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.

SB 49 Campaign Finance Reform Passed Committee, Now Moving to Full Senate

Last month, we discussed the importance of the campaign finance & ethics reform bills pending in the Nevada Legislature this session. One such is bill is SB 49, Secretary of State Ross Miller's bill that calls for more campaign finance reporting. Believe it or not, SB 49 also moved out of committee yesterday. And that's no small feat.

So what happened? Yesterday, the bill had its final day in the Senate Legislative Operations & Elections Committee. A few members grumbled over the reporting requirements.

And then, the bill was amended. Secretary Miller already changed the minimum amount of immediately reportable contributions from $1,000 to $2,000. He also decided to include internet advertising as required expenditure reporting, and he agreed to exclude charitable and educational events from gift reporting. But on top of that, Senator Kelvin Atkinson (D-North Las Vegas) further amended the bill by delaying the start of the new reporting rules to 2014.

And then, finally, it was time to vote. Senators Barbara Cegavske (R-Spring Valley) and James Settlemeyer (R-Minden) voted against SB 49. Meanwhile, Senators Atkinson, Pat Spearman (D-North Las Vegas), and Mark Manendo (D-Paradise) voted in favor. So SB 49 passed as amended.

So was it watered down some? Yep, though it was also strengthened in other ways (like required online ad reporting). But ultimately, it passed committee. It's moving onto the full Senate. And finally, something may happen.

How often have we seen ugly corruption scandals emerge? And how often have we seen the exact same reaction of petty finger pointing while offering no real solutions?

It's time for a chance. And SB 49 starts to move Nevada in a new direction of transparency. Knowledge truly is power. And the more we know about the flow of money in and out of campaigns, the more we can do to identify the problems in our campaign finance system and change them.

On Harvey Whittemore (& Heidi Gansert)... & A Way to Shut Down That Merry-go-round

Yesterday, Harvey Whittemore was denied a motion to drop his charges. Wait, what? Who?

Remember Harvey Whittemore? He was once at the top of Nevada's political ladder. He was the "preeminent juice man". And then, all of a sudden, his house of cards started tumbling down. His planned mega-development at Coyote Springs fell apart when last decade's "Real Estate Bubble" burst. His business partners then turned on him. And now, he will indeed go to trial on corruption charges.

A federal judge has denied motions by a former Nevada political powerbroker to dismiss charges alleging he used his family and employees to make illegal campaign contributions to U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

The Reno Gazette-Journal reports U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks on Tuesday denied four motions filed by Harvey Whittemore seeking dismissal of the government's case.

Whittemore was indicted June 6 by a federal grand jury on four counts stemming from campaign contributions made in 2007 to Reid.

Of course, the usual suspects will try to spin this all sorts of ways. So let's first clear this up: Harvey Whittimore 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".

So what can be done? Secretary of State Ross Miller has offered SB 49 for better campaign finance reporting. State Senator Justin Jones (D-Enterprise) has offered SB 203 as a companion bill, as it calls for lobbyists to file quarterly reports. These bills at least allow for more transparency.

However, there's another step we can take to curb corruption. We've discussed it before. And we need to bring it up again now.

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?

We don't have to continue riding this merry-go-round. We can stop it... If we want to.

1:30 PM UPDATE:

Ha! That didn't take long. Nevada's next great corruption scandal is now here. Thanks, Heidi Gansert!

A former Democratic Party chairman has filed a complaint alleging former GOP Assemblywoman Heidi Gansert illegally kept campaign funds, then funneled them to a PAC she controlled and then disbursed the money.

The complaint, field today by ex-Washoe Democratic Party Chairman Chris Wicker, alleges Gansert kept more than $100,000 in unpsent campaign contributions after she left office in November 2010. (She later served as Gov. Brian Sandoval's chief of staff.)

Then, in October 2011, Gansert gave most of her unspent cash -- about $74,000 -- to a PAC called Nevada First, which was controlled by....Heidi Gansert.

Wicker, who is still a spokesman for the Washoe party, sent his complaint to the secretary of state's election integrity task force, saying Gansert took too long to dispose of the money and then chose a vehicle disallowed by the law.

Surprise! Heidi Gansert raised a ton of money in her last campaign. Yet when she left the Assembly to become Governor Brian Sandoval's Chief of Staff, she didn't leave that ton of money behind. Rather, she moved that money into her own PAC, then spent it on her favored candidates... Who were, of course, Nevada Republicans like Senator Greg Brower (R-Reno) and Assembly Minority Leader Pat Hickey (R-Reno).

Just who is actually surprised by this crap? Again, we see this all the time. So when will we actually do something about it? I wonder what supposed "corruption fighter" Pat Hickey has to say about this.

On Stopping That Merry-Go-Round of Corruption

It's a time honored tradition in Nevada politics. Corruption scandals emerge. Certain former legislators re-emerge as lobbyists. Ugly campaign finance reports surface. And all of a sudden, certain politicians pay lip service to "reform"... While actually working behind the scenes to kill actual reform.

This time, it's supposed to be different. Assembly Minority Leader and "born again reformer" Pat Hickey (R-Reno) has wanted us to forget his own checkered past on the subject and notice his newfound zeal for combating corruption. Yesterday, Hickey was trumpeting his own bill (AB 77) to slow the revolving door from the Assembly & Senate floors to lucrative lobbyist careers by implementing a one session "cooling off period". This sounds noble. And it seems like common sense. So of course, it's under attack by the very legislators-turned-lobbyists Hickey is targeting.

“I am the definition of the revolving door,” joked contractors lobbyist Warren Hardy, who was an assemblyman who became a lobbyist who became a senator who became a lobbyist again. “Saying I couldn’t go back to lobbying would be like saying (Sen.) Joe Hardy couldn’t got back to being a doctor.”

Of the handful of former lawmakers-turned-lobbyists interviewed by the Sun, all readily acknowledged their time in the Legislature has given them a leg up as a lobbyist.

They know the process. They know the people. They know the pitfalls.

“I don’t think I’d ever own my own independent business as a lobbyist if I hadn’t been a lawmaker first,” gaming and mining lobbyist Josh Griffin, who served one term in the Assembly, said. “Sure, it’s valuable experience for a lobbyist.”

And of course, there's "Moose Juice". Remember this?

“I think you have to hit things while the iron is hot,” said [Morse] Arberry [D-Las Vegas], who was in his final term in the Assembly because of term limits. “For 25 years I served in the Legislature and in public, and I bring relationships and a lot of knowledge to the table. A cooling-off period hinders an individual. Momentum you have is lost because then you’re not involved in the field.”

Clark County Commissioner Steve Sisolak laughed at Arberry’s comment. He called Arberry a friend, but said his remarks reflect “exactly why we need a cooling-off period.”

No really, he tried that. He didn't succeed there, but he's nonetheless now a lobbyist. Ah, Nevada politics at its best. (/snark)

And then, there's Ross Miller. Mr. Secretary of State made waves late last year with SB 63, his election reform bill. However, that's not the only legislation he's pursuing. Miller is also pushing for SB 49, which calls for more comprehensive and timely campaign finance reporting.

Ross Miller isn't new to this. He's tried campaign finance reform before. Of course, his past bills were quietly killed. He's also suing AFP over its questionable campaign activities, and he may find more success in court.

Ross Miller is hoping this Legislature session will be different. After all, he has some help. Not only is Senator Justin Jones (D-Enterprise) supporting SB 49, but he's also offering SB 203 as a companion bill. Jones' bill calls for lobbyists to file quarterly reports on their activities. (FYI, Jones was one of the candidates targeted by AFP last year.)



Of course, Miller and Jones are running into resistance. While no lobbyists actually showed up yesterday to testify against SB 49, they nonetheless found a more nefarious way to make their position clear on this and other campaign finance reform efforts. Make no mistake. This is coming.

Miller’s bill says any contribution of $1,000 or more must be reported to the secretary of state within 72 hours.

Whatever arguments you hear from legislators –how onerous that is, the great imposition – are smoke screens. How can they argue with a straight face that the public should not know as soon as possible when a contribution is made and for how much?

They can’t, so they will create diversions. Mark my words. Other parts of Miller’s bill also should sail through the committee and the Legislature because they would make the system more transparent:

Reporting how much a candidate has on hand, a glaring omission on current reports

Stricter reporting and policing of gifts from lobbyists

Defines what personal uses of campaign contributions are prohibited

One reason most readers might not take any of this seriously is because unless you are a political insider, you might find it hard to believe these loopholes exist. But they do, and their closure is long overdue.

So stay awake folks. Anyone who tries to kill this bill is interested only in perpetuating a corrupt system and is guilty of the kind of insidious, subtle corruption that is often invisible to the naked eye.

That's what's really at stake. And that's why the superpower legal/lobbying firms' arm of "The Gaming-Mining-Lobbying Industrial Complex" will likely go all in to kill all the transparency and ethics legislation pending this session. You likely won't see this at the committee hearings and the Assembly & Senate floors, but this will be pushed behind the scenes. After all, they hate it when the mask is pulled from the corrupt reality of Carson City.

We've discussed this many times before. Nevada Government has been a merry-go-round of corruption for quite some time. And while the modest reforms mentioned above won't completely end the ride on their own, they at least have the potential to slow the merry-go-round of corruption enough to where we have a better view of what's happening. That alone is why Miller's, Jones', and even Hickey's respective bills have a tough ride ahead.