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RENO, Nev. — Your recent guest columnist, Jim Clark, vice chairman of the Washoe County Republican Party, is certainly entitled to his bias for Republicans, but plotting Brian Sandoval as “on the right track” is a stretch — unless of course he means the same old track Gov. Jim Gibbons has been running on these last few years.
The coming slugfest among the Republican gubernatorial candidates will be great entertainment as they pander to the “no new taxes” base of their party. Surely the current Republican right-wingers holding sway over their party will ravage Mr. Sandoval as a dreaded RINO for his work facilitating past tax increases. But please pay attention as, like the national Republican “party of no,” they fail to address the real problems of the people of Nevada and our small businesses. We can't afford to hand the reins back to our disastrous governor or to a fresh clone with a record of failed and/or abandoned assignments. I appreciate the author noting Gibbon's previous campaign leaders have moved to Sandoval's camp — same people, same message and thinking, just a fresh face.
Mr. Clark and Mr. Sandoval are excited about the SAGE Commission report. Fair enough; it contains some very workable ideas that many Democrats can embrace to help address Nevada's current budget shortfalls. But this is a narrow report with a narrow mission. It does not take on the very real human problems of home foreclosures, unemployment and the need to create jobs, support for our small business community, an effective educational system for our children and a sound tax structure that minimizes the huge swings in our state budget.
Mr. Sandoval, like Gov. Gibbons, has not advanced any meaningful ideas or plans of his own for the many challenges the citizens of Nevada face. Where exactly does Mr. Sandoval stand on the plethora of issues facing Nevada? Nobody knows. Since the former federal judge quit his lifetime appointment in September, he has done a handful of media interviews and little else. All he has said is that he would have vetoed the same set of bills passed in the legislature last year, just as Gov. Gibbons did. That's not exactly a plan to revive the state.
In stark contrast, the most prominent Democratic candidate, Commission Chair Rory Reid, has already articulated a thoughtful long-term strategy for our state based on his years of successful experience and effective leadership in local government. Last month he issued a 30-page document — “The Virtual Crossroads: Rory Reid's Vision for the Future of Nevada.” It has been distributed at all of his campaign events and is available on his website. Take a look. It contains thoughtful positions not commonly expressed in campaigns. Candidate Reid will build on the vision by sharing with Nevada voters specific detailed plans for education, transportation, energy production and quality of life — just what we need from our candidates!
Mr. Reid is pioneering a new type of campaign for Nevada's governor. In place of the old-style beauty contest where GQ looks and slick speechifying are the stock in trade, he has challenged himself and other candidates to lay out their thinking and plans so there can be a substantial discussion and evaluation by the voters. He's leading the charge to elevate the 2010 election beyond sloganeering and sound bites to meaningful thoughts and dialogue. Isn't this exactly what Nevada needs at this time of financial trial and difficult choices?
In recent home visits, Mr. Reid has mused with sadness that a 1950's vintage Colliers magazine article portraying Nevada as relying too heavily on casino and mining tax revenues with a thin social net and minor investments in education and infrastructure is still true today. He knows it is time for implementing a long-term strategy to change the dynamics of our state. To make Nevada an even better place to live and raise our children we need a robust, diversified business base providing stable funding to our critical government services. This is easy to say, and many do so, but we do well to look past slick politicians who only mouth these words and find the ones with a thoughtful, specific plan and a commitment to implement it. Rory Reid is one of those. To date Mr. Sandoval is not.
So, our potential choice is coming into focus — a Gibbons clone with no new ideas or a thoughtful man with a plan. Personally, I want off the Gibbons/Sandoval track and onto a new vision for our state.
— Chip Evans is Chairman of the Washoe County Democratic Party and a member of the Nevada State Democratic Party Executive Board. He can be reached for comment at chair@washoedems.org.
The coming slugfest among the Republican gubernatorial candidates will be great entertainment as they pander to the “no new taxes” base of their party. Surely the current Republican right-wingers holding sway over their party will ravage Mr. Sandoval as a dreaded RINO for his work facilitating past tax increases. But please pay attention as, like the national Republican “party of no,” they fail to address the real problems of the people of Nevada and our small businesses. We can't afford to hand the reins back to our disastrous governor or to a fresh clone with a record of failed and/or abandoned assignments. I appreciate the author noting Gibbon's previous campaign leaders have moved to Sandoval's camp — same people, same message and thinking, just a fresh face.
Mr. Clark and Mr. Sandoval are excited about the SAGE Commission report. Fair enough; it contains some very workable ideas that many Democrats can embrace to help address Nevada's current budget shortfalls. But this is a narrow report with a narrow mission. It does not take on the very real human problems of home foreclosures, unemployment and the need to create jobs, support for our small business community, an effective educational system for our children and a sound tax structure that minimizes the huge swings in our state budget.
Mr. Sandoval, like Gov. Gibbons, has not advanced any meaningful ideas or plans of his own for the many challenges the citizens of Nevada face. Where exactly does Mr. Sandoval stand on the plethora of issues facing Nevada? Nobody knows. Since the former federal judge quit his lifetime appointment in September, he has done a handful of media interviews and little else. All he has said is that he would have vetoed the same set of bills passed in the legislature last year, just as Gov. Gibbons did. That's not exactly a plan to revive the state.
In stark contrast, the most prominent Democratic candidate, Commission Chair Rory Reid, has already articulated a thoughtful long-term strategy for our state based on his years of successful experience and effective leadership in local government. Last month he issued a 30-page document — “The Virtual Crossroads: Rory Reid's Vision for the Future of Nevada.” It has been distributed at all of his campaign events and is available on his website. Take a look. It contains thoughtful positions not commonly expressed in campaigns. Candidate Reid will build on the vision by sharing with Nevada voters specific detailed plans for education, transportation, energy production and quality of life — just what we need from our candidates!
Mr. Reid is pioneering a new type of campaign for Nevada's governor. In place of the old-style beauty contest where GQ looks and slick speechifying are the stock in trade, he has challenged himself and other candidates to lay out their thinking and plans so there can be a substantial discussion and evaluation by the voters. He's leading the charge to elevate the 2010 election beyond sloganeering and sound bites to meaningful thoughts and dialogue. Isn't this exactly what Nevada needs at this time of financial trial and difficult choices?
In recent home visits, Mr. Reid has mused with sadness that a 1950's vintage Colliers magazine article portraying Nevada as relying too heavily on casino and mining tax revenues with a thin social net and minor investments in education and infrastructure is still true today. He knows it is time for implementing a long-term strategy to change the dynamics of our state. To make Nevada an even better place to live and raise our children we need a robust, diversified business base providing stable funding to our critical government services. This is easy to say, and many do so, but we do well to look past slick politicians who only mouth these words and find the ones with a thoughtful, specific plan and a commitment to implement it. Rory Reid is one of those. To date Mr. Sandoval is not.
So, our potential choice is coming into focus — a Gibbons clone with no new ideas or a thoughtful man with a plan. Personally, I want off the Gibbons/Sandoval track and onto a new vision for our state.
— Chip Evans is Chairman of the Washoe County Democratic Party and a member of the Nevada State Democratic Party Executive Board. He can be reached for comment at chair@washoedems.org.
