Political notebook: Just how friendly are Gibbons and Reid?

Erin Neff

Friday, Feb. 21, 2003 | 10:08 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- It's no wonder Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., is so focused on international affairs: There's conflict on his own domestic front.

Gibbons' wife, Dawn, told this wag recently that her hubbie would not be running against Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., next year, in part because the Gibbonses are friends with the Reids.

The official line from the congressman: "I haven't made that decision yet."

There are two ways of looking at this:

The wife wants her husband to run for governor in four years, at a time she hopes to be serving in the state Senate. Dawn Gibbons, a Republican assemblywoman from Reno, has her eye on Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio's seat, should he retire.

Or, Dawn and Jim really are good friends of Harry and Landra Reid, and the mere rumor of a Gibbons run against Reid actually helps Reid raise money.

Dis-Knechted emotions

Two freshman assemblyman nearly came to blows at the end of an Assembly Government Affairs Committee meeting and will be forced to publicly apologize today for their actions.

Assemblyman Bob McCleary, D-North Las Vegas, was unhappy with statements Assemblyman Ron Knecht, R-Carson City, made during a collective bargaining hearing.

Knecht's 15 minutes of fame began Wednesday, when he admitted submitting a bill draft request to rename the state East California.

During the hearing McCleary said: "I'd like to respectfully disagree with something my colleague from East California said." He then mischaracterized Knecht's statements as not valuing public employees.

"I didn't say that," Knecht glared at McCleary. "You know I didn't say that."

Committee Chairman Mark Manendo, D-Las Vegas, asked his committee to come to order. But it was Assemblyman Tom Collins, D-North Las Vegas, who prevented fisticuffs when he urged McCleary to walk away from Knecht after the meeting with a "Come on Bob!"

Manendo had words with both freshmen a few moments later and encouraged apologies.

Neal and pray

State Sen. Joe Neal was stuck for days in Washington, D.C., this week because of snowstorms, missing three days of committee and floor meetings.

So when he got back, he treated his fellow senators to a nearly 10-minute-long, blow-by-blow account of the blizzard-altering travel plans that caused his absence.

Neal's adversary, Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, thanked Neal for the travelogue.

"We were praying during your absence," Raggio said. "We had the pastor pray for more snow."

Testy pollster

Frank Luntz typically appears calm and collected when polling focus groups on live television for national networks.

But after a barrage of reporters' challenges to the wording he used for his Nevada survey about medical malpractice law reforms, he sprang up in his sneakers at a news conference in the Legislative Building on Thursday.

Luntz responded to one television reporter's question by yelling, "That's bull (expletive)! I can't believe you even asked that question."

He also defended his survey's questions, which focused on tort reform, although respondents to the poll said insurance companies, not lawyers, were the biggest cause of Nevada's medical malpractice crisis.

His poll also suggested that 200 doctors have left Nevada, a fact that doesn't jibe with a new memo from the Legislative Counsel Bureau that cites much different statistics.

The counsel bureau found 35 physicians who have closed or are in the process of closing. Six obstetricians have stopped practicing and 12 physicians have retired.

Between 1999 and 2002, the number of active in-state licensees increased by about 450 physicians, the bureau reported.

Luntz's poll, done for Keep Our Doctors in Nevada for a price no one would divulge, found a clear majority of Nevadans want additional tort reform and would vote their state leaders out of office if they didn't enact tort reform.

"If I was a legislator I'd be scared to death," Luntz said. "And, I'm not wrong ... I'm always right."

Something to remember next year at election time.

Partisan memory

Sen. Harry Reid had glowing praise for four Republicans during his address to the Legislature this week, but neglected to mention two officeholders he didn't want to see holding office.

Reid spoke about Nevada's congressional delegation without mentioning freshman Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev. Reid had backed Democrat Dario Herrera in the race for Nevada's 3rd Congressional District last year.

Nevada's senior senator also heavily backed Democrat John Hunt in the race for attorney general against Brian Sandoval. Reid expressed greetings to most of the dignitaries gathered, but not to Sandoval.

Three Assembly Republicans saw fit to snub Reid, skipping his address to the Legislature on Tuesday.

Sharron Angle of Reno, Don Gustavson of Sun Valley and Ron Knecht of Carson City did not attend. Neither did Sen. Joe Neal, who was snowbound in the nation's capital.

Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., had a bigger crowd Wednesday -- all 42 Assembly members were in attendance. Two senators, Bernice Matthews, D-Sparks, and Bob Coffin, D-Las Vegas, were absent.

Hazing 101

Freshman Assemblyman William Horne, D-Las Vegas, thought he was just rising to read a floor statement for the first time Monday.

Turns out he was being set up for some mild-mannered hazing.

Horne was encouraging support for Assembly Bill 38, a massive bill ratifying technical corrections to state statutes.

Assembly Majority Leader Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, grilled him about language involving landscapers. Assemblyman David Goldwater, D-Las Vegas, asked for an explanation on something back around page 100.

Assemblyman Bernie Anderson, D-Sparks, unsatisfied with Horne's response, threatened to stick the bill on the clerk's desk until Assemblyman Wendell Williams, D-North Las Vegas, reminded Anderson that it was he who was supposed to prepare freshman members of Anderson's committee for their floor statements.

"Welcome to Carson City, Mr. Horne," was how Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, concluded the ribbing.

When Republican freshman Jason Geddes of Reno rose to speak about the next bill -- one that rectifies conflict amendments on bills -- he said, "It will minimize the hazing to my colleague from Las Vegas and other freshmen."