Jon Ralston

« Older
Newer »

Blog Post Archive

Halseth resigns from state Senate: Friday, Feb. 17, 2012; Letter to governor.
Legislative lobbyists boost lawmakers running for Congress; Titus helped by DC PACs: Monday, Oct. 17, 2011; That's what can be gleaned from an analysis of Federal Election Commission reports from the four Democrats who have filed -- Steven Horsford announced after the third-quarter deadline. Some detail below and even more from the document attached at right.
Cloobeck, Gundlach lead Nevada donors to Democratic Super PAC; Reid helps Cherchio, gets love from Big Pharma, tribes: Monday, Aug. 1, 2011; A couple of Nevada donors gave about a fourth of the total to the new Democratic Super PAC, which is being run by operatives tied to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
Not much money help for Obama from Nevada in second quarter: Tuesday, July 19, 2011; Of President Obama's $47 million raised in the second quarter, only $82,000 was raised in itemized contributions from Nevada, according to federal records.
GOP poll: Sandoval looks solid across the state, among most demographics groups: Tuesday, July 19, 2011; Those are the findings of that same poll conducted last week that found Sen. Dean Heller up by 4 percentage points over Rep. Shelley Berkley (elsewhere on this blog). The poll memo is at right.
Heller poll shows him up 4 over Berkley in Senate race: Monday, July 18, 2011; GOP Sen. Dean Heller has a 48-44 lead on Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley in a poll taken last week for his campaign.
Clark County DA demands return of $102 million from state treasurer after funds diverted: Wednesday, June 15, 2011; That would blow a hole in the state budget. But David Roger, acting at the behest of the Clark County Commission, today sent a letter to Treasurer Kate Marshall demanding a refund.
Zappos threatened to pull out of downtown deal if terms not changed: Wednesday, June 15, 2011; All you saw was the happiness and gushing and sea of blue Zappos shirts at City Hall today as the council ratified The Greatest Deal Ever Made.
Former mayor, ex-lawmaker, erstwhile Golden Nugget owners headline Romney event: Monday, June 13, 2011; It's Friday at Lawry's for GOP presidential frontrunner Mitt Romney. Besides Mike Montandon, Warren Hardy and Tom Breitling and Tim Poster, a passel of LDS activists are on the invite.
In shocker, Angle out for special House election: Wednesday, May 25, 2011; Didn't see that coming.
Bill Clinton does robocall for Chris Giunchigliani, but can't quite get her name right: Thursday, May 19, 2011; But the former president says he's known her for a long time. Really? Maybe he should have watched that spot where she articulated how to say it. It's June-kill-ee-ani, Mr. President.
Texan closer to bringing arena complex to Las Vegas, signs contract for 51s: Friday, May 6, 2011; As the public arena battle has raged between Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts International, Texas entrepreneur Chris Milam has quietly assembled the building blocks for his own project near the south end of the Strip.
First special House election in Nevada history set, chaos to ensue: Friday, April 29, 2011; Start your clocks ticking to the first lawsuit after Secretary of State Ross Miller sets rules Monday for a special election to fill Rep. Dean Heller's seat, which will take place Sept. 13. Gov. Brian Sandoval announced the date late Friday afternoon and Miller immediately informed the media he will have a news conference Monday morning.
The untold story of the Ensign-Heller-Berkley moves: Nevada’s loss of DC clout: Wednesday, April 20, 2011; For a small state such as Nevada, having the Senate majority leader is an obvious boon. But the state also has been covered by obtaining highly coveted seats on the Senate and House money committees.
Poll: Romney does well among 2008 GOP delegates, but they are cuckoo for Trump, too: Tuesday, April 12, 2011; Romney and Trump.
Rory Reid responds to SOS inquiry, shows bank accounts for sham PACs: Tuesday, April 12, 2011; Rory Reid responds.
The Family pitch: 'Want to Keep What’s Working and Take It to the Next Level?': Friday, March 11, 2011; Carolyn Goodman has a beautiful new mail piece that talks about her being a "doer" since she was a toddler on ice skates until she became attached to whatshisname. Subtle.
SOS to Rory Reid and fellow schemers: Show me your records: Friday, March 11, 2011; Secretary of State Ross Miller has sent a letter to former gubernatorial candidate Rory Reid and others involved in that ploy to funnel $750,000 through shell PACs to his campaign.
SOS elections official: Reid's attorney asked about bundling, not outlawed "conduit contributions": Friday, March 4, 2011; So says Program Officer Kristi Geiser in a statement I have obtained.
A sense of the census: Clark, Hispanics keys to 2012: Thursday, Feb. 24, 2011; I’ve already told you about the lawsuit filed to coincide with the release of Nevada’s census numbers today – you can see the data yourself.
Fire chief who asked for sick days off three months in advance made $200,000 that year: Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011; Fire battalion chief Gina Hall, who in emails posted elsewhere on this blog is seen asking for sick days off three months in advance, made $200,000 in that year, 2009, according to payroll records I have obtained.
Firefighters had 'sick rosters' that planned days off in advance, so others could plan to get overtime: Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2011; That was the revelation at today's Clark County Commission meeting and I have obtained some examples of the rosters and posted them at right. As you can see, red days, posted a month in advance, are for sick days.
UNLV president: Colleges and schools could disappear, departments may also vanish with budget cuts: Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2011; Elsewhere on this site, the Sun's Anthony Ramirez reports on UNLV President Neal Smatresk's dire briefing to the Faculty Senate:
Let the Carolyn coronation begin: Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011; Is there really a need to hold the mayoral election now? Couldn’t Oscar just appoint Carolyn and we can save a lot of money on this fait accompli election? Surely, that would be easier.
Firefighters' damage control spin machine revs up before hearing: Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2011; In advance of today's Clark County Commission hearing on sick leave abuse, the county fire union sent a message to its members and the elected folks.
Horsford continues "It's so bad we'll have to raise taxes" campaign on education funding: Monday, Jan. 31, 2011; That's the purpose of the latest missive from the media shop state Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford set up and is run by ex-Rory Reid spokesman Mike Trask. It lays out all the cuts in K-16 and proposes a massive tax increase to bridge the gap.
'The contract allows a lot of latitude for those who would manipulate the system for their own financial gain': Thursday, Jan. 27, 2011; That's the description of the Local 1908 contract in an internal fire department email I have obtained and that was used in the recent arbitration case won by Clark County.
Nevada is not Nevada and English is not English: Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2011; Gov. Brian Sandoval brought his “Optimism is the Foundation of Courage” tour to the Four Seasons this afternoon to deliver a distilled State of the State to an appreciative Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce luncheon that numbered in the hundreds.
Sisolak calls for local, state, federal probes of fire union after arbitrator's decision: Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011; Clark County Commissioner Steve Sisolak, a critic of firefighters gaming the system, has sent letters to local, state and federal law enforcement officials asking them to investigate sick leave abuses outlined in an arbitrator's decision.
National Republicans digging for information on Secretary of State Ross Miller: Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2011; The National Republican Senatorial Committee has asked Democratic Secretary of State Ross Miller for just about every scrap of paper in his office
Congratulations, governor, and here’s a few thousand to say thanks in advance: Sandoval's post-election haul: Wednesday, Jan. 19, 2011; Gov. Brian Sandoval raised more than half a million dollars from Election Day until the end of 2010, one fifth of it from MGM Resorts International and tens of thousands from the usual suspects (gaming, the garbage monopoly, developer/gambler Billy Walters).
R&R, Ferraro Group to host reception after Sandoval speech: Friday, Jan. 14, 2011; It's almost a tradition. After the governor gives his State of the State address, top lobbying firms host a soirée for him.
New speaker to lobbyists: Come kiss my ring at exclusive reception: Thursday, Jan. 13, 2011; That's not exactly what the invitation says that was sent out by Assembly Speaker John Oceguera. But it's close.
Sandoval outlines pay cut in letter to state employees: Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2011; Sandoval letter.
Horsford: 'Extreme right-wing interests (trying) to dismantle our state': Thursday, Jan. 6, 2011; "Some things are worth fighting for," state Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford sent this out a short time ago:
Republicans maintain small lead in early voting, but no enthusiasm gap detected yet: Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2010; In Clark County, 8.5 percent of Democrats have turned out while 9.7 percent of Republicans – so that 1.2 percent lead is a slight uptick from the .9 percent lead the GOP had after Monday. No sign of a surge there.
Angle says women 'staged the fight' to detract from supposed news at non-debate: Friday, Sept. 24, 2010; Angle says women 'staged the fight'
Survey by national GOP pollster shows both Reids gaining ground: Friday, Sept. 24, 2010; Reid the Elder is up 45-40 over Sharron Angle
Angle Reinvention Project on Social Security, Medicare continues: Friday, Aug. 13, 2010; GOP Senate nominee Sharron Angle is distributing an "Open Letter to Seniors" to rebut supposed "disinformation" from Team Reid.
John Ensign: I'm innocent, so send me money: Friday, Aug. 13, 2010; That's the pitch in a fundraising letter Sen. John Ensign sent out this week for his legal defense fund.
Angle thinks Congress should clarify 14th Amendment because illegal immigrants "not under our jurisdiction": Monday, Aug. 9, 2010; Sharron Angle argued Monday "certainly someone who has not come here under the rule of law is not under our jurisdiction," aligning herself with prominent Republicans who have agitated for action on what she and others call "the anchor baby issue."
Nevada Supreme Court guts ethics law - again: Monday, Aug. 2, 2010; The state's ethics law, already hollowed out by court decisions that don't allow the commission to discipline legislators, took another blow last week from the Nevada Suprme Court.
Reid goes negative on Angle, with some of her greatest hits: Friday, June 11, 2010; Well, the positive ads from the majority leader didn't last long.
National group files lawsuit, says county, state mistreated foster kids: Wednesday, April 14, 2010; The suit, filed on behalf of 13 kids by the National Center for Youth Law, alleges a failure to properly care for and keep safe children in the system
Tea Party candidate alleges wrongoing by DA's office, says he has been targeted: Friday, April 2, 2010; In a startling and stinging news release, Scott Ashjian says a deputy district attorney and former county GOP chairman wrongly tried to prosecute him.
AG to Gov: Leave me alone already on the health care bill lawsuit!: Friday, March 26, 2010; Or words to that effect.
Governor to AG: A second-year law student could figure out health care lawsuit: Thursday, March 25, 2010; So Gov. Jim Gibbons said in a new letter demanding action by Monday from the AG to sue the feds on health care and accusing her office of being too slow on other pressing matters.
Here comes Little Tark to save the day - socialism shall not prosper here!: Wednesday, March 24, 2010; Senate contender Dannny Tarkanian has filed his ballot question on health care reform.
ACLU tells Gibbons education task force violated Open Meeting Law: Monday, March 22, 2010; By meeting behind closed doors Friday.
NRCC goes up against Titus: Wednesday, March 17, 2010; The National Republican Congressional Committee will, ahem, use the nuclear option on Dina Titus starting tomorrow as the health care vote nears.