As the Chamber Talks... We Need to Act

Every legislative session, all eagerly await the recommendations from a certain set of lobbyists. And this year, there seems to be even more excitement/angst surrounding them.

Every organization at the table in Carson City plays the game of give and take. For years, the [Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce] has been the voice against implementing various businesses taxes. Not unlike the Nevada Development Authority, an organization with which it often collaborates, it sold the argument that Las Vegas is a great place to do business because taxes are low and stable. This year, though, a number of studies, think tanks and interest groups have found that the state’s education system has a greater role in Nevadans’ quality of life than many previously thought. Nearly every report recommends the state strengthen its education system to build toward economic diversification.

That hasn’t been lost on the chamber, which has built stronger bridges with the education community in the past year. Crosson embraced new UNLV President Neal Smatresk; now, Smatresk is a member of the chamber’s board of trustees. McMillan said maintaining a close relationship with UNLV and with Clark County School District Superintendent Dwight Jones is a priority.

“Clearly, education is important to the future of Southern Nevada,” McMillan said. “We all know that. Nobody wants to see teachers take pay cuts. These are very difficult and complicated issues. Our government affairs committee is taking a close look at the impacts of the governor’s budget.”

Nevada’s education system lands at the bottom of numerous lists ranking education quality. Further cuts are outlined in Gov. Brian Sandoval’s budget proposal to close a multimillion-dollar funding gap. Would lawmakers allow the state’s system to fall into a bigger hole? What would that say about the state’s commitment to education and economic diversification? Would the chamber be willing to support a tax increase as an investment in the state’s economic future? The answer to that last question appears to be “maybe.”

So the chamber, of all people, is the last great hope to save Nevada? Really? Or is there a catch? Desert Beacon may have caught one. Must we sacrifice out public servants at the altar?

The trading position appears reasonably obvious — the Chambers will not oppose some concessions in terms of taxation IF they can achieve the limitation of public employee collective bargaining rights at the local level, and continue the policy of no collective bargaining for state employees. In sum, the posture appears to be: “We will give you a little — certainly not more rational taxation on mining, or Heaven Forfend discuss amending the state constitution to incorporate a progressive income tax — if you (labor) will give up retirement benefits, health care insurance benefits, collective bargaining rights in terms of mediation/arbitration, subjects included in the collective bargaining process, and allow school districts to do away with salary schedules and seniority.

Thus, no one should be surprised at the latest amendment to S.B. 98, emanating from the Chamber of Commerce which would allow local entities to (1) renegotiate contracts if revenues come in 5% below expectations, (2) eliminate binding arbitration, (3) remove public sector managers and administrators from the bargaining process, (4) and require that newly negotiated contracts take effect at the beginning of the prior contract’s expiration. [NNB] If this sounds familiar — like the initial position of the Chambers of Commerce listed above — you’re right; that is precisely what it is.

Horse trading is a fine old legislative art in these United States. However, what the Chambers of Commerce appears to have in mind is trading a pony (minimal concessions on taxation) for a working saddle horse. IF public employees are willing to give up retirement benefits, retiree’s health care benefits, arbitration, subjects of mandatory collective bargaining, salary schedules, seniority clauses, and evergreen clauses — then Maybe the Chamber will ‘negotiate’ on tax increases.

There is a difference between horse trading and hostage taking, although it seems that the Chambers of Commerce in Nevada are more willing to indulge in the latter than the former during this session of the Legislature.

So what can we do? Basically, it all comes down to knowing how to play hardball. Right now, that's what the Vegas Chamber is doing... And progressives need to step up with their own.

Wait... What is that I hear? Sandoville? Someone's arriving to "Wake Up Nevada"? That's right. Many of my very courageous friends & family are in Carson City right now, literally CAMPING right outside The Legislature to make it known to them that we the people won't accept any more of these cheap and degrading games that jeopardize our future.

As many as 200 students, social service workers, teachers and progressive activists plan to live in tents during Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday as they host events and lobby legislators.

The agenda could include events at both the Capitol and the Legislature, said Jan Gilbert, lobbyist for the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, which has helped coordinate the event.

“We hope to change some of the legislators minds to increase the revenue base,” she said. “We know there need to be cuts, but also revenue.”

Students are again planning to bring buses from Las Vegas, as they did March 21 for a rally for revenue at the Legislature. Some say it was the largest rally ever held at the Legislature.

“We know that enough legislators are on the fence about supporting new revenue to help education that we can win the fight, but we cannot win it without direct action,” said Mike Flores of Progress NOW, another sponsor of the event, in an email.

This is simply amazing. And frankly, we need to keep seeing this new (or renewed?) spirit of activism. We've had to learn the hard way that we can't always count on "big bid'ness" to be "benevolent" enough to throw the plebes some crumbs, depending on how much revenue they can extract from the casinos.

Hopefully, The Las Vegas & Reno/Sparks Chambers will realize that saving our state by restoring our public infrastructure (starting with public education) is more important than silly ideological battles over public servants' workplace rights and benefits. But in the mean time, we can't wait for them to say the right words. We need to act.

Wait, There's an Election Here?!

Yep, there really is. In fact, early voting starts this weekend. And sadly, I'm wondering if most Henderson and North Las Vegas residents even realize this.

Here in Henderson, I've been talking with neighbors. And while many do seem ready to vote, others forgot that Henderson has municipal elections every odd year (though that may change in the not-too-distant future). For all we know, it may be a small pool of a few thousand Henderson voters that ultimately determine our next City Council Member in Ward 4.









So of course, we're seeing the mail. So far, as you can see above, I've only been receiving positive pro-candidate mailers. I even got a letter from a neighbor in support of Sam Bateman! I thought that was a nice touch.

However, there is a clear choice in this election... And both candidates aren't hesitating to air out those differences.

The last two men standing in the race for Henderson's Ward IV City Council seat have no shortage of experience.

The type and amount of experience that each one considers relevant to the seat that will be decided in the General Election on June 7, however, has emerged as the dividing issue in the campaign.

In many ways, that was to be expected, what with the race pitting former police chief Mike Mayberry - a 29-year veteran of the Henderson Police Department - against the younger Sam Bateman, a Clark County prosecutor and chairman of the Henderson Planning Commission. [...]

"I think I'll bring a new perspective," Bateman said. "Being somebody who's not been in city government for a long time, I can bring a fresh perspective, look at things in a different way and ask questions that other people wouldn't ask." [...]

"I think I'm in a better position, day one going forward, based on the type of issues we deal with on the Planning Commission that are going on in the city right now, to hit the ground running on day one and move forward," Bateman said. "... I think we just need to turn the page, and that's what I represent."

[Mike] Mayberry said he feels a deep connection to the city that has come from the decades in which he has lived and worked in it.

"I truly believe in that old axiom that 'People don't really care how much you know until they know how much you care,'" he said. "I truly want us to be the premiere city in Southern Nevada and I think that with my experience, my background and my being a fiscal conservative, I can help get us there."

Already, we're hearing certain buzzwords and catchy phrases get tossed around, such as "long time", "fiscal conservative", "fresh perspective", and "turn the page". Mayberry has been in Henderson government longer than I've been alive, while Bateman is the "new kid on the block". Bateman isn't afraid to critique past city budget decisions and development plans, while Mayberry boasts of his "institutional knowledge" and support from key local power players.

Mayberry has been endorsed by Mayor Andy Hafen, former County Commissioner Bruce Woodbury, "kingmaker" Sig Rogich, and a few others. However, Bateman isn't without his own key supporters. Current County Commissioners Mary Beth Scow and Steve Sisolak, along with outgoing City Council Member Steve Kirk (this vacated seat is the one we're talking about), and the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce and Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, have endorsed Bateman. For what was supposed to be a sleepy local election, there's a whole lot of star power popping in now!

So what is this election about? And why should we care? Remember, local government is the government we see, feel, talk to, pay, and experience most of the time. Municipal elections may not seem as "sexy" as a big ticket Presidential race, but they are the elections that determine the kind of government we actually deal with every day.

So hopefully, turn out will be better than many are expecting as people realize there is an election starting this weekend (as early voting starts Saturday!) and they need to make up their minds. Before I get into further details on my own thoughts on Henderson Ward 4, I just wanted to make sure anyone else here doesn't forget that we need to vote soon. ;-)

Doomed? Damned? Or Deal?

Reading Ralston this morning, it's easy to feel like this state is somehow doomed.

This is the box [Democratic legislators] have created, leaving three possible endgame scenarios:

One, they give up enough to the Republicans on their reform agenda that at least three GOP senators and two GOP assemblymen support a tax increase. Sandoval would then veto the plan, and lawmakers would override him.

Two, the Democrats execute what I call the White Flag Strategy, surrendering to the inevitability of the Sandoval budget and give eleventh-hour polemics insisting the governor must wear the consequences. They pass his budget and go home June 6.

Three, the Democrats decide to play hardball and don’t pass a budget. Sandoval dismisses them June 6 and lets them stew for almost a month as they try to stir up opposition, then he calls a special session shortly before the end of the fiscal year June 30 and tries to impose a solution. This is the unhappiest scenario of all.

At the end of last week, the Democrats held hearings on their tax plans, with few surprises and much we have seen before. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce folks reiterated their support for taxes if (you can’t put enough emphasis on that word) lawmakers pass public benefit reforms. Gaming and mining supported the new margin tax (they also will back the new transactions tax) because they don’t like industry-specific taxes — especially when they are the specific industries. And labor leaders threatened to go to the ballot with taxes if lawmakers didn’t pass the Democrats’ plan, causing some Republicans quietly to say: Bring it on.

So what to do now? Are we doomed to Sandoval's budget of butchery? Or can we at least resign ourselves to another 2003 or 2009 style cobbled together budget of fiscal "band aids" and "quick fixes"?

Maybe. Or maybe it's too soon to declare "game over".

The public has packed hearing rooms—often with the help of Democratic organizers—to protest the cuts to education, social services and state worker salaries.

Many of those same people have testified in support of the tax increases proposed by Democrats.

But even if those who oppose the tax increase are sitting on the sidelines because they believe it has no chance of passing, some Republican lawmakers continue to voice willingness to back a tax increase in exchange for spending reforms.

“Right now we have a balanced budget,” said [Assembly Member Pete] Livermore [R-Carson City], who signed the no new taxes pledge. “But if the right reforms happen, I do think we could do some add backs.”

That keeps alive the possibility of a tax increase, or at the very least the extension of the 2009 tax increases that are set to expire in June.

So revenue is still on the table?

So things looked bleak for proponents of a tax increase to soften the cuts in education and human services.

Yet Republican lawmakers are still open to negotiations.

Sen. Joe Hardy, R-Boulder City, said a realistic conversation is finally taking place on both taxes and government reforms of collective bargaining.

“It’s happening now, as we speak,” Hardy said. “We’ve opened up the discussion.”

However, it isn't looking pretty. Some are already preparing for a huge fight, perhaps one that lasts all the way into the summer.

Frustrated with the stalemate over taxes, union leader Danny Thompson delivered his most explicit threat yet during a legislative hearing today: pass taxes or we’ll go to the ballot.

Frustrated with the stalemate over spending reforms, chamber leader Hugh Anderson delivered his own threat in the same hearing: “Without the reform, we cannot support any tax bill, no matter how soundly conceived.”

As the Legislature enters its waning days, the major players in the tax debate have all staked out familiar positions that reflect the ongoing stalemate between Democratic and Republican lawmakers in the budget debate.

Labor wants a tax increase to prevent further salary and benefit cuts to state workers.

The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce sees taxes as its only leverage over the Democratic majority to exact changes to collective bargaining and public employee benefits.

Gaming and mining are happy to support a broad-based business tax as long as the Legislature doesn’t look to solve its revenue problems through industry-specific taxes. And they don’t really see a need to join the spending reforms fight.

So what now? At the very least, it seems like Carson City is finally having a more realistic conversation on taxes. And while it's far from settled, at least it seems like some doors are opening for a budget deal that at least won't be as atrocious as most expected just two weeks ago.

However, the discussion is still largely happening on conservative terms. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce is threatening to hold the budget hostage if legislators don't agree to weaken public sector workers' rights. Republican legislators seem to be vacillating between undying support for Sandoval's budget of butchery and maybe supporting a tax deal that won't displease their biggest donors. And right now, it's hard to tell what kind of compromises Democratic legislators are ultimately willing to make. But without a doubt, the usual corporate lobbyists are already declaring the one true "fair and balanced" budget solution "dead on arrival".

It would be nice to see legislators notice this problem. And even better, Democratic legislators may be best served by remembering that all of us who elected them did so by expecting thoughtful Democrats, not "Republicans by some other name" who easily agree to conservative policies. And of course, Republican legislators need to realize that they don't solely represent teabaggers... Believe it or not, we exist!

And now, we need to make our voices heard. We need to continue reminding our legislators that we want to see real solutions come out of The Legislature this year. We can't afford any more gimmicks, and we can't afford to defund the very public infrastructure we need to stabilize our state's economy and end this radical boom-and-bust cycle.

Hope isn't all lost... Especially not if we demand it.

Good News on the Civil Rights Front

Well, at least this great news came out of The Legislature this week. Below is a statement from Nevada Stonewall.

NSDC STATEMENT ON AB 211 PASSAGE 

Contact: 

Andrew Davey, Secretary & Political Director 

(702) 806-1340/ atdnext@gmail.com 

Chris Miller, President 

(702) 569-6744/ chrisisademocrat@gmail.com 

We at Nevada Stonewall Democratic Caucus (NSDC) were encouraged today by 

the passage of AB 211 in the Nevada State Senate today.  If this bill is signed into 

law by Governor Sandoval, it will represent significant progress in the fight for 

LGBTQ equality here in Nevada. AB 211 is the fully inclusive ENDA (Employment 

Non-discrimination Act) that rejects the notion of “legalized” workplace 

discrimination against transgender Nevadans. 

As of now, far too many workers have lost their jobs for no good reason. And as 

we in Nevada are still enduring the pain of a difficult recession and the beginning 

of a fragile economic recovery, we can not afford this kind of chronic, forced 

unemployment. Workplace nondiscrimination truly is a jobs issue, and AB 211 

goes a great distance to better ensure all Nevadans who seek honest work can 

obtain it. 

As the 76th Session of the Nevada Legislature continues, NSDC will continue to 

watch what happens in Carson City, advocate for bills that advance LGBTQ 

equality, and work for a fair & sensible budget that works for all of Nevada’s 

working families. And with The Legislature’s passage of AB 211 today, we are 

confident about continued progress on ending unjust discrimination, advancing 

civil rights, and ensuring all in our community can access quality education & 

health care. 

###

Nevada Stonewall Democratic Caucus was founded in 2005. Our membership consists of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Nevadans and our straight allies. We will lobby and educate members of the Nevada State Legislature to protect the rights and advocate on behalf of Nevadans who are routinely discriminated against because of their sexuality and gender identity. 

@NVStonewallDems 

nvstonewalldems@gmail.com

NV-Sen: Just How Out of Touch Is Dean Heller?

So Senator Dean Heller (R-Jerk) hasn't been a US Senator for very long. Is he already sowing the seeds of his own political demise?

He's already filibustering President Obama's pick for #2 administrator at The Department of Justice... Because he apparently has a not so pleasant history with Newt Gingrich. When Nevadans are paying more at the pump than ever before, Heller is going to the mat... For the big oil conglomerates by trying to shove more pollution down our throats. And in one of his final acts in The House, Dean Heller voted to strip women of their fundamental rights over their own health care decisions.

Oh yes, that's right. Dean Heller is already off to an amazing start!

And to make things even better, Heller now can't make up his mind as to what his relationship with our duly elected Senator will be. Will work with Harry Reid on the important issues that matter to Nevada, such as kick-starting our economy with green collar jobs and ensuring our state isn't jeopardized by the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste dump? Will he just agree to disagree? Or is it more important for Heller to just ignore what Nevada needs and just parrot his new teabagger friends in The Senate?

Oh yes, that's right. Instead of wanting to work with Senator Reid on helping Nevada's working families get out of The Great Recession, Dean Heller stands with Paul Ryan and his extremist agenda to destroy working families.





The Paul Ryan Republican Budget Disaster Plan raises taxes on the middle class while continuing to bail out the extremely wealthy. In addition, it would jeopardize millions of older and disabled Americans by privatizing Medicare and dismantling Medicaid. It would also impoverish and starve millions more Americans by slashing food assistance programs that more and more working families have had to rely upon during the recession. All in all, it would take down the foundation of America's economic success: the middle class. Oh, and it wouldn't even reduce the federal deficit!

And Dean Heller is embracing this? He'd rather stand with Paul Ryan, the teabaggers, and other extreme right looney tunes than serve Nevada? He'd rather impoverish Nevada's working families than reach across the aisle and work on bringing more needed jobs to Nevada?

So why does Nevada need Dean Heller in The Senate?

NV-02: Nevada GOP Chair Enters Special Election, Screws Over Nevada GOP

Haha.

Nevada Republican Party Chairman Mark Amodei became fourth Republican to enter the special election contest for the 2nd Congressional District today, setting up a possible path to victory for wildcard Sharron Angle or a Democrat.

Amodei, a former state senator who briefly ran for U.S. Senate last year, has been exploring the congressional race for several weeks. He confirmed to the Sun this morning that he will enter the race. He is set to make a formal announcement at a press conference in Carson City later this morning.

Amodei is the fourth major Republican to enter the free-for-all Sept. 13 special election. Under rules approved by Secretary of State Ross Miller, any qualified candidate can run on the ballot, which will likely pit multiple Republicans against multiple Democrats and a cadre of minor party candidates.

Now that the plan to hand this seat to a Nevada GOP establishment crony failed, Amodei had to choose whether to stay out and help another Republican consolidate votes and win, or jump in and further fracture the GOP field. Now we know what he's decided.

And now we know the Nevada GOP again looks to be a total electoral clusterfuck with its own Chair running to deny the seat to fellow Republicans and teabagger darlings Sharrrrrrrrrrrrrron Angle and Kirk Lippold.

NV-03: Is Joe Heck Unpatriotic? An "America-Hater"? Or Just Deather-Curious?

My Congressman just embarrassed himself on national news again yesterday. Now he's saying photos of a dead Osama bin Laden "have to be released [...] to make sure we get rid of any conspiracy theorists that think that we didn't take care of bin Laden".

Why? How would releasing photos "get rid of any conspiracy theories"? It's the nature of conspiracy theories for them to be rooted in irrationality.

In addition, we also carry the risk of inflaming not just The Muslim World, but much of the rest of the world, by showing off photos of a dead bin Laden as if they were trophies. And considering how difficult it's been to recover America's good will and credibility abroad since George Bush left office, this might deliver a huge blow to that effort.

Maybe if Heck had watched Rachel Maddow on Wednesday, he would have understood this...

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

Or maybe not. Maybe Joe Heck just doesn't care. Maybe Joe Heck is just saying whatever he thinks his teabagger friends back home in "quaint" Roma Hills think.

Whatever the case, this just reeks of hypocrisy. I'll let Brian at ProgressNow explain.

Why is no one - especially Republicans - accusing Heck of hating the troops or being un-American?

During the Bush years - and especially in the immediate aftermath of September 11 - any criticism of the president was immediately slammed as being either un-American, hating the troops, or both. We were all supposed to "respect the office of the president," no matter what Bush said or did.

Now the Commander in Chief and President of the United States of America has said that to release those pictures would put American troops and citizens in danger.

And Joe Heck wants them released.

Where are the calls of un-American? Where are the calls of not thinking of the best interest of the troops?

This is Joe Heck being a straight up empty politician, unwilling to put aside partisan politics in even the most spectacular of circumstances. The killing of bin Laden is a political plus for Obama, so Heck and Republicans will do the spineless political move and try to minimize any positives that could come from it.

Think about it. US troops could be put in grave danger. We the People could be put in grave danger. al Qaeda is already drumming up support for retaliation attacks, so the last thing we need is for us to give them recruitment material to go out and do just that. Yet Joe Heck wants us to do just that, just so he, Dean Heller, and other Republicans can score quickie political points from it?

Is it just craven, unpatriotic, and/or anti-American? After all, these were the same people who threw out these labels 8 years ago at just about anyone and everyone who critiqued George Bush on... Well, just about anything and everything! So it's good for the goose, but not for the gander? They can dish it out, but not take it? Maybe if they can't stand the heat, they need to get out of the kitchen.

Sorry, but I'm just not a fan of hypocrisy. And when Joe Heck serves an extra big helping of hypocrisy and cheap, craven political grandstanding, I feel embarrassed to admit he's supposed to represent me in Congress.

Now contrast that BS to President Obama speaking to the troops in Fort Campbell, Kentucky yesterday.

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

That pretty much says it all.

Last Chance to Save Our State

We don't have much time left. Despite his own admission that his budget is way too extreme, "Arnold Sandogibbons" continues to deny reality and push Nevada to the edge of annihilation. Nevada needs more investment in public infrastructure, not less, to survive and ultimately thrive. The Sandogibbons "Benevolent Butcher Budget" would do nothing but imperil our fragile economic recovery, so this really shouldn't be considered a legitimate option for a state that's been as economically depressed as ours.

The Democratic budget alternative is now here. And while it may not be perfect, it has revenue components and it starts a real conversation on actually balancing the budget. And remember, PLAN's plan is also here, and it puts forward a more progressive budget that truly does invest what's needed for our state and our people.

But whatever the final budget looks like, it must be a budget that raises revenue badly needed to invest in the infrastructure that will get us out of this great recession and into sustained recovery. That's why it's critical for us to contact our legislators and ask them to support a truly balanced budget with revenue necessary to build great schools, great health care, great roads, and the kind of great lifestyle that companies and workers will want to move to Nevada for.








So what are you waiting for? Please help us save our state!

First Thoughts on Democrats' Congressional Redistricting Plan

It's here! It's here! The Democratic Legislators' Congressional Redistricting Plan is finally here!

Democrats today unveiled proposed boundaries for Nevada’s four congressional districts, the political consequences of which they will debate this afternoon at the Legislature.

In the game of shifting political power, the Democrats say their congressional redistricting proposal creates three competitive districts with one northern and rural Nevada district leaning Republican.

Their plan could make Congressional District 3 less safe for Republican Representative Joe Heck, the current incumbent who won by a slim margin over Democratic candidate Dina Titus during 2010.

Democrats also say that their proposal is more fair to Nevada’s Hispanic population. The Democratic proposal offers Hispanics no majority-minority district in Clark County as was the case with a Republican congressional district proposal released last week. Rather, the Democratic maps show a Latino population dispersed throughout several Clark County districts.

Instead of cramming Latinos mostly into just one district, the Democratic plan creates at least one minority-majority coalition district, and all four districts have Latino populations of over 20%.

In addition to spreading out the Latino population, the Democratic map also spreads out opportunities for several politicians. Steven Horsford is placed in NV-01, Kate Marshall stays in NV-02, John Oceguera gets NV-03, and Dina Titus goes to NV-04. Interesting how that works out, isn't it? But while NV-01 has a hefty 16% Democratic voter registration advantage, NV-03 and NV-04 are not incredibly Democratic. Under this proposal, NV-03 has just under 10% Democratic registration edge, while NV-04 is about 8% more Democratic and NV-02 is about 7% more Republican.

The Democrats' statewide map is here, and their Clark County close-up is here. While the Democratic map does chop up all the big Clark County cities, Nye County is the only county to be split, as all other non-Clark areas are kept whole, intact, and together.

So far, it looks like Democratic legislators took the same "fair" approach to redistricting Congress as they did in redrawing their own seats. I'm still curious as to why they're doing this. Is this a budget bargaining chip intended for Republican legislators, an open dare for Brian Sandoval to oppose a fair redistricting map, and/or an overture to Nevada Supreme Court Justices should this case land in their docket later this year?

I guess we'll have to wait and see to find out...

The Democratic Budget Plan Is Here

So now we're getting details of the long awaited Democratic budget plan.

According to an initial version of the presentation obtained by the Sun, the pair will argue that three months of budget hearings have proven the need to raise taxes to fund $220 million in new education reform programs, offset cuts to education and social services and replace Sandoval’s short-term funding strategies with a more stable tax structure.

The source who provided the presentation cautioned that Democratic leaders were still working on the details and would continue to refine the numbers throughout the rest of the week.

Oceguera and Horsford want funding to offset $403 million of Sandoval’s proposed cuts to K-12 education. They also will propose $220 million in new funding for a literacy program, an after-school remediation program and a pay-for-performance program.

Although joint money committees this week rejected Sandoval’s 5 percent pay cut for teachers and school employees, the presentation indicates they may eventually settle on a 2.5 percent pay cut.

Under the plan, higher education would take a 10 percent cut compared to the last biennium, but would see $123 million more in funding than Sandoval proposed.

Health and Human Services would see an additional $174 million in funding over that proposed by Sandoval.

Democrats also want to reject Sandoval’s plan to take $302 million in school district debt reserves and his proposal to borrow $192 million against future insurance premium tax revenue.

Democrats will argue the short-term funding options would open a significant budget hole for the next Legislature to deal with and result in continuing uncertainty about the future tax environment for businesses.

All in all, $1.5 billion in additional revenue will be generated and many deep cuts will continue to be applied. In other words, we have ourselves a very "sensible", "moderate" proposal that would make Bill Raggio and George H.W. Bush nod in approval. If PLAN's plan is the progressive approach and the Sandogibbons/NPRI/AFP plan is teabagger paradise, then this essentially fills the middle ground.

So why is this being treated like an unwelcome visit by polio? Is it "DOA"? Are legislators too craven to do any better? Is Sandoval too delusional to abandon the death march he wants to put us all on?

Again, why is it that Sandoval is being treated so seriously when he offers nothing but utter bullshit? Why is PLAN's budget proposal considered so "radical" when it incorporates tried and true fiscal policy that's already in place in most other states? How much longer will it take for Nevada to realize that if it's been this broke for so long, then it's long past due to fix it?

Let's see what Democratic legislative leaders say today...

A Plan! A Plan... From PLAN??!!

Oh, looky here! Someone has a real budget plan. But of course, since it's from PLAN, it's "quixotic" and not "reasonable". So what's so "quixotic" and "unreasonable" about this?

- Making Nevada less dependent on casino revenue

- Ensuring multinational corporations making billions of dollars off our consumer activities pay their fair share

- Ensuring the mining companies making billions of dollars off our natural resources pay their fair share

- Fully funding the investments we must make in education and public infrastructure to attract the businesses we need to diversify our economy

- Ending the undue tax burden on the working poor, middle class, and small businesses

I encourage you to click the above link and decide for yourself. I hear Democratic legislative leaders will release their budget plan tomorrow . I suspect it won't be as bold and progressive as PLAN's, but hopefully this will show them that it's most definitely possible to build a budget that builds up Nevada instead of cutting us to death.

NV-02: Let the Games Begin!

Now that Our Lady of Perpetual Campaigning can go at it yet again, Nevada Republicans are running scared.

Republicans are already threatening to sue over [Secretary of State Ross] Miller's interpretation of the law, but if it stands, we'll see a wide-open, "jungle"-style race where all candidates from all parties compete against each other on a single ballot (there won't be a primary), and whoever emerges with the most votes wins, no matter how bare the plurality. If Democrats can rally around a single candidate—there's word that Treasurer Kate Marshall will get in the race—then there's a chance we can steal this steadfastly red seat from the GOP.

That's because Republicans are likely to have a much harder time uniting behind just one person. Sharron Angle is already raising money for a run—and hollering that GOP power-brokers want to steal the race away from her. But she's so toxic and unacceptable in Republican circles that they're no way the bigwigs will cave in to her threats. That means at least two well-known (and well-funded) Republicans will run, and even if Angle can only take 10% or even just 5%, that might be enough for [a Democrat to win].

So what happens now? Can a Democrat really win this seat? Kate Marshall seems to think so, as she's all but certain to run now. And hey, considering Sharrrrrrrrrrrrrrrron Angle is in, Kirk Lippold is in, and the Nevada Republican Party power brokers have lost control of this election, all hell may really break loose!

National political pundits are already trying to interpret the meaning of this special election. Both parties are ready to test messages in Reno, in Elko, and elsewhere. And without a doubt, this may very well become the most litigated election in Nevada history.

But hey, democracy isn't always pretty. And frankly, it's better for Nevada to experience more of this. We're already having to learn the hard way that not everything can be settled in back room deals. Sometimes, we just have to let the people decide.

So "The Benevolent Butcher" Doesn't Slash As Deep...

Surprise! Our budget deficit is a little less severe...

Nevada’s budget crisis became a bit less severe Monday with word that the general fund will be enriched by a previously unplanned $274 million, a bit of a windfall that will benefit the beleaguered education and health and human services budgets — and maybe undermine the argument for tax increases.

Business leaders meeting as the state’s Economic Forum ­­— the state’s official crystal-ball people on matters financial — projected a slow but steady uptick in the ailing economy. It won’t be great, they said, but it will be better than the dark days predicted in December, when Sandoval was putting together his budget.

Rejoice! We have an extra drop in the bucket. Our budget is "only" horrendous, and just a little less disastrous.

As always, Desert Beacon nails it.

Nevada has some $247 million more in general revenue than previously predicted [LVSun] ergo cuts to education and health programs won't be so onerous. This is supposed to be good news. This is also what happens to deficits when the economy perks up a bit; there is more revenue available -- a point which doesn't always seem to register with the Right. A deficit is not the exclusive result of profligate spending.  Deficits are commonly associated with downturns in economic activity, especially when revenues are tied to sales taxes, a regressive form of taxation linked firmly to consumer spending.

So, the good news is that revenue projections are increasing. The bad news is that the Assembled Wisdom is still far from recognizing that the cuts wouldn't be onerous at all if Nevada would modify its taxation system to require that Big Box Retailers pay their fair share. Small, independent, retailers are paying more at the moment so that the Big Box Retailers can pay less.  If Nevada would acknowledge that the mining industry is saying one thing to its shareholders and singing a far different tune in the hallways in Carson City.

Ain't that the truth!

Seriously, this is NOT the way to run a state! Only because we're slashing education and other state services to the bone instead of slashing them to the bone AND sucking out the marrow does not a sensible budget make.

Our kids deserve better. They deserve schools that can provide them with real opportunity, not schools that don't have to cut as many sports and music programs. They deserve colleges that prepare them to be great leaders and thinkers, not colleges that "only" have to cut 5 or 10 majors instead of 20. They deserve a Nevada that leads the way on creating a truly lean and green sustainable economic powerhouse, a Nevada that leads the way on renewable energy, green design, medical research, gaming technology, and more... Not a Nevada that will be a little less depressed and devastated a year from now than it is at present.

If Brian Sandoval doesn't "get it", then we must grasp it. If Sandoval doesn't cease and desist with the cheap political games being played with Nevada's future, then we must end these games. And if The Legislature is still afraid to take action to stop this madness and stop the petty argument over whether to cut to the bone or cut all the way into the marrow, then we have to make them act.

NV-02: Free for All!

And Our Lady of Perpetual Campaigning rejoices!

Saying the decision on who to elect should rest with the people and not “politically elite powerbrokers,” Secretary of State Ross Miller announced today that the special election ballot for the 2nd Congressional District will be open to all candidates and not just nominees selected by the state’s political party.

“There’s only one critical question: how are those candidates picked? By the people of the state of Nevada or by a small group of powerful party officials,” Miller said. “We are announcing the ballot will be open to all qualified candidates.”

The special election will be Sept. 13 to replace U.S. Rep. Dean Heller, R-Nev., who will be appointed to the U.S. Senate next month following Sen. John Ensign’s resignation.

They tried so hard to shut Sharrrrrrrrrrrrrrrron Angle out of this election, but ultimately Brian Sandoval and Dean Heller couldn't. Party power brokers can't just handpick nominees, and Sharrrrrrrrrrrrrrrron will still run.



Run, Obtuse Angle, run!

So Obama Got Osama... May We Now Bring Our Troops Home?

The morning after the big news dropped, the nation is still in awe of what's happening.

Osama bin Laden, the charismatic mastermind and founder of al-Qaida, a global terrorist network that radically reshaped American foreign policy and propelled the country into two bloody, long-term wars in Muslim countries, was killed Sunday in a firefight with U.S. troops in a compound outside the Pakistani capital of Islamabad.

President Obama, in a rare televised address to the nation late Sunday, announced that a small team of U.S. troops had killed bin Laden and seized his body earlier in the day in a helicopter-borne commando operation.

Senior U.S. officials said no other countries were involved in the raid, raising the potential for diplomatic fallout once the initial celebration and congratulations are over.

The United States considers Pakistan a key ally in the war on terror, but the relationship between the two is a complicated and tenuous one at best.

According to President Obama, U.S. intelligence officials determined last August that bin Laden was likely hiding "within a compound deep inside Pakistan," Obama said during his address from the White House late Sunday.

And Nevadans are starting to react to what happened.

"Tonight, Americans join the world in marking the end of this symbol of hatred who died with the blood of thousands on his hands," Nevada Congresswoman Shelley Berkley said in a statement Sunday night. "The U.S. pledged it would hunt down and kill Osama bin Laden for the crimes he committed and nearly a decade after the tragedy of September 11, justice has been served. This is a tremendous victory for America and a promise kept to the families of the 9-11 victims."

“As the face of global terrorism, bin Laden will forever be a reminder of how deeply we must cherish our freedom, and so it is fitting we come together as Nevadans and Americans to remember the victims of the 9-11 attacks,” Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval said in a statement. “We are also grateful for the relentless courage and dedication of our Armed Forces who continue to keep us safe from harm.”

“This is the most significant victory in our fight against al-Qaida and terrorism, but that fight is not over," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said in a statement Sunday night. "As we remember those who were killed on that dark day in September and their families, we also reaffirm our resolve to defeat the terrorist forces that killed them and thousands of others across the globe. Because of courageous Americans in our military and intelligence community, their leader is now gone.”

This most certainly is a great development. It now looks like The Obama Administration will follow through on its plan to begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan. Osama bin Laden's death may force us to rethink our view on both Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Oh, and did I mention it may be wise to rethink our presence in Afghanistan?



After all, hasn't the mission actually been accomplished? It supposedly was 8 years ago, after George Bush quickly lost interest in capturing bin Laden as invading Iraq suddenly became his cause du jour. There really wasn't any reason for invading Iraq, and now we're learning bin Laden was hiding out in Pakistan... NOT Afghanistan. So what are our troops now doing in Iraq and Afghanistan?

Certainly, al Qaeda is still alive and efforts must still be made to thwart them and other terrorist groups. But at this point, do we still need to fight two wars that were sold on the premise of "taking out bin Laden"?