Sunday, June 27, 1999 | 9:24 a.m.
Jeff German is the Sun's senior investigative reporter. His column appears Tuesdays,Thursdays and Sundays. Reach him at [email protected] or 259-4067.
STRAP YOURSELVES in, friends. Las Vegas has a new mayor who's going to take us on a roller-coaster ride.
"I'm very excited," Mayor-elect Oscar Goodman says on the eve of his swearing in at City Hall. "Some giant things are going to happen."
Goodman -- the flamboyant criminal defense attorney who made a name for himself defending some of this country's biggest mobsters -- already has proven that he has a giant personality. And a heart to match.
In the three weeks since Goodman swept into office with a mandate from the voters, we've heard more ideas about revitalizing downtown from him than the entire City Council had in the last decade.
If Goodman's energy can rub off on his fellow council members, there may be a chance for "some giant things" to happen over the next four years.
"I'm going to be the most accessible mayor in the history of America," Goodman says. "My staff has been instructed that the most important thing is to see that phone calls are returned and inquiries are answered."
It's a lofty goal that he's likely to regret setting for himself. Now that it's out, people are going to hold him to his words.
But already, Goodman, perhaps from his days of using reporters to pump up the good side of his wise guy clients, has demonstrated a desire to keep his door open to the news media. He plans to continue holding weekly briefings with reporters at City Hall once he takes office.
Goodman also likely will continue to entertain a steady stream of national reporters and celebrities enamored with his exuberance and charisma.
Last week the New Yorker magazine was in town catching glimpses of the mayor-elect between appearances at the police academy graduation and meetings with Hispanic leaders. Also on Goodman's agenda last week was a private dinner at the Hard Rock hotel with "Casino" movie chum Robert DeNiro and instrumentalist Kenny G.
And then there was that top-secret rendezvous with outgoing Mayor Jan Laverty Jones and Mirage Resorts boss Steve Wynn, and that powwow with Wall Street analysts excited about Goodman's bullish opinion of Las Vegas.
Through it all, Goodman even found time last week to brush up on Robert's Rules of Order and test the microphone system at City Hall's chambers in anticipation of chairing his first meeting on Monday.
Is Goodman up to the task of running those meetings? You bet he is.
"I know Robert's Rules of Order better than the back of my hand," the king of cliche says.
We'll see about that, Oscar.
In the meantime you've got to admire the new mayor's enthusiasm.
Are we in for a roller-coaster ride? Not if you listen to Goodman.
"I hope I'm like a speeding bullet that sails smoothly through the city to keep the promises I made during the campaign," he says.
Superman you're not, Oscar. But you've got a super attitude. *
Let the fallout commence.
Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., and his merry band of anti-gamers plan to keep up the heat on the casino industry this week in the wake of the release of the National Gambling Impact Study Commission's report.
Wolf has been invited to testify Wednesday before the Appropriations Committee's Labor, Health and Human Services Subcommittee.
Word is leading gaming critic James Dobson of Focus on the Family also may be on hand to discuss following up on the federal commission's recommendations to allocate funds for problem and pathological gambling research. Dobson was a member of the panel.
Former California Lt. Gov. Leo McCarthy, who chaired the commission's research subcommittee, also has been asked to testify before the subcommittee, which ironically includes Nevada's own Sen. Harry Reid as a member.
Reid, you'll recall, was a big-time critic of the gambling commission. He and fellow Nevada Democrat Sen. Richard Bryan have called the panel's two-year $5 million study a waste of money.
Casino industry lobbyists, wise to Wolf's tactics, are scurrying to make sure Wednesday's hearing will be balanced.
In the past couple of weeks, industry leaders have worked to marginalize Wolf in the Republican-controlled House. Now, it seems they'll have to call on their Republican friends in the Senate to stem the anti-gaming fallout.
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