SILVER STATE CONFIDENTIAL 10/31/2014

HAPPY NEVADA DAY! Yesterday the family and I drove up to Carson City to be here for the big 150th Anniversary celebration of Nevada’s statehood.  On the way we stopped and walked around the Rhyolite Ghost Town, before taking a tour of Scotty’s Castle in Death Valley. Dinner last night, of course, was at Red’s 395 Grill. Breakfast this morning at The Crackerbox, where I ran into my longtime friend Rick Arnold.  Later today we’ll hit Virginia City for lunch, including a Bloody Mary at the Bucket of Blood Saloon. Trick-or-treating tonight in the neighborhood surrounding the Governor’s Mansion.  I’m going as myself; about the scariest thing imaginable for Gov. Brian Sandoval! The annual GOP Pancake Breakfast at the Guv’s Mansion tomorrow morning; then the big Nevada Day Parade, followed by Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki’s Annual Chili Feed at the Nugget and topped off with the Nevada Day Fair at Mills Park. On Sunday we’ll head down to Lake Tahoe for a hike around Taylor Creek – or as my kids affectionately call it, “Dead Fish Creek.”  This is the time of year the Kokanee Salmon swim upstream out of the lake, spawn and then croak.  The stream is littered with colorful dead fish.  Plus there's always a good chance to catch a bald eagle flying around.  And one year we saw a bear on the hike.  Mother Nature at its finest.  Real cool. And then on Monday… ORAL ARGUMENTS Four years ago, my organization, Citizen Outreach, sent out a pair of issue advocacy mailers alerting voters to the voting record of then-Assembly Speaker John Oceguera.  Secretary of State Ross Miller, in typical partisan fashion, sued us in an effort to try to get us to disclose the identities of our donors even though we are not required to do so according to IRS rules. Miller has been on a jihad against so-called “dark money” - which is really nothing more than protected anonymous free speech – and has been selectively prosecuting only conservative organizations over his liberal (what else?) interpretation of the law. And just why would some people wish to remain anonymous in donating to a conservative (or liberal) causes?  Here are 8 darned good reasons, courtesy of Donor’s Trust… To avoid becoming a chronic target for other causes Religious donors may view anonymous giving as the highest form of charity New donors may give anonymously until they have a better feel for the organization Professional discretion Desire to be seen as a regular community member Allows a donor to be flexible and creative in his or her giving Avoids personal problems, such as relatives seeking inheritance Fear of retribution (personal, political, professional) That last one, by the way, is deadly serious and the reason why four of our Founding Fathers inked the Federalist Papers anonymously. In any event, four years later and we finally get to make our case in court.  Oral arguments will be presented before the Nevada Supreme Court in Carson City Monday morning.  Keep your fingers crossed that free speech ultimately wins the day! 2014 BALLOT PICKS UPDATE CORRECTION:  My bad.  Derek Armstrong is the Republican running for the state Assembly in District 21, not District 3 as I listed in the last update.  I make no recommendation in AD3.  The GOP candidate there has exercised considerably questionable judgment on a couple of issues, especially on the Tax Pledge…which he has neither signed nor asked about it even though a potential major donor asked HIM about it. Republican Assemblyman Ira Hansen, District 32 in Reno, has cast some real head-scratching votes considering the fire-breathing conservative talk-show host he was in a former life.  But he’s a heckuva lot more conservative than Assembly Minority Leader Pat Hickey and may challenge Hickey for the caucus leadership post depending on how a number of other assembly races turn out.  That possibility alone is enough to warrant support for his re-election! Like many of you, I don’t know a lot of the judicial candidates on the ballot this year.  So in order to cast a relatively informed vote, I’m going to go with some of the endorsements/recommendations issued by the Nevada Libertarian Party, which did a bang-up job of interviewing and evaluating candidates this year.  With that in mind, add the following to my 2014 Picks… For Family Court Department N, I’m back off the fence and again going with Monti Levy.  The LP endorsement pushed me back into her court, so to speak. In Assembly District 21, I’m changing from Republican Derek Armstrong, who I have serious reservations about after reading his responses in the RJ Voter Guide, to Adam-John Sanacore (LIB). In Assembly District 37, I’m changing my mind on Republican Wes Duncan - who has “gone native” on us since the last legislative session, is now firmly under the influence-and-control of the GOP establishment, and is now serving two masters after accepting a government job with Clark County.  Plus he refuses to sign the Taxpayer Protection Pledge.  As such, I’m going with the Libertarian candidate, Lou Pombo. In Assembly District 15, put me down for Roberto Juarez (LIB). Also... Clark County District Court 4: Kerry Earley Clark County District Court 23: Craig Friedberg Clark County District Court 25: Sean Connell Clark County District Court 30: Jeffrey Rugg Clark County District Court 32: Rob Bare Clark County Family Court D: Bob Teuton Clark County Family Court H: Art Richie Clark County Family Court S: Jason Stoffel Justice of the Peace Las Vegas 12: Marian Kamalani For my full, updated list of recommended candidates, click here REMINDER: VOTE TODAY IN $100,000 TEACHER CHALLENGE Remember, you can (and should, please) vote every day for Brenda Moynihan in her effort to secure a $100,000 grant for C.T. Sewell Elementary School in Henderson. CLICK HERE to vote.  And remember, you can vote every day until the deadline on November 30th.  You know, just like in Chicago elections! FAMOUS LAST WORDS “With both Halloween and Election Day right around the corner, the news is filled with scary-sounding reports about the amount of money being spent on political campaigns.  But a little perspective demonstrates that campaign spending is no bogeyman:  Americans spend more money on Halloween candy, parties and costumes than was spent by all federal candidates, PACs and party committees combined in the last presidential election cycle. “Institute for Justice Senior Attorney Paul Sherman said, ‘During the entire 2012 election cycle, Americans spent about $7 billion on political campaigning, but that is less than the $8 billion Americans spent that same year celebrating Halloween.  The surprising fact about money in politics isn’t that Americans spend so much money on political campaigning, it’s that we spend so little compared to what we spend on things like candy corn and fake vampire teeth.’ “Sherman concluded, ‘Despite the scare tactics of those who would limit political speech and participation, campaign spending is nothing to be afraid of.  This money is spent persuading American voters about the most important issues of the day.  In a democracy with more than 200 million voting-age citizens, the amount Americans spend on campaigns is neither scary nor unreasonable.’” -  John Kramer of the Institute for Justice HOW TO SUBSCRIBE Silver State Confidential is an email newsletter on Nevada politics, public policy and current events published (usually) daily by Chuck Muth, Nevada's #1 Renegade Conservative and the man voted "Most Likely to Irritate Liberals!"  Click on the link below for subscription information…