Guinn ready to announce hiring of Batjer as chief of staff

Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2000 | 10:55 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Gov. Kenny Guinn is close to making an announcement of a top-level switch in his staff, hiring a former Las Vegas casino executive as his chief of staff to succeed Scott Scherer, who is moving to the state Gaming Control Board.

Guinn declined Monday to comment on the moves, but added he may have something to say late today or Wednesday. He said he had several more telephone calls to make to clear up loose ends.

Marybel Batjer, a former executive at Mirage Resorts Inc. in Las Vegas, will take over as chief of staff, according to sources close to Guinn. She held top-level jobs in the Defense Department during the administrations of Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush, and later worked for state government in California.

Gaming Control Board Chairman Steve DuCharme announced his retirement last week, leaving a vacancy on the three-member board that polices the casino industry. Scherer reportedly has been offered the position, but the chairmanship may go to board member Dennis Neilander of Carson City.

The chief of staff's job pays $100,000, and the Gaming Control Board slightly more than $98,000.

Batjer, who lives in Henderson, declined Monday to comment on whether she had been offered the top job and whether she had talked to Guinn.

She served as assistant to the secretary of defense, on the staff of the National Security Council, as a member of the Defense Department's transition teams and then as a special assistant to the secretary of the Navy.

She was undersecretary of Business, Transportation and Housing in California during the GOP administration of Pete Wilson. Before that she was chief deputy for the California Fair Employment and Housing Department.

Most recently she was an executive at Mirage Resorts in Las Vegas, but lost the job when the MGM bought Mirage Resorts and reduced staff.

She is the daughter of former Nevada Supreme Court Cameron Batjer, who later served as chairman of the U.S. Parole Board in Washington D.C.

Before her jobs in Washington, Batjer was director of political planning for the National Women's Political Caucus. She is pro-Equal Rights Amendment and pro-choice on abortion.

As special assistant to the secretary of the Navy, she provided analysis and advice on the Tailhook scandal in Las Vegas. In a 1994 interview she called that a "very dark period for all of us," and added the behavior of the conventioneers in Las Vegas was outrageous.

Scherer is a two-term assemblyman from Las Vegas who ran unsuccessfully for state attorney general two years ago. He was counsel for International Game Technology, the largest slot machine maker in the world.

He has told associates he is interested in making another run for attorney general. If so, he would have to leave the state gaming job to campaign. The law bars a control board member from engaging in political activity.