Las Vegas back on list for funds to fight terror

Monday, Jan. 8, 2007 | 7:26 a.m.

WASHINGTON - It took half a dozen meetings, a high-level conference call and a little bit of common sense to figure out the obvious: Las Vegas is one of the nation's more likely targets of terrorists and should be just as eligible for federal anti-terror funds as, say, Cleveland.

Las Vegas had been knocked from the list of likely terrorist targets in late 2005 by the Department of Homeland Security. The department decided, in effect, that terrorists were more likely to strike any number of Midwestern cities - even though it is those very cities tourists flee when they come to Sin City to play.

The decision drew a sharp response from incredulous Nevada officials and security experts across the country, who said Las Vegas' worldwide reputation for vice and conspicuous consumption make it an ideal symbol for Islamic fundamentalist terrorism.

Earning a place on what became known simply as The List made the 35 cities on it eligible to apply for $746.9 million in Homeland Security dollars. The region has secured a total of $26 million since the program started.

After a year-long exchange between Nevada and Washington, Homeland Security announced last week that Las Vegas had earned a spot to compete for money, alongside Oklahoma City, Seattle and other cities in 2007.

Sen. John Ensign's office said the decision was a "no-brainer," but in fact Ensign and Sen. Harry Reid had spoken last year with Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff to make the case. Then-Rep. Jim Gibbons, now Nevada's governor, also met with Chertoff.

But all is well now. The winning argument for Nevada, it seems, was people. The 38 million visitors who stream into Las Vegas each year will now be given special consideration alongside the nearly 2 million who call the valley home.

Homeland Security had not given much weight to the presence of the tourists, which is a point Reid and Ensign had made.

"Our first responders are not only responsible for taking care of Las Vegas citizens and Nevada citizens, but they're also responsible for taking care of tourists," said Reid spokesman Jon Summers.

Other Homeland Security omissions in its 2005 calculations included not counting the Stratosphere, convention centers, Nellis Air Force Base and other high-profile potential targets.