Editorial: Herrera puts foot in mouth

Clark County Commissioner Dario Herrera's call for the ouster of County Manager Dale Askew admittedly was bold -- at that same time it also doesn't make any sense. What is truly perplexing about the call for Askew's resignation by Herrera, who has been on the seven-member commission for only seven months, is what would prompt him to do this. After all, Herrera said just two weeks ago that he supported Askew.

Herrera told Sun reporter Adrienne Packer that he believed Askew was just a transitional figure and that it was time for him to go. "For seven months to this day, I haven't seen an innovative or dynamic approach to deal with challenges we face today and tomorrow," Herrera said. So if things are so bad now, then why did Herrera think everything was OK only two weeks ago? Herrera told Packer that then wasn't the right time, but after Administrative Services Director Thom Reilly decided to leave, Herrera said Askew made no effort to keep him, prompting him to call for the resignation.

But Herrera's claim regarding Reilly's departure doesn't seem to hold up upon closer inspection, though, considering that Reilly said Askew offered to give him a pay raise to keep him. Reilly added that his first love is teaching and that is why he has accepted a position at UNLV as an associate professor. While both deny the speculation, one scenario is that Commissioner Erin Kenny put Herrera up to floating the trial balloon. If she did, it certainly fell like a lead balloon.

The bottom line is that Askew has done an excellent job and has the solid support of Chairman Bruce Woodbury and a majority of the commissioners, who note a number of Askew's accomplishments, including the securing of a $100 million bond issue that helped speed up construction of the Las Vegas Beltway.

One of the first lessons in politics is knowing how to count. Unless you know you have a majority, it's simply tilting at windmills to make such a radical change without having the votes at hand. In addition, context means a great deal. Calling for someone's resignation while he's on vacation -- and when he obviously can't defend himself -- looks cowardly. After this miscue, it is hoped that the next time Herrera gets a similar notion he thinks long and hard about the consequences before advocating such a sweeping change.

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