Vol. 3, No. 19
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August 1, 2006
Nevada's Online State News Journal
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Primary Election Underway: Big Money Wants Your Vote
Your Voice Is Heard, It Does Make A Difference; Use It, Don't Lose It
Primary Election 2006 is underway with early voting; Election Day itself is August 15. Republicans, Democrats, and all the lesser political parties are making their final pleas for your vote, those for and against various initiative petitions are stumping about the Sagebrush State, and the biggest danger, the big money interests are spending big money buying both advertising and candidates. A little personal reflection might be in order before you mark that ballot or touch that screen as the case may be.
It's your vote, not anyone else's. Your voice alone is imprinted on that voting machine, so make your choices in your best interest; be selfish. Think about why you might vote for a specific candidate. Is he or she backed by the big money interests in Washington, or the big money interests in Las Vegas? Big money in a campaign often flows to the candidate most easily controlled, and big money interests are only concerned with control, not your best interest. Does the money flow from special interest groups favoring certain political philosophy? Does the money flow from specific commercial interests such as gaming, developers, transportation, or utilities? Is most of the candidate's money coming from the little guys? Who will the candidate be most likely to listen to, you or big money?
Is the candidate interested in Nevada or the candidate's political life? Professional candidates often jump from one office to another with no more behind them than the fact they have a job. Have you actually heard the candidate say something of consequence? Was the candidate telling the truth in your mind? Slick and expensive campaigns filled with fluff often pass for substantive campaigns, and this is the time that you can make your voice heard over theirs.
This year more than in recent election years, Nevadans have an opportunity to let their feelings be known. There is big money in this campaign, there are sharp philosophical differences in many of the candidates, and there are candidates who appear to be just skipping along on a thin film of pure old-fashioned BS. Buying one's way into office is not unheard of in Nevada, special interests buying candidates certainly isn't something new, and right now, you have one big voice that will be heard.
In the recent past early voting has been very successful in Nevada and this year shouldn't be any different. There is only one thing that might slow some voters from scurrying to the polls and that is the release of Contributions and Expenses (C&E) reports at the same time as the start of early voting. It's the last chance to see where the money comes from before the August 15 Primary Election. When the date for the primary was moved by the legislature they did not change the date for C&E reporting. There's no real indication that was done on purpose, but it is odd that the date wasn't taken into account.
There are so many things wrong with Nevada's election laws, not just from a financial standpoint, and we at The Nevada Observer have found it more than interesting that not one single candidate for office has taken on the task of saying they would like to change those laws. Finance reporting is at the heart of the problem, but there is so much more. A secretary of state that doesn't believe he has to obey the law, ethics violations that are criminal in nature but no criminal proceedings take place, judges accused of favoritism toward those that contribute the most to campaigns, that don't recuse themselves as demanded by law and judicial canon, oh, yes, we could go on and on, and we have often.
At some point the Nevada electorate will get fed up with how elections are bought and paid for in the Silver State, how their lives and livelihoods are seriously affected by gross criminal activity within election law, and do something about it. Until then, It's your voice and at least this year you do have choices.
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