Editorial: Penny wise, regent foolish

Regent Bret Whipple is putting party above the university system by trying to marginalize Chancellor Jim Rogers for airing his forthright views on the state budget.

Whipple has become a defender of Gov. Jim Gibbons, a fellow Republican, and has taken umbrage at Rogers' accurate assessment of the governor's handling of a projected state budget shortfall.

Rogers' crime? Being honest. Gibbons wanted state agencies to submit proposals for 5 percent budget cuts. In a letter to the governor, Rogers correctly termed it a "knee-jerk reaction" and refused to participate.

In response, Whipple, who recently hosted a fundraiser for the governor's legal defense fund, penned a sycophantic letter to Gibbons with Regent Stavros Anthony, all but disowning Rogers.

During Tuesday's TV program "Face to Face With Jon Ralston," Whipple had the audacity to suggest that Rogers' credibility was diminished because he stated the obvious: The state needs to raise more money if it is ever going to adequately fund education, not to mention other basic government services.

Proving that he shares not only Gibbons' party affiliation but also his myopia, Whipple risibly said the governor had been generous in funding higher education.

Rogers inherited a university system that had become a laughingstock because of the regents' petulant antics and years of inadequate funding. Rogers has brought stability to the Nevada System of Higher Education, as well as a previously unimaginable amount of credibility, but funding is a real problem. Gibbons' talk of budget cuts has a "very chilling effect on donors," Rogers said.

A successful businessman, Rogers has been a strong advocate for higher education during his career. The education system is in poor shape because it is terribly underfunded, and the state should encourage people such as Rogers who not only point that out but can offer potential solutions.

Whipple should recognize that and realize he was elected to help the university system, not kowtow to the governor.

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