Columnist Erin Neff: In keen political move, Guinn veers left

Erin Neff

Friday, March 15, 2002 | 4:54 a.m.

THE IDEAL Democratic candidate for governor would believe Nevada should pay for cancer screenings for women, college scholarships for good high school students and prescription drugs for seniors.

What's more, the candidate would urge Nevadans not to trust the federal government or support the Republican administration's Yucca Mountain decision.

Unfortunately for Democratic Chairman Terry Care, who has been fruitlessly searching for that candidate, the closest thing to the ideal is the Republican incumbent.

With each passing day, Gov. Kenny Guinn's already moderate stance has him leaning even more to the left. Adding that tilt to his noncontroversial nature, hefty campaign fund and his statewide popularity are making it even harder for Democrats to find a competitive alternative to Guinn.

Democrats see plenty of issues to run on, but Guinn is stealing them all:

"We, as patriotic Americans, ... have trusted our government," Guinn said. "We trusted them in the 1950s when they said (nuclear) testing was safe and they actually placed men and women less than seven miles from the tests.

"We're no longer going to take somebody at their word, even if it is our government."

To make matters worse for the Dems, who would love to pin the Yucca Mountain blame on the Republicans, Guinn has begun campaigning for GOP candidates on two "Republican" programs he says are smashing successes.

The Millennium Scholarship and senior prescription program were both created in a bipartisan fashion, but Guinn wants Republicans to take the credit for what many believe are socially liberal ideas.

"Millennium Scholarship and Senior Rx are phenomenal foundations for all of you who are running," Guinn told delegates to the county's GOP convention. "You go knock on the door and say I'm part of the party who brought you the Senior Rx program.

"That is a program that says we care."

Assembly Majority Leader Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, likes to think those are programs that show Democrats care.

"Guinn proposed an Rx drug program that didn't work too well," Buckley said. "Then the Democrats made changes to improve it and then Guinn came back with a few of his own changes.

"I certainly think it's the Democratic changes that make it so good."

Guinn attacks the Democrats on the Millennium Scholarship because, he said, they tried to place a cap on a family's income for eligibility.

"This is not for the family, it's for the child," Guinn said.

Buckley said Democrats were simply offering an accountability measure to ensure Nevada's tobacco settlement money -- which funds the scholarships -- was not abused. Sound like a Republican idea?

While the Democrats are still searching for a candidate, Guinn has found the left, right and middle ground. If the Democrats ever find someone to run against him, he's going to be tough to beat.

Whether or not he's stealing issues, he may have already stolen the election before the campaign truly gets under way.