Stamp of disapproval

Tuesday, June 2, 2009 | 2:06 a.m.

Gov. Jim Gibbons now holds the dubious distinction of vetoing more bills than any other governor in state history. As of Sunday, he had vetoed 48 bills in his 29 months in office, eclipsing the total number of vetoes issued by the previous three governors over the course of 26 years.

The Legislature was wrapping up its work on Monday by continuing to take up several vetoed bills and will surely set a record of its own. As of this weekend, lawmakers had overridden more than half of the bills Gibbons had vetoed.

Gibbons’ staff has claimed his high number of vetoes is due to “bad legislation.” Dan Burns, Gibbons’ spokesman, said the governor “takes no pride” in the record but “takes pride in standing up for what he believes in and in keeping the promises he made to the people who voted for him.”

Please. That is nothing more than the Gibbons administration’s weak spin on what should be abundantly clear: This pathetic record demonstrates Gibbons’ absolute failure to lead.

Unlike previous governors, who have worked with lawmakers to shape legislation before it passes, Gibbons is making his views known after bills land on his desk. Senate Minority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, who has been in the Legislature for 36 years, told the Las Vegas Sun that Gibbons is the least engaged of the six governors he has worked with.

Gibbons has used the veto haphazardly — even his staff isn’t sure what he will veto. For example, he rejected a bill that would have increased the gas tax in Washoe County, even though it was approved by voters. He also vetoed a bill that would create a rainy-day fund for education, a common-sense idea that even he said he supported.

As illogical as that sounds, that is just par for the course. Gibbons has been distant, acted irrationally and offered no solutions or leadership. If he had any shame, he would be embarrassed of his performance, as many Nevadans are.