Columnist Jeff German: Mayor Goodman versus Candidate Goodman

Friday, Jan. 10, 2003 | 4:16 a.m.

IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T noticed, we've been seeing a different face on Mayor Oscar Goodman -- his campaign face -- as he looks to get re-elected to a second term.

Candidate Goodman is the opposite of the charismatic, fiery, no-nonsense Mayor Goodman, who's not afraid to take on anyone for a just cause, even the casino industry.

When Candidate Goodman hits the speaker's circuit, he is boring, softspoken and measured in his words. He prefers to praise deep-pocket power brokers, not attack them.

A year ago Mayor Goodman, who wasn't thinking about his re-election, delivered an eye-catching luncheon address in front of the city's brightest casino executives at the annual American Gaming Summit.

Goodman lectured his captive audience about what he called the casino industry's lack of corporate reponsibility to the community.

As the executives rolled their eyes and shook their heads, the mayor accused the industry of failing to take an active role in the fight against Yucca Mountain and the campaign to clean up the homeless problem. He blasted the industry for impeding his efforts to land a National Basketball Association franchise for the city.

He also hit the industry where it hurt the most, charging it didn't pay its fair share of taxes.

Goodman reiterated to reporters afterward that he believed gaming should do more to "get behind the city," and he boasted that he wasn't about to "kiss their rear ends."

Bill Bible, the industry's political point man, responded that gaming wasn't prepared to support Goodman's poorly thought out "pet projects."

The mayor's relationship with the casino industry sunk to an all-time low.

Since then, realizing that he needs a hefty campaign war chest to persuade the voters to keep him in office, Goodman has done a lot of smooching on the Strip. The gaming industry has responded by contributing heavily to his campaign. With the election six months away, Goodman already has accumulated $700,000 in donations and so far has managed to scare off potential opponents.

Last week Candidate Goodman, fresh from collecting $150,000 at a fund-raiser hosted by the Fertitta family, which owns Station Casinos, again addressed the American Gaming Summit, but this time the high-powered conference attendees had trouble keeping their eyes open.

There were no harsh words for the casino industry. The speech was all about Goodman -- how he got elected, how he loved his job and how "great" the city was doing under his leadership. Everything, Goodman said, was "rosy" in Las Vegas.

Candidate Goodman took only one political risk at the luncheon. He referred to the Las Vegas Review-Journal as that "stinking Review-Journal" when recalling how the newspaper editorialized against his campaign after he filed for office in 1999.

Goodman didn't lay a glove on the gamers, who have the big bucks to get him reelected. In fact, he built up the casino executives, telling them how important the industry is in the ongoing struggle to revitalize downtown, particularly Fremont Street.

By the time he finished his speech, Candidate Goodman, though he was talking to the home team, sounded like an advertisement for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

"This is the place to be," he said. "Our future is bright as long as we know that there is competition out there, and we don't take ourselves for granted... Tomorrow is really looking better than today."

Then he told the casino executives to have a good time at the conference and added, "Please leave your money."

He meant at the gaming tables, but he easily could have meant in his campaign coffers, too.

Because this was Candidate Goodman talking, not Mayor Goodman.