Dean Heller.

Oh, and Tark must also be copying from Mitt Romney's playbook. Laura Myers' report from the Hispanics in Politics event, and he documented Tarkanian trying to have it both ways on immigration reform while blaming President Obama for all that's wrong in the world and trying to make empty catch phrases sound like "good policy".

Sound familiar? Well, it should. Just like his mentors, Dean Heller & Mitt Romney, Danny Tarkanian is now trying to flip-flop his way to the mainstream and make us all forget his real record. Too bad for him that Google doesn't allow for that. Oh, and too bad for him that none other than "Mr. Tea Party Super-blogger" Erick Erickson said this when endorsing Baby Tark for US Senate in 2010.

Danny Tarkanian has received the endorsement of the Minuteman Project for clear positioning on immigration. Meanwhile, Sue Lowden is wavering on the issue of benefits to illegal immigrants. Check out Danny Tarkanian’s latest ad on immigration and you’ll get the picture. Danny has a clear policy prescription and Sue is muddying the water over whether or not she supports benefits to illegal aliens.

Oh yes, that's right. Erickson favored Tarkanian over the less extreme (??!!) Sue Lowden because he was endorsed by the anti-Latino, anti-immigrant, and pro-xenophobia Minuteman Project! And in May 2010, none other than The R-J's Laura Myers documented how Baby Tark was campaigning on anti-immigrant xenophobia to play up his "populism" and win over the "tea party". I find it funny how he ran so far to the right when he found it politically convenient, but all of a sudden we're now supposed to believe he's better on comprehensive immigration reform than President Obama. Give me a break!

Believe it or not, the $10,000 donation from John Ensign's PAC and the ongoing personal financial scandals are not the worst stories for Danny Tarkanian's campaign. Actually, the worst story for his campaign is the ongoing saga of this incredibly vapid candidate who will stoop to the lowest levels and cravenly flip-flop as many times as possible to gain some kind of political advantage. Really, can Baby Tark run for anything without touting his famous last name?

Nevada Primary Recap

To a large extent, we didn't see too many surprises last night. Both Shelley Berkley and Dean Heller won their respective primaries for US Senate, as did John Oceguera in NV-03. Yep, everything seemed to go smoothly and as planned...

Except it didn't.




While Danny Tarkanian ultimately prevailed in NV-04, he did so only narrowly... And only narrowly over the underfunded Barbara Cegavske. And in another embarrassing blow to "Baby Tark", he lost to Cegavske in Clark County! Oh yes, that's right. Barbara Cegavske actually beat "Lil' Tark Shark" in the territory where his last name is golden, and he needed the rurals to save his sorry behind.

And in the Legislature, we saw some dramatic upheaval. In AD 39 in rural Northern Nevada, incumbent Assembly Member Kelly Kite lost to "tea party" backed Jim Wheeler. While Kite was no moderate, he voted for last year's budget... Which still made him insufficiently conservative for the "tea party". In AD 9 in Southwest Vegas, GOP Establishment backed Victoria DeLaGuerra-Seaman narrowly lost to "some dude" Kelly Hurst. And in AD 35, which is just to the south of AD 9, Adam Cegavske (Barbara's son) lost to "some dude" Tom Blanchard.

And then, there's SD 1.

Michael Flores, who helped organize the opposition to [John] Lee, said liberals were motivated to oust Lee after the last legislative session, when he pushed a controversial bill to allow guns on college campuses and succeeded in pushing through another bill that could pave the way for more development around Lake Tahoe.

“Last session was really ugly,” Flores said. “We couldn’t sit around and let nothing happen. We couldn’t sit around and not follow through on our threat.” [...]

Lee had, for a time, been running for Congress, against Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford. But when Lee dropped out of that race and ran for re-election, he quickly earned the full-throttled support of the Democratic Party establishment.

Even such groups that had tangled with him in Carson City, like the state teacher’s union and AFL-CIO — the traditional Democratic political muscle — remained neutral in the race, instead of opposing him.

Who could have guessed? Who could have guessed?

This was the first time that the Netroots/Grassroots Left organized to unseat an incumbent Democratic legislator for voting too far to the right. And since John Lee had quite the conservative record for representing a safe Democratic seat, progressives seized on the opportunity to correct that. And despite all the money spent by Lee and the support he received from the Democratic Establishment and the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, Lee only managed to score 37% yesterday against military veteran, college lecturer, ordained minister, and out lesbian Pat Spearman. And interestingly enough, voters soured on Lee because of his opposition to progressive goals like marriage equality, fair taxation, reproductive rights, and good environmental stewardship.

While Nevada has become accustomed to seeing bloody primaries on the right, this is the first time that we saw a successful challenge from the left. And this probably won't be the last time.

All in all, we had an interesting night here in The Silver State last night. And later this week, I'll explain how this affects the general election.

Who's Running Where: NV-04

Many were excited when the dream became real. Finally, Nevada has a 4th Congressional District up for grabs and open to run in. And now that filing is open, we're getting a better sense of who's running here.

NV-04 is an interesting district in that it runs through all the cross sections of Nevada's topography and demography. It stretches from the tranquil rural confines of Yerington and Ely to the bustling urban atmosphere of Las Vegas and North Las Vegas. It includes hard hit, poverty stricken neighborhoods, like Pahrump, as well as Nevada's wealthiest neighborhoods, like Summerlin. It includes some of the whitest and some of the most minority-majority communities in the state. And despite the 10% Democratic voter registration advantage, it's a district that both parties are fighting for.

Danny Tarkanian is taking advantage of this by running for office yet again. He's already busy advocating for the transfer of nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain, running a campaign office outside the district, and showing he really has no commitment beyond that of
perennially running for something.



And then, we have Barbara Cegavske and her magnificent delusions of grandeur. Apparently, she thinks she can even develop her own family dynasty! She also thinks she can easily maneuver the challenge of saying things that completely contradict her own legislative record. I can't wait to see what she does next.

But wait, there's more! Also running for the G-O-TEA is Dan Schwartz, the guy who's already hurling the crazy onto our TVs. He looks like fun.

And finally, Nevada State Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford (D-North Las Vegas) is expected to file today. He's risen from adversity to success in both the private and public sectors. He rose to many challenges in Carson City, and he seems hungry to tackle more challenges in Washington. He's even been tapped by the DCCC to become a "Majority Maker" and help other Democratic candidates running in more difficult districts.

However, Horsford can't rest too easily. Although Democrats do have an advantage in the new NV-04, it's looking increasingly obvious that Republicans are not rolling over. Rather, they're preparing an all out assault to compete. We'll have to see how Horsford plans to challenge the crap they're all but certain to fling their way. And we'll have to see how Horsford and the Democratic Party can put together an effective field operation from Yerington all the way to Summerlin. While I'm sure there will be even more money spent on TV ads here, I suspect the candidate who spends the most time really connecting with voters across the district and offering real solutions to the economic challenges present everywhere from Ely to North Las Vegas will emerge victorious. Let's see how Steven Horsford can rise to this next challenge.

Maybe Nevada Does Matter, After All?

Now that Mitt Romney's real record of "job cremation" has come to the forefront...

“I would not put the cart before the horse and define him as an unambiguous frontrunner,” DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz told TPM in an interview at St. Anselm College in Manchester. “He’s coming off what at some point probably won't even be defined as a win in Iowa where fewer voters came out for him than came out in 2008.” She added that anything less than 50% in New Hampshire should be interpreted as a sign of weakness given his close ties to the state. [...]

“Mitt Romney, I think, is more of a job cremator than a job creator,” Schultz said. She added: “He was a corporate buyout specialist at Bain Capital. He dismantled companies. He cut jobs. He forced companies into bankruptcy and he outsourced jobs and sent jobs overseas. That’s not a record to write home about, that’s not a record to be proud of, and it’s something voters need to know.”

The other Republican candidates are ready to pounce. Apparently, some in the G-O-TEA are already getting sick and tired of a certain someone's "pious baloney"...



While others are, strangely enough, getting sick and tired of the media. For all his desperate pleas for media attention, Jon Huntsman rejects it when he finally gets some.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

So what's going on here? The state of the race is in flux yet again. Mitt Romney still can't seal the deal, or even break 20% (!!!!), nationally. And in New Hampshire, the state where he now owns a house and next door to where he was once Governor, he can't even break 40%. The Republican Party faces a weird dilemma where it has a "clear frontrunner" (Romney) who's also simultaneously a "weak frontrunner". But because no single "anti-Romney" has yet emerged, he's been able to skate by with minority support.

Is this about to change?



Enter Sheldon Adelson. Apparently, he's Newt Gingrich's BFF. And apparently, he's just as mad as Newt about Romney trying to steal his "true conservative" thunder. So now, he's about to hit Romney right on his proverbial Achilles' Heel: Bain Capital. And what makes this even worse for Mittens is that "King Adelson of Macau" is about to target Romney in what may be his weakest early primary state: South Carolina, where Romney now clings to a fragile lead that may very soon evaporate once the "tea party" folks coalesce around one of their own.

So apparently, "we matter" again... Just not in the way Jon Ralston had originally imagined/desired. Amy Tarkanian may still be a complete joke who allowed the "tea party" loons to take over the Nevada GOP madhouse, but Sheldon Adelson is the local righties' top "money man" who can have more of an impact on the Republican primary war than any of the "Tark Sharks" could ever dream of. The Nevada GOP Caucus itself still looks to be a total train wreck in the making, but Adelson's emergence as Mitt Romney's worst nightmare ensures ensures that The Silver State will make some sort of impact on this increasingly weird primary fight.

And what really intrigues me here is that Sheldon Adelson indeed plans to hit Mitt Romney on his record of destroying American jobs at Bain Capital. Just as I had suspected last week, the Bain issue isn't just one that Democrats are now testing against Romney. It can also hurt him on the right side of the aisle, since "tea partiers" seem to hate slick "Wall Street elite" shipping American jobs overseas (even if they're all too often tricked into supporting these very policies that lead to the loss of American jobs) as much as all the rest of us. And Adelson clearly knows this, which is why he's targeting Romney's Achilles Heel in the exact state (South Carolina) where it can cause the most damage.

And funny enough, Mittens is playing right into Sheldon Adelson's hands.



So perhaps this G-O-TEA battle royale really isn't over just yet... And maybe Nevada really will play a significant role in it (just not in the way that benefits the Tarkanians or the state party).

NV-Sen: Friday Snippets & Quick Hits... UPDATED!

OK, I'm on my way out and I can't spend too much time blogging this morning. Still, let me go through some of the top Senate race stories I'm following today and into the weekend.

- No matter how the paper that shall not be named tries to spin it, Harry Reid is looking stronger these days while all the GOoPers are faltering. Obtuse Angle slips into a 3% deficit against Reid in the paper's "poll", while Suzy Lowdown holds a 3% lead within the margin of error and Lil' Tark Shark holds a tiny 1% lead even further within the margin of error. And remember, paper/Mason-Dixon polls typically skew 5-10% more Republican than the more accurate polls. (Remember when they said Obama & McCain were tied in late October just before Obama won Nevada by 12.5% in November 2008?)

- That same "paper that shall not be named" "poll" also shows Suzy Lowdown with a 1% lead deep within the margin of error against Obtuse Angle in the GOoP primary, with Lil' Tark Shark only 7% behind Lowdown. So yet again, we see that Suzy Lowdown may not even win the primary!

- Today's Sun exposes some more of Suzy Lowdown's abysmal business record. For someone who talks plenty about "creating jobs", Ms. Suzy seems to have a hard time actually doing that at Archon. However, here's one thing we should give her credit for excelling at: making sure she and the hubby get their bonus checks (regardless of whether they have to fire more workers)!

- Today's Sun also has a doozy on Baby Tark's hot mess of a land foreclosure here in Henderson. He says he was caught in a bad deal, but he also admits he didn't do any research, didn't do any meetings, didn't handle any paperwork, and basically failed to do his own due diligence! Is this the kind of sloppy "business" we want in the Senate?

- And finally, Suzy Lowdown is noticing her falling poll numbers and trying to change them by hitting Obtuse Angle even harder. I guess she has to keep distracting voters from her own failure to answer the simplest questions on issues like civil rights and climate change.



UPDATES:

- While Tea Party Express went with Angle, it seems Action is Brewing is endorsing Cha-cha-Chachas for Senate (while also endorsing "Luv-Guv" Gibbons for Gube). It seems all is not well in Teabagger-land, as they all can't agree on a single slate of candidates to endorse.

- And Suzy Lowdown is hitting Obtuse Angle yet again with a new ad on "Scientology-Massage-gate". Yep, this GOoP Primary is about to get a whole LOT uglier before early voting ends.

Again, I'll have more on all of this over the weekend. But again, I just have to say that... Well, I told you so! The DC pundits may be surprised about Harry Reid's comeback, but I'm not. And you shouldn't be, either. The more Nevadans learn about the GOoP's riches of embarrassments, the more confident I feel about November. :-)

NV-Sen: Bye Bye Suzy... And Hello Sharron?

Ah, the Suzy v. Sharron war continues in the Nevada GOoP. DC Beltway gossip rag Politico has some dirt on the new round of GOoPer infighting over the Senate Primary.

[... P]olitical strategists on both sides say Angle would have to step up her field organization and advertising apparatus to have any shot of beating the most powerful Democrat in the Senate.

Angle “has no clue about what is going to happen to her,” said a Nevada GOP insider. “She is in no way prepared for this, for a race at the federal level. She’s really out of her depth here.”

And when asked by the Politico reporter about "Angle-mania" among Nevada GOoPers, Suzy Lowdown just lost it.

Lowden stopped just short of saying that Angle would lose if she were the nominee, but said: “You think Harry Reid is afraid of her? Is he running commercials against her?”

In an interview Friday, Lowden denied suggestions she was in a free-fall, saying that the race has tightened in the final weeks because of the Tea Party Express’s endorsement of Angle — and because of the six-figure attack ad blitz from Reid’s allies.

Although Tarkanian insists that he can emerge from the three-way primary as Lowden begins to focus on Angle, Lowden said the race has become a two-way campaign between her and Angle.

During the interview, Lowden refused to say if she stood by her bartering-for-health-care comments, saying she was focusing instead on Nevada’s high unemployment and foreclosure rates. When a reporter asked Lowden about the comments, she accused him of “allowing” Reid to change the subject.

“If you want to change the subject and talk about the subject that no one else is talking about, that’s up to you,” Lowden said.

At the end of the interview, Lowden declined to discuss whether she shared Paul’s views on the Civil Rights Act.

“You can’t resist this, can you? I have no idea what another candidate says,” Lowden said.

Asked whether she had any concerns about the law’s reach into private business, Lowden said, “I’m going, thank you,” then abruptly hung up the phone.

Obviously, Ms. Suzy is upset. She thought she was "the anointed one" entitled to win this year. And all of a sudden, voters abandon her as she repeatedly sticks both feet in her mouth? And her long record of violating the law when it's too "inconvenient" for her is exposed? And Batsh*t Crazy Sharron Angle erases her lead in the polls?

Poor, poor, lil' rich Suzy Lowdown! Whatever will she do?

Meanwhile, we continue to learn more about just how batsh*t crazy Sharron Angle really is!

Democrats are eager to lump Angle together with other tea party candidates across the country — particularly amid the controversy Rand Paul has created with his comments about the Civil Rights Act.

And they believe an Angle win in the June 8 Nevada GOP primary would give them an appealing national narrative: that the Republicans’ November ticket across the country is filled with “extreme” candidates well outside the mainstream of American politics.

On her website — full of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors — Angle declares: “Like a soldier going to war, I am fighting for my country, the Constitution and a free society.”

She wants to privatize Social Security; cut federal spending by hundreds of billions of dollars; build nuclear power plants inside Yucca Mountain; abolish the federal income tax and institute a “simpler, fairer, flatter tax system”; “defund Obamacare”; pull the United States out of the United Nations; ban nearly all abortions; get rid of the Energy and Education departments as well as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; and remove all campaign finance restrictions, requiring instead immediate reporting of donations.

And in a state with a large and growing Hispanic population, Angle takes a hard-line view on immigration, siding with the tough new Arizona law that gives law enforcement officials broad discretion to crack down on suspected illegal aliens.

No wonder why GOoPer insiders are freaking out!

Sharron Angle's surge in the U.S. Senate primary contest has created a rift within the Republican Party, with key establishment players unhappy that the Tea Party-backed conservative might upset their handpicked favorite, Sue Lowden, GOP insiders say.

Some Republicans even have threatened privately to support Democratic incumbent Harry Reid in the fall if Angle on June 8 wins the nomination, so great is the consternation in traditional GOP circles, where Lowden, the former party chairwoman, enjoys considerable support. [...]

A state GOP insider, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss candid talk among party figures, said the Angle surge has taken many Republicans by surprise, and they worry the conservative isn't the best choice to carry the party mantle and reach out to independent and Democratic voters.

"There are a lot of Republican insiders who believe Sharron's going to win this thing. And there aren't very many people in the elected Republican establishment who like her," the insider said.

Bill Raggio was quoted in the piece, and not even he would deny abandoning Angle if she wins the primary. After all, she nearly defeated him in 2008! Obviously, this infighting is turning quite bitter. The teabaggers are demanding purity while the establishment folks want one of their own.

The GOoP establishment tried so hard help Suzy Lowdown buy the primary... But the teabaggers wouldn't have any of it. It's increasingly looking like they'll end up with their own "Rand Paul situation" should Batsh*t Crazy Sharron Angle win the primary. Even Markos, who isn't always very happy with Harry Reid, is now acknowledging something I've been telling you here for quite some time.

Oh, and once more, Lil' Tark Shark is a crybaby.

"Danny Tarkanian has been a strong supporter of the Tea Party movement, and he can best help this movement by ending his campaign for U.S. Senate," said Bryan Shroyer, political director for the Tea Party Express, who noted Angle had racked up all the major conservative endorsements.

The Tarkanian campaign responded with some heat, saying the Tea Party Express is tied to long-time GOP consultants who just want to make money off the anti-big government movement.

"The Tea Party Express is leading the corporatization of the Tea Party movement, and it's distasteful," said Jamie Fisfis, a California-based consultant of the Tarkanian campaign.

Some things never change. Baby Tark looks to be going down, continually crying over spilled milk... Or is that tea?

And the bumper car ride that the GOoPer primary has become continues. Suzy Lowdown and Batsh*t Crazy Sharron Angle continue to fight over who's the wingnuttiest, with Baby Tark crying in the sidelines. And still, someone in Searchlight is smiling. He really did get his groove back. ;-)

NV-Sen: Meet Sharron Angle, Your New Supreme Batsh*t Crazy GOoPer

Since we all know Suzy Lowdown's campaign is going to hell in a handbasket, it's now a question of whether she'll survive to lose in the general or just go down in flames next month. Well in case she can't even win the primary that was supposed to be her "given", I think it's time for us to spend some quality time with Teabagger Darling and perpetual wingnut gadfly Sharron Angle. Nevada Scandalmonger presented this very lovely video:



Whoops! It looks like Ms. Batsh*t Crazy Sharron has her own flavor of scandaliciousness waiting in the wings. Really, she wanted the state AND the feds to fund this Church of Scientology "drug rehab program"?

Oh joy, so the Nevada GOoPers really have an embarrassment of riches (or is that rich with embarrassment?) to choose from. Sharron Angle is batsh*t crazy and has a thing for funding unproven Church of Scientology crackpot "programs". Suzy Lowdown thinks she can barter for a luxury liner campaign bus. Oh, and there's also Jerry Tarkanian's son who always whines and throws temper tantrums about stuff. Oh, what a team of wieners the Nevada GOoP has assembled!