Las Vegas

RENO – One Democrat running for lieutenant governor criticized the GOP incumbent for being invisible in the job, and all three Democrat candidates appearing at a debate Wednesday evening took jabs at each other as the June 8 primary election day draws near.

A Clark County District Court jury last Friday ordered Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and Baxter Healthcare Services to pay a combined $500 million in punitive damages to a Nevada man who contracted Hepatitis C during an outbreak two years ago.
The jury award was the largest in Nevada history.
In a statement issued shortly after the jury reached its decision, Teva said it planned to contest the verdict.  A spokesman for Baxter later confirmed the company will also most likely appeal.

A tort reform expert said in a conference call today he was puzzled at how a jury could find two drug manufacturers liable for the transmission of hepatitis C to a patient at a Las Vegas endoscopy clinic.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons announced yesterday he is pursuing an initiative petition to subject labor negotiations between unions and local government entities to the open meeting law to give taxpayers access to the discussions.
Some Republican lawmakers welcomed the idea, saying the Democrat-controlled Legislature has been unwilling to consider such a proposal.

CARSON CITY — It was 'all aboard' the historic McKeen Motor Car V&T No. 22 on Sunday for dozens of railroad enthusiasts as the Nevada State Railroad Museum celebrated a milestone 100th anniversary commemorating the iron horse's arrival to the Carson City railroad.

The celebration was at the platform of the historic Wabuska Depot. Numerous local, state and federal officials and noted railroad historians participated in the event, trading stories and history references, and taking turns riding the car.

The Bernhard family, donors of the car, were the honored guests.

The Western Nevada College baseball team took care of business on Friday.

Coral Academy of Science Charter School representatives and parents will be in Carson City on Wednesday, May 12, 2010, at 6:30 p.m. at Western Nevada College in Marlette Hall to discuss the possibility of bringing Coral Academy to Carson City.

CARSON CITY — Nevadans who intend to vote early in the primary and general elections this year will likely find themselves in the dark on the question of who has contributed to the campaigns of the candidates.
Despite efforts in past legislative sessions to improve the transparency of campaign contributions received by candidates, lawmakers have failed to make meaningful reforms to the reporting process.

CARSON CITY – When the Legislature adjourned its special session to balance the budget on March 1, lawmakers went home believing they had ensured the financial viability of the Millennium Scholarship program through 2014.
But the program, hit by declining tobacco settlement revenues and the diversion of financial support to help fill a more than $800 million budget shortfall, remains in jeopardy.

CARSON CITY – A spokesman for Nevada State Treasurer Kate Marshall is rejecting any suggestion that her participation in radio ads to promote a children’s contest involving a college savings program is aimed at helping her re-election campaign.

But a campaign consultant for her GOP opponent called Marshall a hypocrite for engaging in the same practice she criticized her predecessor for doing, and for “pushing the envelope” by running ads after the close of filing for office.

RENO – Half a dozen candidates in the crowded GOP field seeking to take on Harry Reid in the U.S. Senate race in November debated here Friday, with responses showing more agreement than discord on issues ranging from immigration reform to the need to reduce the size of the federal government.

RENO – The three Republican candidates vying to become the next governor of Nevada engaged in a spirited discussion Friday on issues ranging from taxes and public education to the future of Yucca Mountain.

CARSON CITY – The state Department of Motor Vehicles has tried to modify its original higher-security driver's license system, but it ran into a barrage of criticism from citizens in Las Vegas, Carson City and Elko, the Las Vegas Sun reports today.
www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/apr/23/opposition-continues-real-id-drivers-license-propo/

U.S. Senate candidate Sue Lowden, who has recently come under for her comments on negotiating with physicians for health care costs, today received some support from Dr.

CARSON CITY – GOP Nevada U.S. Senate candidate John Chachas will stay in the race through the June primary despite a poor showing in a recent poll, saying today those results did not fully reflect a television ad campaign he initiated only recently.

CARSON CITY — Faced with stiff public opposition, the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles has withdrawn a proposal to immediately require motorists to get a new type of driver's license. Instead, the Las Vegas Sun reports the DMV will give motorists the option of either continuing with their current licenses or obtaining a license that complies with the federal "Real ID" act. Click here to read more:
www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/apr/19/dmv-backs-requiring-more-stringent-drivers-license/

CARSON CITY – Nevada GOP U.S. Senate candidate and front-runner Sue Lowden said she expects a negative campaign from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid if she wins the crowded Republican primary in June.

CARSON CITY – With federally mandated health insurance now the law of the land barring a successful legal challenge, some state lawmakers say it is more urgent than ever to create competition among insurance providers by allowing Nevada residents to buy polices from out of state companies.

The Legislative Commission’s Subcommittee to Review Regulations will meet tomorrow afternoon to discuss the fate of the controversial “Real ID” in Nevada.
Citing concerns with both privacy and cost, numerous organizations have come out against the requirements of the REAL ID Act of 2005 including the ACLU, Americans for Tax Reform, Gun Owners of America, Gun Owners of Nevada, Campaign for Liberty, the Cato Institute, National Immigration Law Center and the National Network to End Domestic Violence.

CARSON CITY – One of the major backers of a proposed 2008 measure aimed at raising the bar on tax increases said today a court ruling upholding the right of Tea Party of Nevada candidate Scott Ashjian to remain on the ballot shows the need for more clarity in state election law.

CARSON CITY – Las Vegas Assemblywoman Kathy McClain and Secretary of State Ross Miller reached an agreement today resolving  a complaint that she inappropriately used campaign funds to pay for her Clark County retirement contributions while serving as a lawmaker.
McClain, D-Las Vegas, agreed to make a $7,276 personal contribution to Safe Nest, a Las Vegas nonprofit supporting abused women, to cover the cost of the contribution she had made in 2009 to the Public Employees Retirement System from her campaign fund.

Despite signing a pledge eight years ago that he would oppose domestic partnerships outside of marriage, gubernatorial contender Brian Sandoval, who last year said he supports such arrangements, said today he forgot he had signed the document.  Sandoval also claimed there was no contradiction.
“I have always believed that marriage is between a woman and a man,” said Sandoval. “My position has not changed at all. When I signed that pledge in 2002, I interpreted domestic partnerships to be an analogue for marriage.”

The fate of Yucca Mountain, and its effect on Nevada as a whole and Nye County in particular, were discussed in a television interview yesterday by Nye County Commissioner Gary Hollis and Nye County Nuclear Waste Repository consultant Michael Voegele.

Carson City District Judge James T. Russell did not reach a decision at the end of today’s hearing held to determine whether Nevada Tea Party Senate candidate Scott Ashjian should be dropped from the ballot for the November election, saying he wanted to take the time to look over the information and be fair to both sides of the case.

From Rory Reid Campaign:

Rory Reid recently announced his plan to rebuild and transform education in Nevada. So far, the response from people across the state – and even across the ideological spectrum – has been overwhelmingly positive.

From Emily Richmond, one of the state’s most experienced education reporters:
Rory Reid’s reform plan: Boost education, boost economy
(Las Vegas Sun, 3/23/10)

Here are some Tea Party events happening around the state tomorrow (April 15).  If anyone knows of one not listed here, email me at editor@nevadanewsbureau.com and I’ll post it.
Carson City

10:00am – 1:00pm
Carson City Legislature and Capitol
Candidates forum, music, voter registration, conservative club, organization, and party information. No vending is allowed during this event.

CARSON CITY – A Las Vegas attorney running for attorney general as a Republican against Democrat incumbent Catherine Cortez Masto, and who called for a State Bar investigation into her release of a letter to the press about a potential legal challenge to the federal health care law, is now himself the subject of a bar inquiry.
Attorney Jacob Hafter called the inquiry ridiculous.
“It just shows the type of protection these incumbents have,” he said.

CARSON CITY – Despite being described as a “wounded” senator who has not been effective in representing Nevada in Washington, DC, state Republican officials and candidates surveyed by the Nevada News Bureau for the most part are still not calling on U.S. Senator John Ensign, R-Nev., to step down.

CARSON CITY — There haven’t been any arrests or any contraband seized since security was tightened at the state Capitol in the wake of a March 31 letter warning Gov. Jim Gibbons to resign.
In fact, Gibbons hasn’t been in his Carson City office since a group called Guardians for a Free Republic sent notices to Gibbons and governors in other states to quit or it would quietly commandeer state offices.
Click here to read the Las Vegas Sun story: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/apr/09/no-arrests-or-incidents-security-heightened-capito/

CARSON CITY – Nevada has crafted the proper policies of low taxes and small government that has helped it weather the current recession, and these same policies have positioned the state to respond favorably when the economic recovery takes hold, according to a report released today by the American Legislative Exchange Council.