Women take over Democrats’ reins in Nevada Senate

Thursday, Nov. 30, 2000 | 11:34 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Women will hold the leadership posts among Senate Democrats in the 2001 Legislature.

Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, Wednesday named Sen. Bernice Mathews of Reno as assistant minority leader and Sen. Valerie Wiener of Las Vegas as minority whip.

In doing so, she passed over some long-time lawmakers from Clark County. Earlier Titus had been elected minority leader by the Democrats, who trail Republicans 12 to 9 in the Senate.

"It's the year of the woman," said Sen. Mike Schneider, D-Las Vegas, who was assistant minority leader in the last session. "It seems like we want to get other people involved -- pass it around."

Schneider and Titus have not seen eye-to-eye in the past on some issues, and he says he wants the Democrats to get the majority in the future.

"She will have been minority leader for 10 years, and we will give her one more chance to see what she can do -- if she can pull us into the majority."

Asked about his relationship with Titus, Schneider said, "Sometimes we get along, sometimes we don't. It's just business. We will let her (Titus) have it one more time."

Titus said Schneider has twice "tried to take my job. I figured he didn't want to be my assistant any more." Asked about Schneider's statement that she hasn't been able to deliver the majority to the Democrats, Titus said, "It should be a (Democratic) caucus effort. It would be nice if I had other caucus members helping."

Mathews, in her second term, and Wiener, just elected to her second term, will play critical roles in the next session, said Titus.

She said Wiener has shown an ability to work with others "to build consensus and the attention to detail that results in well-crafted legislation. Eighteen of 20 of her bills during those two sessions were enacted into law."

She said Mathews has experience as a small business owner and has shown expertise on budget issues as a member of the Senate Finance Committee. Titus said the selection of Mathews demonstrates a commitment to bringing all areas of the state -- north and south -- together to develop polices good for the state as a whole."

Mathews, Titus pointed out, is the only northern Nevada Democrat in the Senate. And she said it was critical that that seat be preserved in reapportionment.