A story in Thursday’s Las Vegas Sun accuses Republican state Sen. Greg Brower – who is running for Nevada’s Second Congressional District against Democrat state Treasurer “Calamity” Kate Marshall (among others) – of being AWOL from legislative meetings since announcing his congressional campaign.
Indeed, the Sun headline reads, “One foot out door, Brower scarce around state Senate.”
Is this really a story…especially this week with the Democrats finally releasing their much-anticipated billion dollar taxapalooza? Brower says no.
“We all have competing obligations,” Brower says in the story. “It’s not uncommon for any of us not to be able to sit through an entire committee. I am here every day. I am on floor every day. I am in committee every day. I work as hard as I can. I am flattered that I’m missed when I’m not on floor. But I’m not sure why this is something to write about.”
Me neither.
Indeed, the story only mentions two specific instances of Brower’s alleged “extended breaks,” both during those long, farcical Committee of the Whole hearings the Democrats put on to supposedly pressure Republicans into supporting tax hikes. (Frankly, I think all of the Republicans should have just boycotted those dog-and-pony shows entirely, but that’s just me.)
Of greater concern to Brower’s fellow Republicans in the Senate, though, was this paragraph:
“The practice has irritated some of his colleagues, Republican and Democrats. Assistant Minority Leader Barbara Cegavske, R-Las Vegas, who sits on two of Brower’s three afternoon committees recently reached her limit and called him in for a meeting with Minority Leader Mike McGinness, R-Fallon.”
Not true, Cegavske tells me.
First, she only sits on one committee with Sen. Brower, the Education Committee, not two. But secondly, she categorically denies Brower is in her doghouse or has been taken to Sen. McGinness’ woodshed.
“It’s just not true,” Cegavske tells me. “The only thing Sen. Brower has been called in for are regular caucus meetings with everyone else. And the only thing I’m irritated about is the Democrats’ $1.2 billion tax hike.”
Indeed, considering the perilous state of Nevada’s economy, and the fact that she’s already lost $50 million of taxpayer money, a better story might have been about how Treasurer Marshall is going to be able to keep up with her full-time money-managing duties while running for Congress instead of a freshman state senator in the minority party who takes a couple of extended potty breaks.
Maybe that story will be in tomorrow’s Sun.
