The Message

Remember this? Let's take another trip to the Nevada progressive archives. First, let's stop at October 2010. Remember then State Senate Minority Leader Bill Raggio's (R-Reno) huge announcement?

Let's now jump to January 2011 to note Senator Raggio's shocking exit from the Legislature.



When Senator Bill Raggio passed away in February 2012, we noted the legacy he left behind... And the legacy so many in his party wanted to ditch behind.

Seriously, this is what has me worried. Yes, Bill Raggio was conservative. Yes, Bill Raggio did use his budget votes as leverage to pass right-wing legislation. And yes, Bill Raggio liked to spend our tax dollars up north when they were really needed in Clark County.

However at the end of the day, Bill Raggio was always someone who was interested in making Nevada's government work. And not too long ago, there were other Republicans, like Kenny Guinn, who believed the same and demonstrated the ability to reach across aisles to keep Nevada functioning.

But last session, we were left wondering if a significant chunk of Legislature Republicans even wanted any kind of functioning government. And again, with Raggio gone, we had to wait for that Nevada Supreme Court ruling just to extend the tax deal that Raggio brokered in 2009. And with Raggio gone, what used to be a Nevada tradition of legislators constantly crossing aisles and party lines to get stuff done gave into California style "mortal combat governance".

Early this year, we were confronted by this again when another Nevada political legend, Former Lt. Governor Sue Wagner (R), decided to leave the Republican Party.



And she was soon followed by Neena Laxalt. Today, Neena Laxalt is following that up with a Las Vegas Sun op-ed that she signed onto, along with six other Laxalt family members.

During our journey, we have found a quote by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that best captures the essence of a core value that has guided us throughout our lives — the value of speaking up for what is right. He wrote, “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”

In the spirit of King’s words, then, we can no longer be silent as we seek to maintain the integrity of our home state of Nevada.

Therefore, we collectively speak up to support Ross Miller as the most qualified candidate to be our state’s attorney general. [...]

Know that our message does not originate from a Republican, Democratic or even family affiliation. It has to do with the most basic question all voters must ask themselves when they step into the voting booth, “Who really is the best qualified candidate for attorney general for the state of Nevada?”

Wow. So it's happening again. And this time, it's Laxalt family members rebuking the very party they once led. And not only that, but they're even having to rebuke one of their own as both he and the party have lost their way.

Four years ago, the party lost the late Bill Raggio as he and others endorsed US Senator Harry Reid (D) for reelection. Earlier this year, the party lost Sue Wagner and Neena Laxalt. Today, several members of the Laxalt family can't even endorse their own family member who's running for Attorney General. And to our shock, the Nevada Republican Party still isn't getting the message. What else will it take for the message to resonate with them?

Back to the (DC) Beltway He Goes

Last week, they debated on Vegas PBS. They finally faced each other after weeks of attack ads and press release missives. But of course, all Adam Laxalt (R) had to offer were even more sorry "political issues".



During the Vegas PBS debate, Laxalt threw another temper tantrum over the atrocious evaluation he received from his own law firm. He even tried (again) to turn it into an attack on the character of Ross Miller (D), his opponent for Attorney General. Never mind that Laxalt himself has been loading up on Koch dark money, he's still trying to make this and "Gift-gate" trending topics.

Oh, and since he isn't satisfied by just the Koch funded ads, Laxalt's own campaign has been taking to the airwaves to lie about that "train wreck" evaluation.



He just doesn't know when to quit. Where's Kenny Rogers when we need him?

Look, we get it. Adam Laxalt doesn't want to explain why he still wants to fight against marriage equality and other LGBTQ civil rights. He doesn't want to revisit his "most flawed" take on the Affordable Care Act. He doesn't want to admit to not knowing where Yucca Mountain is. And still doesn't want to say how much (or little) he really knows about open meetings laws.

But ultimately, this is what we expect of someone aspiring to be our state's top law enforcement officer. He needs to answer critical policy questions. He needs to know the actual legal issues our state is facing. He can't just blithely dismiss everything he doesn't want to talk about as "political issues" beneath him.

Perhaps Laxalt should return to the cozy confines of Planet Neocon in the DC Beltway. He may have a "famous Nevada last name", but he clearly has no clue how to do the job for our state.

Suppression v. Participation

In April 2012, then Assembly Member Mark Sherwood (R-Henderson) threw a fit. For some reason, he felt compelled to troll Twitter during the Clark County Democratic Party Convention. And he decided one of his final acts as a state legislator would be to demand more voter suppression.

And he wasn't alone. In 2011, a slew of G-O-TEA legislators were firmly behind Sherwood's voter suppression agenda. One of them was State Senator Barbara Cegavske (R-Spring Valley).

And she didn't stop after Sherwood left the Legislature Building (as a legislator, only to reeenter later as a lobbyist). Rather, Barbara Cegavske decided to sabotage Secretary of State (and current Attorney General candidate) Ross Miller's (D) election reform agenda by demanding voter suppression in lieu of SB 63, Miller's electronic verification bill that would have guaranteed secure elections without disenfranchising lawful Nevada voters. But for Cegavske, she didn't see the point of passing any kind of election related bills that didn't disenfranchise lawful Nevada voters (especially the ones least likely to vote for Republicans).

Now, Barbara Cegavske is running to succeed Ross Miller as Secretary of State. And of course, she's running on a platform of dismantling all the progress Miller and his predecessors made in protecting Nevadans' right to vote. (Start at 14:15 below for the good stuff.)



Basically, Barbara Cegavske wants to import the national G-O-TEA voter suppression agenda into Nevada. And if she wins next month, we can expect more of this here in The Silver State.



At the very least, Barbara Cegavske offers a stark contrast from her opponent, Kate Marshall (D).



Ultimately, this race comes down to this: How strongly do we value our right to vote? Do we think it's OK for well heeled out-of-state G-O-TEA aligned special interests to come in and install someone with a stated goal of preventing people from voting? Or do we want to ensure all legal Nevada voters have the chance to participate in the "small d" democratic process?

The "Issue(s)" With Adam Laxalt

Wait, so "Gift-gate" is no longer a trending meme? Well, you heard it here first (as you, our faithful readers, usually do).

All of a sudden, Adam Laxalt (R) is searching for a new "political issue" to run on. So now, he's actually taking to the airwaves to outright lie about Ross Miller (D), his oppoent in the Attorney General race.

Believe it or not, Adam Laxalt is now claiming Ross Miller leaked the scathing legal evaluations from Laxalt's law firm. The trouble with Laxalt's claim is that there's no truth to it. Jon Ralston actually made the documents public, someone at Lewis & Roca leaked the documents to him, and Ross Miller's campaign had nothing to do with that.



It's funny that Laxalt wants to talk about those documents again. After all, those documents revealed to everyone exactly why Adam Laxalt (R) is woefully unprepared to serve as Nevada's top "legal eagle". So why does he want to remind us of the (lack of) qualifications he has for the office he's running for?

And why again is Adam Laxalt (again) refusing to run on his own "political issues"? Considering what's making headlines today, why won't Laxalt talk about his ongoing crusade against marriage equality and the overall Constitutional rights of LGBTQ Nevadans?



Doesn't he want to further explain his "most flawed case against Obamacare? And why wouldn't he want to impress us with his depth of knowledge on the state's open meeting laws?

Poor (little rich guy) Adam Laxalt. He just can't get over his many "political issues". But sadly for him, a whole lot of Nevadans are so over his campaign.

Constructive Criticism

Today, we're trying to be nicer. A little earlier, we gave some helpful advice to NV-04 candidate Cresent Hardy (R) on "segregation laws". And now, we'd like to help another prominent Nevada Republican.

So now, we're turning our attention to Attorney General candidate Adam Laxalt (R)... And his many "political issues".

Last weekend, Adam Laxalt finally did a debate with his general election opponent, Ross Miller (D). OK, so at least he listened to us on that. But then, all of this happened.



No wonder why Laxalt has been so reluctant to agree to further debates. Ever since his "legal issues" have been unearthed, Laxalt has faced questions of his fitness to serve as Attorney General.

Laxalt has since tried to bury the story of the brutal evaluations from his own law firm by leaking "rave reviews" from the military and his law firm. He's even claiming now that he's "closing the gap" with Miller in his internal polling... Even though he refused to provide any actual numbers to anyone.

Adam Laxalt always likes to claim others have "no respect for the rule of law". So where's his? (Start around 3:00.)



No matter what Laxalt likes to claim about the state constitution and his opinions on various state & federal statutes, he needs to remember the ultimate supremacy of the US Constitution. Obamacare is the law of the land because the US Supreme Court declared it passed Constitutional muster. And federal courts continue to strike down bans on marriage equality because they're finding these marriage bans don't pass Constitutional muster.

Because we're feeling nice today, we'll give Adam Laxalt some constructive criticism. Perhaps before he opens his mouth and further embarrasses himself, he should first do his homework and get his facts straight.

The Waiting Game

Last week, the State of Nevada had no one present. No one even bothered to show up for court in San Francisco. Instead, the judges of the Ninth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals instead had to endure this bucket full of crazy last week.

We will likely receive a ruling from the Ninth on Sevcik v. Sandoval fairly soon. And so far, marriage equality seem to be liking their odds.

Yet now, other states may have leapfrogged ahead of Nevada on the way to the US Supreme Court. However, Nevada may yet slip onto The Supremes' docket if the Ninth issues a ruling on Sevcik this week.



As we've discussed before, the US Supreme Court set this chain of lower court marriage rulings with its US v. Windsor. Will the SCOTUS Justices who ruled so passionately in favor of LGBTQ civil rights reverse course so suddenly? We seriously doubt it, but we can't take anything for granted there.

Now here's where it becomes even more interesting. The State of Nevada dropped its legal defense of marriage discrimination in February. That's why no one from the State of Nevada even bothered to show up in San Francisco last Monday to argue for the Question 2 marriage ban. And that's why US Supreme Court Justices will have to determine standing (a la Prop 8 California) should the usual suspects decide to appeal the Ninth's ruling.

This is why we're now playing the waiting game. If the Ninth Circuit rules in favor of equality, Nevada may become State #18 for marriage equality by next month. Or we may not, should SCOTUS decide to place that ruling on hold. Perhaps our case may be one of the marriage cases that will set a national precedent next year. Or perhaps not, should SCOTUS decide not to take up Sevcik at all.

Whatever happens, this month promises to be an exciting one for civil rigts activists here in The Silver State. We're just waiting to see what comes next.

The Real Issue

It was supposed to be the ultimate battle royale. It was supposed to be a war between Nevada royal families. It was supposed to be one of the "hot ticket races" of the 2014 election cycle.

Early this year, G-O-TEA operatives were salivating over the opportunity to knock out Ross Miller (D). The outgoing Secretary of State has built up quite the list of accomplishments during his tenure there. And even though he's running for Attorney General this fall, media pundits can't help but speculate about his political future. Obviously, Republican campaign consultants were shaking in their boots.

Then came Adam Laxalt (R). He seemed to be the answer to G-O-TEA prayers. He has a pretty face, a famous last name, and a seemingly impeccable resume. What more could Nevada Republicans ask for?

But when Adam Laxalt began revealing his "most flawed" "political issues", we could sense something was off. How could a well trained lawyer not understand the basics of Constitutional law? We understand he has his "political issues", but those should not become "legal issues" as well.

And speaking of "legal issues", Adam Laxalt has plenty. When his law firm did a performance review, Laxalt's self-assessment strayed quite far from the assessment of his seniors and peers. And now that this performance review is becoming public knowledge, his campaign has been in complete "damage control" mode.

Ever since Jon Ralston revealed the skeletons in Adam Laxalt's closet, his campaign has tried just about everything to change the subject. They've tried blaming whoever leaked the documents. They've tried questioning the authenticity of the documents. They've tried leaking some of Laxalt's military documents. And of course, they will probably try reviving "Gift-gate" yet again... Even as Laxalt jumps to accept all sorts of gifts from one Sheldon Adelson.

Herein lies the crux of Adam Laxalt's real issue. Forget the bombast over the "gifts". Forget the howls of protest over the "document leaks". And forget the whining over "political hits".

Here's the real issue: Adam Laxalt has yet to prove his qualifications to serve as Nevada's Attorney General. He and his biggest Republican boosters can throw temper tantrums on as many "newspaper" pages as they want, but this won't change the issue of Laxalt struggling to make his own case. They can cry as much as they want about Ross Miller being on top of his game, but it's not his fault that Nevada Republicans have so many issues with their handpicked opponent for him.

Legal Issues

They were hoping to catapult him into headline news yesterday. And hey, it's mission accomplished in that department. However, this probably wasn't the kind of headline news Nevada Republicans were hoping for.

Yesterday morning, they sent a "gift box to Ross Miller (D) in hopes of amplifying Adam Laxalt's (R) "gifted" attacks on Miller's tenure as Nevada Secretary of State. And surely enough, the Attorney General's race made headlines by the end of the day.



However, it was ultimately Jon Ralston's gift of knowledge to the public that had tongues wagging. While Adam Laxalt gave himself top honors at Lewis & Roca, the law firm where he's been employed since relocating to Nevada in 2011, most of his colleagues didn't agree. Rather, they were concerned about Laxalt's "misconstrued" language, "unacceptable" typing skills, "inadequately structured" writing, and "questionable" judgment.

And that's not all. Here's what may the the most damning peer review in the Laxalt dossier: "He doesn’t understand the legal issues or how they relate to the facts involved, so his written analysis does not make sense." Yikes! And Laxalt wanted to boast about his "Of Counsel" status at Lewis & Roca?

There's already been plenty of speculation about Nevada Republicans replacing Laxalt with someone else as their Attorney General nominee. But so far, Laxalt's campaign spokespeople insist he's staying in the race. They've also questioned the authenticity of the documents Ralston obtained.

Frankly, this comes as no surprise to us. And we certainly don't doubt the authenticity of the documents Ralston has. After all, Adam Laxalt has constantly struggled to comprehend the "legal issues" of LGBTQ civil rights. And who can forget his "most flawed" legal analysis on the Affordable Care Act? While he has every right to oppose policies like civil marriage equality and universal health care, he can't say they're illegal just because he opposes them.

We've always sensed Adam Laxalt has "issues". But now, his more serious issues have burst out of the closet. And unfortunately for him, they strike at the heart of his case for election as Nevada's Attorney General.

What's He Afraid Of?

This? Again? Really?

The Clark County Republican Party figured it would be a great idea to send a "gift box" to outgoing Secretary of State and current Attorney General candidate Ross Miller (D). But why? Oh, they're just rehashing an issue that Miller himself has already been working on.

But shhhh, don't say that to Miller's Republican opponent, Adam Laxalt. He thinks this is somehow his "original idea". There's just no record of him supporting any campaign finance reform legislation in Carson City (like Miller has).

So now's probably a good time for Adam Laxalt to go on record and make his case. The problem? Laxalt is now ducking debates. While he has just agreed to a debate moderated by the always superb Steve Sebelius, he's refusing to participate in any other debates. Oh, and his "campaign adviser" tried to throw shade at Jon Ralston while rejecting a debate on his show. Yep, that's never a good idea.

So what's their issue? Oh yes, Mr. Laxalt always has "political issues"... Especially when those issues involve civil rights. So is Adam Laxalt simply afraid of Ross Miller confronting him on actual, serious issues, such as marriage equality?



Is he afraid of answering other tough questions on LGBTQ civil rights? Is he afraid of expanding on his "ideas" for fighting political corruption? Is he afraid of being asked about his assertion that Obamacare (aka the Affordable Care Act) is "the most flawed piece of major legislation America has ever endured"?

What's he afraid of? Why is Adam Laxalt so afraid of coming out and speaking in public about his "political issues"? He'd have a much better chance of being taken seriously if he were to ditch the cheap "street theater" stunts and actually speak directly to the people he's seeking to serve in state government.

UPDATE: All T, all shade, baby. Ralston has the scoop on Laxalt's horrible job performance review at Lewis & Roca. This is the law firm that hired Adam Laxalt upon his move to Nevada. Take a look at the evaluation review. The document truly speaks for itself.

General Issue

It happened again. Another court weighed down on the side of equality. However, this time was special.

This time, an appellate court ruled unequivocally in favor of marriage equality. And unlike the Ninth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals' rather restrained ruling that overturned (just) California's marriage ban in 2012, the Fourth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals did not hold back when striking down Virginia's marriage ban. In fact, this ruling doesn't stop at the Virginia state line.



While the 3 judge panel at the Fourth Circuit specifically took on Virginia marriage law in this case, they ruled 2-1 in favor of a strong rebuke of marriage discrimination on 5th and 14th Amendment grounds that applies to the entire region covered by the Fourth Circuit. The majority opinion was strong enough for North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper (D) to declare he will no longer defend his state's marriage ban in court. And for the record, North Carolina also falls under the jurisdiction of the Fourth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals (along with Maryland, South Carolina, and West Virginia).

This Fourth Circuit ruling comes just month after the Tenth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals struck down Utah's and Oklahoma's respective marriage bans. And it comes about 4 months before the Ninth Circuit takes on marriage equality again as Nevada's own Sevcik v. Sandoval law suit arrives in San Francisco. And with Governor Brian Sandoval (R) and outgoing Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto (D) both declining to defend Nevada's marriage ban any longer, Nevada may soon go the way of California and Virginia.



Outgoing Secretary of State and current Attorney General candidate Ross Miller (D) refused to mince words when he delivered a passionate legal and personal endorsement of marriage equality in Reno last month. His general election opponent, Adam Laxalt (R), has dismissed this and other LGBTQ civil rights matters as mere "political issues" that he prefers to mock and demean.

Funny enough, Virginia Republicans have been screaming at Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring (D) ever since he decided to drop the state's defense of its marriage ban. Perhaps they even sensed this was coming, as Virginia Republicans spent millions trying to defeat Mark Herring in the very hotly contested Attorney General race last year.

A State Attorney General's job is to defend both the state constitution and the federal constitution. But when the 2 are in conflict, the US Constitution trumps all. Ross Miller seems to understand this, yet Adam Laxalt does not. Keep an eye on this, as it may become a "political issue" this fall that Mr. Laxalt may later come to regret mocking.

Caught

Last week, someone was arrested. She registered to vote in Clark County... Twice, as a Republican and as a Democrat. And Biqui Diana Parra Rodriguez has been caught.

In April, Hortencia Segura registered as a Republican in Washoe County... Even though she's not a citizen. And she was caught.

Last week, Washington State Rep. (and aspiring Hollywood beefcake) Mike Hope (R) resigned from the Washington Legislature when news reports revealed that he has been registered to vote in Washington State and Ohio since last summer. Once he resigned, Mike Hope then revealed that he hasn't had a permanent address in his district for a while. In fact, he no longer has a permanent address anywhere in Washington State. He's now relocating back to Ohio. Oh yes, and he has been caught.

Notice a pattern here? For one, all these registration fraud cases just happened to involve Republican voter registrations. And ultimately, all of them were rather quickly caught.

But of course, certain G-O-TEA politicians (cough- Barbara Cegavske -cough) are now demanding voter suppression. And of course, they do so whenever stories like these emerge. Never mind that members of their own party were doing it. Never mind that they're advocating a system where voters are presumed guilty before they can prove their innocence, something that is the exact opposite of American legal tradition. And never mind that the tiny handful of people who try their hands at voter registration fraud are ultimately caught in a rather short amount of time.

So why are they now demanding voter suppression (again)? Why do they want to risk violating the legitimate voting rights of many thousands of Nevadans and millions more Americans? Why are they demanding a "solution" in search of a problem?

The jig is up. They've been caught. We can see right through this latest political stunt, and we sense we're not alone.

Here's the Issue.

Perhaps since he hasn't been making headlines lately, he's trying this new stunt to garner more media attention. Earlier today, Attorney General candidate Adam Laxalt (R) tweeted this.

MT @AdamLaxalt: Today, I pledge to refuse any political gifts as #NVAG and I urge Ross Miller to do same. http://www.adamlaxaltforag.com/laxalt_pledges_to_refuse_political_gifts_challenges_ross_miller_to_do_the_same …/Good issue.

Yep, that was Jon Ralston saying it's a "good issue". And perhaps he's right. After all, outgoing Secretary of State and current Attorney General candidate Ross Miller (D) has already been working on the issue of campaign finance reform. What's Adam Laxalt's history on this issue?

Oh, and why is he now tweeting about this issue? Why does he now want to talk about "gifts"? Might it be due to his discomfort whenever folks in the media talk too much about his favorite "political issue"?



Come on, Adam! We know how strongly you feel about this "political issue". We know how strongly you feel about the great threat that gender neutral restrooms, marriage equality, children's movies, and out athletes pose to this great state & nation.



No matter how much they talk about "Republican rebranding", G-O-TEA politicians never seem to want to talk about their record on LGBTQ civil rights. They don't want to talk about how they compare marriage equality to graffiti. They don't want to talk about how they continue to disparage transgender people and mock our very existence. And of course, they don't want to talk about their continuing "militant" opposition to basic human rights.

Sure, we recognize that not all Republicans want to continue hiding in the Stone Age. State Senator Ben Kieckhefer (R-Reno) quite bravely stuck his neck out for marriage equality in Carson City last year, even as Senate Minority Leader Michael Roberson (R-Henderson) decided to whip against it (after telling the media he'd support the marriage amendment). And just this week, US Rep. David Jolly (R-Florida) announced he changed his mind on marriage equality while top Florida Republicans continue to fight against it in court.

Notice that? They're still the exceptions rather than the rule. They're still the ones bucking "leadership" while "leaders" still fail to lead. They're still the ones with "issues" because they're sick and tired of ducking this issue that continues to cause pain in people's lives.



Here's the issue: Politicians like Adam Laxalt want to continue pretending that they're not the ones with "issues" even thought they're always the ones taking issue with the very notion of civil rights for LGBTQ people. So after they spit out more incendiary rhetoric and throw more "red meat" at their 21st Century Know Nothing base, they then turn around to blame the victim for forcing "political issues" on them. Clearly, they're still in denial. And clearly, they're the ones with all the wrong "issues" here.

Who Are You?

Who are you? No really, stop and think about that. And think about what makes you who you are.

Who are you? What defines you? How do you see yourself? And why?

Debi Jackson had to confront this when her daughter came out to her. She was 4 at the time, and she already knew she's a girl. Debi Jackson did a Google search, realized her daughter is indeed a transgender girl, and then moved quickly to provide her daughter with the love & support she needed.



If only more people had the insight and compassion of Debi Jackson. Students like Jayce Marcus, Domaine Javier, & Christian Minard now have to fight against discrimination at the very institutions of higher learning that are supposed to provide a safe & supportive environment for them. Trudy Kitzmiller & Kristen Skinner had to threaten legal action to just to obtain proper customer service at the West Virginia DMV. And Mia Henderson was found murdered in Baltimore yesterday.



And now, LGBTQ Americans must ponder a new threat to equality. Last month, the US Supreme Court issued a ruling in the Hobby Lobby case that caused epic confusion. And now that 5 Supreme Court Justices seem to believe that corporations have license to do a number of things under the guise of "religious freedom", several LGBTQ civil rights organizations have decided to back away from the current version of ENDA in Congress due to its religious exemptions. In addition, they're urging President Obama to refrain from including religious exemptions in his executive order barring federal contractors from discriminating against LGBTQ workers.

Think about that. It's 2014. And still, millions of Americans must worry about things like whether they can live as "normal" families, whether they can hold a job, whether they can stay in school, and even whether they can manage to live another day.



Who are they? Who are these people? We are people. We are workers. We are students. We are veterans. We are DREAMers. We are parents. We are families. We are Americans, Americans with Constitutional rights.

Who are you? Are you a mere "political issue"? Or are you a real human being who deserves real respect?

Ross Miller Has "Issues".

What an exciting weekend this has been. Back home in Vegasland, the Electric Daisy Carnival was rocking. However, that didn't mean sparks weren't flying up here in Reno. (Get it? Sparks!)

The Nevada State Democratic Party held its 2014 Convention in Reno this weekend. Democrats from across the state came here to "The Biggest Little City in the World" to meet each other, meet their candidates for this fall, and take care of party business.



One of Nevada Democrats' candidates for this fall is Ross Miller. He's our outgoing Secretary of State. And he's now running for Attorney General.

Oh, and Ross Miller isn't one to back down when he sees a wrong that must be made right. So when it was his turn to address the convention, he didn't hold back. In fact, he specifically addressed his issues with Adam Laxalt's "political issues".



Adam Laxalt may have "political issues" with marriage equality and LGBTQ civil rights in general, but Ross Miller certainly does not. Rather, he has issues with those who have "political issues" with human rights



We swear, sparks flew during that barn-burner of a speech. He's actually had to implement SB 283. He's actually had to fly with friends to California to take them to their wedding. And when the unthinkable happened, he had to help a friend cope with the unimaginable.

For G-O-TEA politicians like Adam Laxalt, LGBTQ civil rights may be "political issues" he prefers to blithely dismiss. But for Ross Miller, we are human beings who deserve the same respect & dignity that everyone else takes for granted. It looks to us like he takes his oath of office seriously. And it's looking like he values the US Constitution more than some mere "political issues".

Please take notes, Mr. Laxalt.

"Political Issue"

Again? He's going there again? He just doesn't seem to know when to quit before he falls even further behind.

Even as Governor Brian Sandoval (R) agreed to drop his fight against the plaintiffs in Sevcik v. Sandoval, Attorney General candidate Adam Laxalt (R) vowed to continue fighting against marriage equality. And he's still doing so today. Even though he's been "softening" his language (a la Pat Hickey) as of late, Adam Laxalt is still hard set against equality.

“(The ban) is in the (state) constitution. That’s the thing that has been bothersome. It has been made a political issue. If we allow these to become political issues in the attorney general’s office, everyone will lose faith in the attorney general.”

Actually, Mr. Laxalt, this was "made a political issue" by Richard Ziser and Janine Hansen when they placed the Question 2 marriage ban on the 2000 & 2002 general election ballots. They launched a campaign to ban marriage equality in Nevada. And they ultimately succeeded in 2002.

However since then, two things have changed. One is public opinion, both here in Nevada and nationally. The other is federal courts stepping in to remind states that these little marriage bans just happen to violate a little something called the US Constitution.

And then, there's something that hasn't changed: family values. And by family values, we mean true values. Love. Honor. Cherish. Commitment. These are values that be taken away by ballot initiative. Richard Ziser and Janine Hansen tried, but they couldn't succeed at this.

Remember, this "has been made a political issue" by Ziser, Hansen, and their anti-equality allies. This "has been made a political issue" by Adam Laxalt's ideological soulmates whenever they started political campaigns to take away people's civil rights. And this "has been made a political issue" by these same G-O-TEA politicians who are now attacking the courts for acknowledging Constitutional law.

As usual, Adam Laxalt is wrong. Marriage equality "has been made a political issue" by those in his political party who sought political advantage by demonizing LGBTQ people and our Constitutional rights. But now that case law and public opinion are no longer swinging in their direction, they're trying to "play victim" by claiming that those who are now undoing the damage of the past 14 years are somehow making this into "a political issue". Nice try, Mr. Laxalt, but we're onto you and your "political issues".

"Profiles in Courage"

What do you think of when the words "Profile in Courage" come to mind? And who do you think of? Probably not Senator Dean Heller (R)?

There are many things we can say about Senator Dean Heller. "Profile in Courage" likely isn't one of them. And it's certainly not something a certain prominent media pundit would say about the Senator.

And speaking of Jon Ralston, he's had some beef with Senator Heller over his refusal to indicate whether he was comped into a NASCAR race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He eventually told a reporter (from the "newspaper") that he paid for his own ticket, but that was only after Ralston revealed that Las Vegas Motor Speedway offers comps to lawmakers every year in return for ensuring it won't get taxed. And that was only after three State Senators were shamed into reimbursing the Speedway owners once news broke that they (along with even more elected officials) were comped into the NASCAR race.

In reality, we may never really know the full truth of what happened at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Why's that? Current Nevada law allows politicians to "accept gifts under $200" without reporting them as campaign contributions. Outgoing Secretary of State (& current Attorney General candidate) Ross Miller (D) attempted to close this and other campaign finance loopholes last year. And while he did ultimately succeed iin getting the Nevada Legislature to pass a modest campaign finance reform package, that was only after the "Gaming-mining-lobbying Industrial Complex" succeeded in watering it down so it wouldn't be too threatening to the choke hold it has on Carson City.

That's why Senator Heller and a bunch of state legislators figured it would be "no big deal" if they accepted Las Vegas Motor Speedway's generous invitation to a special NASCAR celebration in their honor. And as long as they they keep giving the "Gaming-mining-lobbying Industrial Complex" the "Black Card" treatment, they'll always get the red carpet treatment where they want it most.

Meanwhile, "We the People" keep getting the shaft. Why? As long as the game is continually rigged in favor of those can afford to "pay to play", we'll always be left out in the cold.

And that's why we always come back to this key point: If we don't like the "Black Card/Red Carpet/Pay-to-play" games being played in Carson City & DC, then we must change the game. And the only way we can effectively change the game to level the playing field for everyone is if we properly address the root of this problem.

Fortunately, solutions are available. And fortunately for Senator Heller, one of those solutions is within his reach. S 2023 would put us on the path to a fairer & cleaner election system by leveling the playing field so that big money interests can't simply buy their way to a complete political monopoly. It would allow "We the People" back into the game. And it would make elected officials more accountable to those who elected them into office in the first place.

What, you didn't think we'd take another opportunity to use another corruption scandal to direct your attention back to campaign finance reform? Come on! Of course, we had to do this. Unlike certain politicians who never seem to aspire to become actual "Profiles in Courage", we're not afraid to address the root of this problem. We're just wondering when enough of them will finally muster the courage to solve this problem once & for all.

Follow the Leader

On Monday, we saw a major turnaround. In a fascinating about face, both Governor Brian Sandoval (R) and Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto agreed to drop their plan to defend the state’s ban on marriage equality in federal court. Overall, their decision has been met with many sighs of relief here in Nevada. Why waste the state’s time and money on a losing war to deny thousands of Nevada families their civil rights?

However, not everyone feels that way. Already, Nevada’s top G-O-TEA politicians are going against their own Governor and decrying his decision to stop fighting marriage equality in court. Attorney General candidate Adam Laxalt (R) has been trying to differentiate himself from Sandoval, Cortez Masto, and his likely Democratic opponent this fall (outgoing Secretary of State Ross Miller) with his loud opposition to marriage equality and a promise to reinstate the state’s legal fight against it. And Washoe County District Attorney Dick Gammick (R) went on "Nevada Newsmakers" yesterday to declare he's sick & tired of LGBTQ Nevadans "throwing it in his face" (whatever that means).

We've known for some time that Brian Sandoval has very little juice left in his own party. But now, it's becoming crystal clear that most Nevada Republicans would rather take marching orders from G-O-TEA Shock Jock Rush Limbaugh than from their own Governor. Wait, what?!

No really, think about it. Earlier this week, Rush Limbaugh had a panic attack when University of Missouri football star and potential NFL recruit Michael Sam came out as gay. He then went on to declare that heterosexuals are somehow "under assault". How?



As usual, "El Rushbo" made absolutely no sense. He just doesn't like the idea of out athletes. He probably also doesn't like out Eagle Scouts, out Bandstand dancers, and/or out Navy SEALs. And he still refuses to accept 21st century America.

But then again, so do the 21st Century Know Nothings who consider him, Laura Ingraham, and the other leading G-O-TEA Shock Jocks to be the "true leaders of the movement". They're afraid of 21st Century America, and they see growing acceptance of LGBTQ Americans as a "threat to traditional values". And because they are the base of today's Republican Party, G-O-TEA politicians (such as Adam Laxalt & Dick Gammick) will pander to their fears in order to further their own careers.

That's all we're seeing now. G-O-TEA politicians are just following their leaders. And no, Brian Sandoval isn't one of those leaders.

Sandoval Threatens Veto of AB 440/AB 441 Election Reform

As we've discussed many times here before, this session of the Nevada Legislature has been quite action packed. We've seen many successes... And we've seen some failures. But without a doubt, Session #77 looks to be going down as a very memorable one.

Early last month, Secretary of State Ross Miller (D) joined forces with Assembly Member James Ohrenschall (D-Sunrise Manor) to introduce AB 440 and AB 441. Both revolutionize voting in Nevada by extending the registration deadline and bringing early voting style election centers to general election day. Last month, we saw compelling testimony for AB 440 and AB 441.





But of course, Governor Brian Sandoval (R-"TEA" Curious) isn't interested in that. Here's what PLAN tweeted earlier today on the Governor's newest veto threat.



While the Nevada State Democratic Party didn't have a colorful meme in response, Chair Roberta Lange had this to say.

“Today Governor Sandoval joined right-wing Republican Governors across the county in their blatantly political efforts to restrict voting rights. Nevada has one of the most restrictive voter registration deadlines in the county, yet Governor Sandoval thinks this arbitrary deadline that keeps thousands of Nevadans from voting is acceptable. Sandoval's announcement that he will veto this bill is only the latest sign that Republicans recognize their pro-Wall Street, anti-middle class agenda is out of touch with Nevada voters, and that the only way they can win at the ballot box is to prevent as many people from voting as possible.”

But ultimately, this isn't about partisan sniping. This is about empowering people to exercise their legal right to vote. Why should people be denied a chance to participate in the democratic process? Is it truly fair and appropriate for the state to deny people a chance to participate because they want to register in mid or late October?

Again, this isn't about partisan politicking... Or at least, it shouldn't be. Apparently, Governor Sandoval feels otherwise. And numerous eligible Nevada voters may ultimately suffer because of this.

Postscript on Whittemore Verdict, SB 49, & the Real Solution to Nevada's Culture of Corruption

What a fall from grace. Not too long ago, Harvey Whittemore was one of Nevada's top power players. But now, he's officially a convict.

A U.S. District Court jury has found developer Harvey Whittemore guilty on three counts of making illegal campaign contributions.

Jurors are telling U.S. District Court Judge Larry Hicks they don't think they can reach a verdict on charges Whittemore lied to the FBI. Hicks is sending the jury back to deliberate on the lying charge.

Oh, and what we discussed over two months ago still stands.

Of course, the usual suspects will try to spin this all sorts of ways. So let's first clear this up: Harvey Whittemore was an opportunistic and bipartisan "juice man". He once had close ties to Harry Reid, Dean Heller, and a whole host of politicians at all levels of government across the state. He was only abandoned when the FBI began investigating him.

As we've discussed before, this is the tactic often used to deflect from the real pursuit of real solutions to this ongoing problem of corruption in Nevada Government. It's easy to just blame a politician who once received campaign contributions. It's much riskier to actually propose shutting down the ongoing "Merry-go-round of Corruption". [...]

We will only experience more of these embarrassing corruption scandals if we fail to address the root of this problem. That's why we eventually need real, serious dialogue on clean money. With clean money (or public financing of campaigns), we can finally have clean elections. And with clean elections, our elected officials are no longer beholden to shady "juice men" and conniving corporate lobbyists.

So before we hear any pundits and politicians restart the blame game on this and/or any future corruption scandals to emerge, we should dare them to offer a solution. Are they ready to bring clean money & clean elections to Nevada? If not, and if they don't like the concept of public financing, what is their solution?

Last month, we saw a glimmer of hope in SB 49's passage. And while the final bill does offer some campaign finance reform and more transparency than what we had become accustomed to, it's nonetheless a shadow of its former self. And it still comes nowhere close to ending Nevada's infamous culture of corruption.

Of course, we're not alone in this. New York has had its own share of recent scandals. And earlier this year, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (D) showed some real courage in addressing the root of these corruption scandals... And advocating the real solution.





So my demand still stands. Before we hear any pundit and/or rival politician spin the Whittemore verdict against another politician, let's see these pundits and politicians discuss the real solution to this systemic corruption. This is what Nevada truly needs, not another meaningless round of finger pointing blame games.

Finally, a Step Forward

About an hour ago, another bill passed to live another day. This time it was SB 49, the campaign finance reform bill pushed by Secretary of State Ross Miller (D). It had to endure some weakening alterations in committee, but ultimately much of what Miller wanted survived.

And just moments ago, the amended SB 49 passed the full Senate. The vote was 13-8 in favor. All Democrats voted for the bill, and Senators Joe Hardy (R-Boulder City) & Scott Hammond (R-Las Vegas) joined the Democrats to vote to approve. All the other Republicans voted against the bill.

But of course, the ones who voted against SB 49 are claiming it's actually the Democrats who oppose campaign finance reform. "Oh, Armani! Oh, the reporting requirement here isn't good enough!" To be fair, Senator Ben Kieckhefer (R-Reno) did offer an amendment. However, the others did not. So really, their excuses for voting against SB 49 sound all too familiar.

Is this bill a panacea for better transparency and ethics? Not quite. In fact, we've discussed what's really needed to clean up the hot mess that's Nevada government.

Yet with that being said, SB 49 is a good start. It finally sets real standards for campaign finance reporting. And remember, knowledge is power. So tonight, the Nevada Legislature finally took a major step in the direction of meaningful reform.