Republicans adding few new voters in Nevada
Monday, Oct. 12, 2009 | 2 a.m.
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Carson City This was a summer of discontent for Democrats as they lost control of the health care debate, the economy continued to founder and their approval ratings slipped, both in Nevada and nationally.
But Democrats’ troubles haven’t brought a surge of new voters for Nevada’s GOP.
Republicans have added just 1,549 voters since February, when the secretary of state’s office cleaned up voter registration rolls.
Democrats, meanwhile, added 4,860 and nonpartisan registration grew by 3,783. Even the hard-right Independent American Party registered more Nevada voters in that span than Republicans.
“Coming in fourth? Ouch,” said Erik Herzik, a professor of political science at the University of Nevada, Reno, and a registered Republican.
Herzik said the Nevada Republican Party’s problems are twofold.
First, it lacks any real party organization. The state GOP lost its chairwoman when Sue Lowden stepped down to run against Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. The state party, which shares an office with the Clark County Republican Party, doesn’t have an executive director.
Democrats, by contrast, have an organization that is in perpetual campaign mode, with paid staff working to register voters.
The second problem, according to Herzik, is the party’s message.
“Even though the Democratic brand has diminished in popularity, it’s not like the Republican brand has jumped up to replace it,” Herzik said. “What is the Republican alternative on health care? What is the alternative on the war in Afghanistan? What is the alternative on the stimulus package? It’s ‘We don’t like Obama.’
“Republicans can’t just be the party of no.”
Indeed, national and state polling shows both parties suffer low approval ratings.
Republicans in September were viewed positively by 28 percent and negatively by 43 percent of voters, a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll found. That’s relatively unchanged since October 2008, when 31 percent viewed the GOP positively and 48 percent viewed it negatively.
Democrats were viewed positively by 41 percent and negatively by 39 percent in September, down from October 2008, when 49 percent viewed the party favorably and 31 percent viewed it negatively.
Stuart Rothenberg, editor of the Rothenberg Political Report, a nonpartisan newsletter, said voter registration gains are “obviously disappointing for Republicans” but registration is a lagging indicator of public attitude toward political parties.
“There’s no improvement in the Republican brand,” Rothenberg said. “But ... a midterm election is about the incumbent party. There will be significant opportunities for Republicans to make gains.”
Democrats have a 97,000-voter registration advantage over Republicans in Nevada. Before last year’s election, the advantage was more than 100,000. (In January the secretary of state’s office changed the status of voters who moved or had not voted in the past two federal elections to inactive. More Democrats than Republicans were deemed inactive.)
Republican political leaders say that it’s still early.
Republican National Committeewoman Heidi Smith said the party will address its organizational problems in November, when it elects a new chairman and executive director.
She acknowledged that voter registration efforts are not adequate. “They won’t be adequate until we get a new chairman,” she said.
Robert Uithoven, a political consultant for Lowden’s Senate campaign and finance chairman of the state Republican Party, said Republican neighborhood groups are seeing increased membership. “There’s excitement back within the ranks of the party.”
Uithoven cited polls showing that even with the Democrats’ registration advantage, Republican candidates are leading the presumptive Democratic candidates in the U.S. Senate and governor’s races.
“Nevada voters are independent. They won’t just vote for someone because he’s a Republican or he’s a Democrat,” he said.
Democratic Party spokeswoman Phoebe Sweet said the party has recently hired more organizers and 40 percent of new voters registering since February have been Democrats, 13 percent Republicans.
“If you look at the polling on Republican approval ratings, they’re terrible,” she said. “Yes, President Obama’s poll ratings are slipping, some of ours are slipping. But Republicans are faring far worse than we are, and people are running in the opposite direction from the Republican Party.”
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The Republicans are leaving the Democratic run Las Vegas
Under the current politicians, the wrongful deaths of children, abuse and neglect is eightfold. That is, the lawsuits are bankrupting the State, County, and City. The lawsuits will continue for decades because the children and/or their beneficiaries can sue when they turn majoral age.
These new GOP recruits all owe the IRS back income taxes. GOP = sanctuary for WASP income tax evaders. GHWB made $16 million from insider-stock trading at Global Crossings, Inc. While GHWB had the WATCH, his son, Neil Bush (MBA-dyslexia), robbed Denver's Silverado Bank of more than $1 billion. Silverado and Global, both fiancially collapsed. Clinto and Obama bothe refused to prosecute the Bush-Klan (criminal enterprise).
While the NAACP, NABJ, and Cong. Black Caucus were snoozing or humming and singing stanzas from "We Shall Overcome", Boy George sent Ron Isley and Wesley Snipes to prison for income tax evasion. Uncle Tom (Obama), I want to play too. Obama jailed rapper "Method Man", because "M-Man" owed $33K in back taxes. Boy George is a 40+ years UCMJ felon (AWOLee*deserter) himself.
what's the big surprise...
the stupid pathetic republican liars are full of...
hatred...
arrogance...
ugliness...
ugliness...
ugliness...
and more ugliness...
who the hell would want to join the stupid pathetic lying republican party these days...
maggots, maggots everywhere...
time to start squashing us some maggots!!!
So where are all the new Republicans? I thought everyone was a teabagger. Where's the "conservative majority"? Oops, I guess it doesn't exist. ;-)
"The Republicans are leaving the Democratic run Las Vegas"
Like locusts, the Republicans swarm, consume everything while contributing nothing, then skip town at the first sign of trouble. For once, Future, you may be right.
The libertarian candidates should get 5 to 15 % of the vote, that's what wrong with the RJ's polls, they leave out third party candidates.
Besides, Obama, as a Kenyian, will suspend the Constitution, intern all the republicans and subject them to death panels. Also many of the dittoheads will die from swine flu, since Glen Beck and Limpbowl say don't get the shot.
Also, Cuban troops will be used to shut down all talk radio stations. Nah! Nah!
LMAO!..birdiedreamin is really full of Democratic pus today.
maybe the repub's can get some more of those god lovin christians, just love themselves is the problem.
This was a summer of discontent for Democrats as they lost control of the health care debate, the economy continued to founder and their approval ratings slipped, both in Nevada and nationally.
Shifting demographics, is part of why the GOP is landlocked and preaching to a fixed choir.
U.S. Rep James Sensenbrenner (R, WI) started a round-them-up immigration bill in early 2006, that the GOP backed and resulted in millions of Hispanic-Americans voting Democratic in the '06 and '08 election cycles -- saw a cool site; Balkingpoints ; awesome satellite view of earth
mandingo: why have you forsaken Neil Bush lately?
Sue Lowden was chair while Republicans went from even to -100,000 voters. Uithoven was the finance chair and they had so little money they lost their building, had to fire their executive director, move in with the Clark county party and are probably not paying the requisite rent to them. I've never heard of Heidi Smith but if she wants to wait another month to address the "organizational" problems then she should get the boot as well. Hey Heidi, our organizational problem is we have idiots like you, Lowden an Uithoven running our party into the ground.
The party needs new blood. All campaigners for liberty make sure you attend the state GOP meeting in Hawthorne on Nov. 13-15. We can't rest until we get the old, bloated, stale leadership out and new blood in.
Mexicans register and vote Democratic.
If you add up the nonpartisan and independent voters, they come close in outnumbering the gains made by the Democrats and the Republicans.
Birdiedreamin wrote:
"what's the big surprise...
the stupid pathetic republican liars are full of...
hatred...
arrogance...
ugliness...
ugliness...
ugliness...
and more ugliness...
who the hell would want to join the stupid pathetic lying republican party these days...
maggots, maggots everywhere...
time to start squashing us some maggots!!!
SPEAKING OF UGLINESS
After 2012 the entire political system will forever be changed. The only hope thereafter will be that the newly alliance demopub party can withstand the challenges of the new emerging minority party?
Good Luck, to all the "ol party takers", a new era is upon us, no more shameless theft of the Americans' coffers.
Perhaps, there may even be programs that allow stimulus grants for the one's who once gripped the power of the purse strings.
History will ask the question: "why was Gran-Daddy so opposed to these programs (Affirmative Action) that help us to get jobs"; "Billy- bob, those programs were once for others (minorities) we would discriminate in job hiring's, now, thank heaven we can use them to get a job".
The approaching piper is rushing upon us, the only out, is, total and complete surrender or elimination of any political parties in America: I prefer the later, as the prior scheme was just that, a scheme to rob Americans visa-vie redistribution of wealth.
The redistribution of wealth has always been the stealing from the poor and giving to the rich, oh, I'm sorry, you just now realized the "gig is up". Knowledge is doubling exponentially, and will continue to do so, unless, we can limit the internet, technology from informing the masses of their constitutional rights.
The move is already afoot, many cities are excusing the census program as not being capable of performing its duties, imagine that, oh, oh-kay, so, there are less minorities than we once complained about, yah-right; no need for more Representatives either.
The status quo will continue to receive the same appropriations as before? Yup! And the redistribution ratio of government monies will stay the same? Yup!
The change is coming!
When the "Bird" mentions "maggots," he is actually giving out compliments, because you see, maggots are his favorite food.
The "Birds" favorite meal is maggots squashed and mixed with the droppings on the bottom of his cage.
His mother called it "maggot pudding" and fed it to the "Bird" three times a day...
This explains why things that come out of his mouth smell the same as his other end...
Here is a four part commentary for the Nevada Republican Party to chew and swallow hard, strong medicine.
(1) Sunday, Steve Wynn stated on national television that "government never increased the standard of living of one human in civilized history".
Fine. We'll stop sending US dollars out of the federal government budget to other countries, including Israel.
(2.) Mr. Wynn also stated his opinion that "the healthcare debate has confused the matter and delayed an economic fix". He spoke of the need to create new jobs foremost.
It was newly created MGM Mirage ("MGMM") Corp which did away with physical insurance contracts with Mutual of Omaha, turning instead to the Mirage Resorts strategy of self-funded, self-insured plans for employees working with Sierra Healthcare Services. This corporate level decision shorted some MGMM employees in healthcare decision-making, while at the same time the company was making record profits. That may not reflect on how Mirage Resorts regarded their employees on insurance support, but something manifest at MGMM, now primarily a company of former Mirage Resorts executives, managers, employees and shareholders.
When US gaming companies have to compete with competent foreign competition to produce products and create market shares, while carrying the expense of employer based insurance foreign competitors do not share, then different voices will arise from Nevada Gaming.
America must restructure today to remain competitive in the new global village we have created with our consumption.
(3.) Mr. Wynn would like the federal government to subsidize new jobs with tax incentives for new hiring, which ironically increases the standard of living for at least a few Americans through government action.
Las Vegas has 13,500 new jobs right now at City Center, so new jobs are not the problem. Except they are! What Mr. Wynn won't state is it is insane for competitor to be opening such a property in this economy, driving high end Revpar down further, while uprooting some jobs at the expense of others.
MGMM not only overbuilt, even in a good economy, they overspent in their overbuilding.
For every gain in these newly created $10-18 an hour hospitality jobs, there will be a loss in City Center contruction jobs that paid more, and Nevada can only hope out of work construction workers leave the state and do not file for state social net funds already diminished.
(Continued below)
What's sad for the dems is even with the repubs signing up less people, all the major dem players in this state will be history after the 2010 elections. So long Harry and so long Dina! and the best of all is so long Barrack in 2012.
If you look hard enough, and deep enough, aside from a few "party planks", they are both EXACTLY the type of politico.
Lil' REPUBLICAN Jebbie Bush (Mexican Student Exchange Program and fluent Spanish speaker) and his Mexican Spouse (busted at the Border by Customs for trying to smuggle in undeclared jewelry) likely made for an interesting Christmas Dinner at the White House with George (the second) when the conversation turned to Illegal Aliens (and maybe how to LOOK THE OTHER WAY).
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, etc. are nothing more than DEMOCRATIC Homesteads for the party faithful that likely can't REALLY do anything else for a living (except Real Estate). (Don't forget, Real Estate Mogul "Capitalists" are now FILTHY "BOURGEOISIE" RICH.)
HA! We should not be so easily fooled by appearances. They are EXACTLY the same politicos at the top, and will ALWAYS be that way.
(4) Republicans ("RNC") state today that the Democratic Party now in marjority rule is slow to create jobs and fix the economy. In fact, this economic fiasco hit credit markets, meaning a very slow recovery.
People spent and had a good time under Bush, nobody should understand this more than those at the top who took their money in "what happens here, stays here" Las Vegas.
It was Bush 43 who stated in his final press conference that "this sucker could go down" and who initiated (rightfully) the call for stimulus spending before leaving office.
Back in the 1970s the US economy was roughly 60 percent private sector and 40 percent public sector. Today, post corporate growth and wealth over the past 30 years as a result of federal law and policy, the US economy is roughly 70 percent private sector and 30 percent public sector.
Somewhere in that 10 percent swing America lost the ability to timely identify the Bernie Madoff's of the world, curb Wall Street's application of multivariate regression techniques to the buying and selling of turbo-charged paper, protect American jobs-labor and wage suppression, cut into disparities in wealth distribution, keep bad foreign products off US shelves, eliminate off shore tax loopholes, stop rising healthcare costs forcing more American out of coverage or into bankruptcy, and on and on.
Today, we are going to have to find some, certainly not all, but some of that 10 percent lost in the public sector of the economy and smartly put it back to work (new jobs).
(5) In the interim time frame it takes to enact number 4 above (examples: healthcare reform, expanded coverage to children) when Nevada Gaming leaders state they want new American jobs ASAP, what they really want is new customers from 49 states.
When you are spending upwards of 2 million dollars per hotel room, you need new customers who can spend.
Mr. Wynn is an extremely competent hospitality operator with great expertise and skills. His experience and knowledge have application to areas beyond gaming-hospitality.
But, he was not speaking to the Treasury or White House on Sunday television, he was speaking to the customers who pay his bills.
The last customers to leave Las Vegas and the first to come back will be from California.
If Nevada's Republican Party and gaming leadership want to advise the White House, perhaps they should obtain some experience in a State House first, such as running for governor in California.
The problems with that are the Nevada Republican solution of tax cuts would create a huge sucking sound in California, with high tech and expertise leaving the state in mass, slowly dumbing down the state in education and probably healthcare too, something that has been going on in Nevada for about 20 years. The problem is, Californians are too smart for the Nevada Republican solution, as is Washington.
With any luck, the next election will ferret out more of the dead weight that is the Nevada Republican Party. Gym Gibbons, for example.
Joe Heck is desperately trying to pick a race he can win. He picked the one he is least likely to prevail in...challenging Dina Titus. Good luck on that one, Joe.
An interesting fact about these statistics is that there are more OTD (other then Democrats) then registered Democrats in Nevada.
Another interesting fact about voter registration is that Clark County has over 115,000 registered voters who are considered inactive. These "Inactive Voter" status includes any voter for whom a county has received: 1) a returned residency confirmation mailing without a forwarding address within the same county, or 2) information obtained through the United States Postal Service National Change of Address (NCOA) database indicating that a voter has moved outside the county. An inactive voter is eligible to vote so long as they have met all other legal requirements to vote.
How many of these 115,000 inactive voters were registered by ACORN and their legitimacy can not be confirmed...
The traditional Republican part has been dead for a number of years. No, the Republican party was not slain by the Democrats, but by those things that wore the cloak of conservatism. They were not Conservatives, they were Fascists-totalitarian, corrupt, and incompetent. One has to look no further than the cheney/puppet bush mis-administration and their miserable failure record. I have the utmost respect for the true Republicans such as Eisenhower and Robert Dole, but those that were like the above were run out of the party by the wingnuts that seemed to crawl out of some political sewer. They have nothing to offer their supporters except lies, lies, and more lies. Can you raise a family on lies, a community, a state, or a nation? That was a rhetorical question--one that you have to answer yourself. Think-it doesn't cost anything.
The republican party is too extreme. Birthers, tea baggers, and ignorant Texans.
Republicans dont get it.
Americans dont want the estreme religous right controlling our lives.
republicans foam at the mouth and are lousy tippers; the party of no cant handle the truth so they make it up as they go along.
Take a deep breath of fresh air you birds. A change is in the wind and it does not include you lefties...
Guess what? Even the true Democrats are getting tired of the far left and their ilk...
A few more years of letting the Kenyan Marxist in the White House with his clones, Pinkie Reid and Smellie Pelosi and Barney Franks, ruin the budget and skyrocket the deficit on companies with no value, and the GOP will return to center stage and the country will wake up from this leftwing nightmare.
Talk about nightmares... I asked my wife the other morning if we had wild sex the night before.
She said NO.... So I said, "Oh, it must have been a dream then."
I think she is now a Republican. The party of "no."
Larry, maybe you should have gotten some Extenze.
If Republicans and Independants started to think outside the box they would remove themselves from California and let the Democrats control every aspect of the State and use them as an example; why not to vote for the Democrats. The rewards would be insurmountable and over the long term and people would realize what their party is really all about.
All other States who just sit back and watch them destroy California from within would benefit all around. Business would thrive because of the Businesses and Corporations would flock away from their tax and social programs being forced upon them. The states would see lifelong welfare recipients moving to their state for the freebies, illegal immigrants would infest them for the freebies, and the housing slump there would be bought up to house their followers. The benefit to the surrounding states equates to savings and increased revenues from making less welfare payments, crime rates fall, increase tax revenue from businesses that relocate to their state, and work for Americans.
If you have any doubts what Democrats are all about take a look at Oakland when Jerry Brown was the Mayor. What was once a beautiful city now has one of the highest crime and murder rates and one of the filthiest cities, look at Pittsburg -- Bay Point otherwise known as Gun Point California, North Las Vegas, Sam Boyd Stadium, Los Angeles, San Diego, Detroit Michigan, The Bronx, and all other communities across the USA, it proves what the Democratic Party is all about. House them in one state and certain communities and for those who choose their lifestyle know have a safe haven where they can prosper.
If they're not willing to remove themselves then a movie could be made like Michael Moore makes but make this one about the Democratic controlled areas; instant wealth. It could named Obama and Change, how is it working for you! This is what they want for America, how do yo like the future?
Politics, like climate change is cyclical. The pendulum swings one way then swings back the other. Recent memory brings back thoughts that the GOP was dead post Nixon, then the dems dead post Carter and so on. Niether side should be gloating as the fringes from each side are throwing bombs at each other while the centerists from both sides- the majority of us- do all the work.
Americans vote in cycles, just like the economy has cyclical palpitations which go from feast to famine and back . . etc etc.
It's not the Republicans that are going to kick Harry out of office. It's us independent voters that will give him a left hook come next November.
There aren't independents in Nevada that are of sufficient quantity to unseat the Pinko senator. Sad but true.
its2hot: You forgot about the great example in our own backyard: Henderson. It wasn't until that Democrat Jim Gibson took office in 1997 that the progressive, forward-thinking, sophisticated community was besmirched with the enduring nickname "Hendertucky." (I suppose if you wanted to make a similarly inaccurate statement you could attribute 100 percent of the problems in the city not to his political affiliation but to his religious affiliation).
But it really doesn't mater whether a politician is Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, Communist or anything else. The philosophical differences between the parties are so completely undermined by the fact that all politicians are liars. Wouldn't it be a more accurate label in parenthesis following their names, too? Liar?
Sen. Nancy Pelosi (Liar-Calif.); Sen. John Ensign (Liar-Nev.); Gov. Bill Richardson (Liar-N.M.); Rep. Michelle Bachmann (Liar-Minn.)... so much more accurate that way...
Really, if you think about it, have you heard the one about the honest politician? Yeah, me neither.
Independents running for office at a national level will be pressed to do better than Ross Perot did. At a state level they have a better chance like Jesse Ventura. At a local level they may be able to get elected and change something but they face the embeded ploitical system.
Question is why do independent voters think anything is going to change in 2010 or 2012? The past track record is not too good.