Political

Carson City Sheriff Kenny Furlong sent Carson Now his response to Guimont's comment that was posted after a gang-related shooting incident two weeks ago. Carson Now contacted Guimont and verified that the comment did in fact come from him.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Assembly Minority Leader Pete Goicoechea said today Nevada voters should be asked to expand the state sales tax to include food purchases as a way to raise revenue and broaden the tax base.
But any such revenue hike should be accompanied by a reduction in the state’s regressive business taxes, he said.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Nevada Rep. Shelley Berkley Thursday defended the right of mosque supporters to build their facility near Ground Zero in New York City, saying she supports religious freedom for all.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Nevada state Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford announced today he has selected David Byerman to serve as the secretary of the Senate beginning Aug. 30.

CARSON CITY – Senate Minority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, today criticized a fund-raising “pay to play� letter sent out recently by Majority Leader Steven Horsford, saying it borders on an ethics violation.
“I have always avoided that kind of a fundraiser,� he said. “I think it is inappropriate. The perception is that to have access to a leader or chairman you have to pay. I think that sends a terrible message.�

We've now confirmed through multiple sources inside and out that the Nevada Appeal will once again publish on Tuesdays starting Sept. 28.

Our sources say this is related to the elections, which makes a lot of sense. It would be quite a hardship to not have a paper on Election Day, which in years past has be chock full of political ads.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Money may not buy happiness but a sizable five-figure donation to Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford’s political action committee will get you some serious face time with Democratic leadership.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons said today he wants to see what strings are attached to the $82 million approved by Congress this week to hire teachers in Nevada before agreeing to accept the funds.

Patricia Potter, former Carson City educator and former chair of the Carson-Tahoe Hospital Board of Trustees, died at her Carson City home at 4:40 a.m. on Thursday, August 5, 2010. She was 80.

"I was saddened to learn of Pat's passing," said U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.

"She was a good teacher and a good friend to many Nevadans," Reid added.

"Pat was a strong advocate for change and fought for a better Nevada as chair of the Carson City Democratic Central Committee. My thoughts go out to Pat's family and friends during this difficult time," Reid stated.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Members of the Nevada Homeland Security Commission expressed concern today that the state does not appear to have a coordinated effort or designated person to deal with the ever-growing threat of cybercrime.

A massive traffic spike forced Carson Now offline at about 8:45 this morning. The site is back online now (or else you wouldn't be reading this) on a new server with more resources, but we are still dealing with a few issues.

CARSON CITY – Nevada failed to make the cut today in its quest to win as much as $175 million in competitive federal funds to improve student achievement, but the details of why won’t be known until next month.
The failure to make the cut occurred even though Gov. Jim Gibbons created a blue ribbon panel to oversee the application process and the state hired a consultant to help finalize Nevada’s grant application.

There are about a million people who know Kenny Guinn better than I do.

But it's that fact that makes the interactions I had with him so interesting.

As a political columnist, I took my fair share of shots at him, on issues like Yucca Mountain and his big tax rebate program. Besides sending his nuke dump point man out to counter my criticisms, he never held those against me.

CARSON CITY – Several Nevada lawmakers serving on a panel gearing up for the critical task of redrawing the state’s political boundaries in 2011 said today they support expanding the size of the Legislature to provide better representation.

By Nevada News Bureau Staff
CARSON CITY – Nevada’s unemployment rate hit another record high in June, reaching 14.2 percent as 193,000 residents looked for work, a state agency reported today.

If you have taken part in the events going on in downtown Carson City this summer — such as the Friday night concerts on 3rd Street or the farmer’s market on Saturday mornings — then you have witnessed the Curry Street Promenade in action.

Though most would agree that the events are a great benefit for our downtown, the process by which this project came about is a strange one, tainted with managerial missteps, missing budgets and political indifference.

Sen. Harry Reid turned up in the Capital City on this Fourth of July holiday, spending about an hour at the annual RSVP Carnival at Mills Park in Carson City.
The Nevada Democrat and the Senate Majority Leader strolled through the park and was greeted by well-wishers, supporters and even a couple of critics who were polite and cordial.

There was a disturbance near the Legislature Building Saturday afternoon in Carson City. A woman who was apparently angry at some political signs, allegedly threw rocks at three demonstrators.

The news that came across the scanner this July 3 afternoon was that there was a fight involving "protesters" in front of the Legislative Building. Given the political climate these days, it was worth following up.

CARSON CITY – Republican governor candidate Brian Sandoval yesterday released his education plan, calling it a results oriented proposal that would end teacher tenure and the social promotion of students.

CARSON CITY – In the fight for control of the Republican Party in the state Senate in the Tuesday primary it was an even split, with conservative candidates taking two of four contested seats and two others going to more moderate candidates backed by Senate Minority Leader Bill Raggio.

CARSON CITY – GOP U.S. Senate candidate Sue Lowden said today she is “very encouraged� by the exit polling results her campaign has seen from early voting as primary election day draws near.

CARSON CITY – Campaign contribution reports for the front-running Republican and Democrat candidates for governor show they are about even in the money-raising and expenditure game.

CARSON CITY – While voters and political observers are focused on the Tuesday primary, Nevadans seeking access to the November ballot for measures they are pushing to amend the state Constitution have another key date in mind.
June 15 is the deadline for groups pushing their amendments to turn in the nearly 100,000 signatures they need to qualify the measures for the ballot. There are three initiative petitions to amend the state constitution still active, according to the Secretary of State’s office.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons said today the political pundits and pollsters may be in for a surprise when the votes are counted in the GOP governor’s race on primary election day June 8.

A Carson City judge agreed with Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller who says an out-of-state organization that ran TV ads featuring gubernatorial candidate Brian Sandoval must register as a Political Action Committee before conducting any more political activity in the state.

CARSON CITY – Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford said he is confident a qualified candidate will be found to serve as secretary to the Senate for the 2011 session and that the upper house will continue to be run in a way that serves both the 21 senators and the people of Nevada.

Part 2 of a Series on Key GOP State Senate Primary Races
CARSON CITY – While Republican voters have a rare chance to chart the course of the GOP Senate caucus in the upcoming primary, the candidates described by some political observers as the establishment choice say they too are true fiscal conservatives who believe in core party values.

Part 1 of 2 on Five Key State Senate Races
CARSON CITY – Over the past several legislative sessions the state Senate Republican caucus has shown a willingness to work across the aisle with Democrats, with some GOP lawmakers voting more than once for tax increases as a way to balance the budget.