Responding to criticism yesterday by Democrat Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Las Vegas) – who said it was “foolish” that he might reject a little bit of the Barack Obama “spendulus” money because there are federal strings attached – Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons issued a press release defending his honor and conservative bona fides.
No, really. Stop laughing. I’m being serious here.
“What is truly foolish is (Rep. Shelley) Berkley’s cavalier attitude that Nevada should bow down to the federal government and give up its own state sovereignty in a mad grab to claim every last penny of stimulus dollars,” Gibbons said in the statement.
That’s right! The governor will only give up Nevada’s sovereignty in a mad grab for MOST of the stimulus money, not every last penny! Harr-umph, harr-umph!
Gibbons concluded his release defiantly: “I will not sell out our State’s sovereignty.”
Oh, puh-lease. Too late. Gov. Gibbons started the process of selling out the state’s sovereignty when he crawled on bended knee, tin cup in hand, last December to that governor’s meeting in Philadelphia with Barack Obama begging for a federal bailout. That he’d sell the state’s sovereignty out for ten dollars but not eight dollars is hardly the stance of a principled conservative leader.
Nevada’s over-spending problem should be fixed by Nevada. If the governor were a true fiscal conservative he would reject ALL of the federal bailout money, not just the parts with too many strings.
And by the way, correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t Jim Gibbons, while a member of Congress, sell out Nevada’s sovereignty by voting for the federal No Child Left Behind and Real ID acts?
Bad habits die hard.
