Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Jon Ralston :

As Oscar yaks, Mrs. Goodman eyes ‘something new’

Emptying out the reporter’s notebook after a long week of political happenings:

• Goodman Family Development No. 1 — As the Sun’s Dave Toplikar first reported Thursday, Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman once again said he is mulling a race for governor.

This is starting to remind me of that old “Saturday Night Live” bit: “And Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead.”

Yes, Goodman, a master media milker, is milking this for all it’s worth. Yes, we know he says he will run as an independent. Yes, we know he would be the best and happiest governor any state has ever seen.

Although I still don’t believe he will run — dashing my hopes of Technicolor being infused into a sepia-toned race — I fully expect Goodman will switch from Democrat to independent, as required, by the end of the year. I think it will be less to keep his options open than to keep the chatter going — I am not sure what he would do if he were not talked about.

So by Jan. 1, Goodman will be a registered nonpartisan. Next step: He needs to collect 250 signatures by Feb. 4. That he could accomplish by walking into any Costco store.

Then, it becomes a matter of whether he is willing to take a chance on a long-shot bid outside the major parties, believing, as some do, that the time is ripe with a restive, even incensed electorate for an independent bid. It certainly would be more competitive and more vicious than any of his previous contests — but certainly no tougher than persuading juries that one of his fine upstanding clients was a fine upstanding client.

I still say Goodman demurs, perhaps hoping the 2011 Legislature finds a way to extend his last term. But I add: Run, Oscar, run.

• Goodman Family Development No. 2 — Goodman has said his wife, Carolyn, the respected founder of the Meadows School, has given him the green light to consider running for governor. Most folks know that Goodman’s wife has great influence on him and that he is a big booster of hers — even going so far as to direct money from his Bombay Sapphire contract to the Meadows.

This month, Carolyn Goodman sent a letter to “The Meadows School Family” about her future, which will only add to the speculation about her husband’s future — and hers. She wrote “the time has come for me on July 1, 2010, to move on and do something new, for my work here at the Meadows School is really complete.”

That might lead more people to believe she is leaving to prepare to help her husband’s bid for governor. But what may intrigue people more is that she writes toward the end of the missive, “Too, I confess, I am also excited and energized for what will be in my future …”

Could that mean she is, as His Honor has mused, preparing to run for mayor to succeed her husband? If the Reid family can do it, why not the Goodmans?

If Carolyn Goodman becomes mayor, though, I wonder, with Meadows politeness policy so imbued in her, if she will make the other councilmen say “excuse me” when they pass her in the hallway?

I have posted Carolyn Goodman’s valedictory on my blog.

• Krolicki for U.S. Senate? That was the suggestion by crack Washington Post political reporter Chris Cillizza on Thursday, the same day Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki learned Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto will not be pursuing a case against him. “It’s not clear how badly the negative press surrounding Krolicki over the past year would impact a race against (Harry) Reid but the GOP field, which is led by former state party Chairwoman Sue Lowden and businessman Danny Tarkanian, is not exactly stellar,” Cillizza wrote.

I checked and Krolicki has been getting some entreaties to run against Harry Reid — you may recall he was indicted soon after he had announced his interest in challenging the majority leader, giving conspiracy theorists a field day.

I still think Krolicki will run for re-election, but when it comes to that GOP primary for Reid, 10 is company but is 11 a crowd?

(One note: I will not be covering the lieutenant governor’s race because I have a personal relationship with a probable candidate who could be opposing Krolicki.)

• Quote of the Week: With a nonexistent state GOP and a Clark County Republican Party in turmoil, here is what one longtime party insider had to say Thursday: “The best weapon Harry Reid and the Democrats have in their arsenal against Republicans is the Republican Party.”

And even that may not be enough ...

Jon Ralston hosts the news discussion program “Face to Face With Jon Ralston” on Las Vegas ONE and publishes the daily e-mail newsletter “RalstonFlash.com.” His column for the Las Vegas Sun appears Sunday, Wednesday and Friday.

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