Triple Threat Today: School Choice, Sam Brown, and the Grady Bunch

(Chuck Muth) – In Georgia, State Rep. Mesha Mainor, recently left the Democrat plantation and re-registered as a Republican. The straw that broke the camel’s back?

School choice.

The former Democrat noted that many families have found it necessary to unlawfully use false addresses of friends and family members in order to get into better public schools than the ones where they actually live.

No student or their families should have to do that. And yes, it’s a fact that families in Nevada are doing it this very minute.

“We cannot let a zip code limit us, especially when the people that are running the schools have the capacity to change the curriculum,” Mainor said in a statement.

“They have the capacity to change the times of the school. They have the capacity to change the management of the schools. They have the capacity to give the teachers more opportunities to not be so handcuffed to the system.”

But, she concluded, the Democrat Party leadership isn’t doing any of that.

“I’ve been a Democrat my entire life,” Mainor concluded.  “My entire family are Democrats. I am a Democrat.  I WAS a Democrat.”

Welcome to the party, Rep. Mainor.

Responses to Sam Brown Senate Campaign

The other day, I wrote in Muth’s Truths that Republican U.S. Senate candidate Sam Brown was way off in his messaging; focusing too much on himself and not the voters he needs to win.

Apparently, I’m not alone in this observation.  In response to the column, I got a ton of emails from readers seconding the emotion.  A sampling…

• “Totally agree – thought the exact same thought after his first shout out. I hope he will take your advice, Chuck, and give his campaign people a new direction. They are failing him.”
• “I couldn’t agree more, Chuck. If Sam Brown wants Nevadans to vote for him he needs to start talking about Nevada and Nevada political issues like taxes, mail-in voting, school choice, Yucca Mountain and federal land in our state. His inspiring personal story isn’t enough to convince true blue Nevadans to vote for him. OK Sam, you’re a genuine hero and we admire you for your courageous service to our country, but what are you going to do for Nevada, and where do you stand on issues we care about?”
• “As an Independent, I liked Sam Brown’s story, too. As you say, it makes for an attention-grabbing headline, but does not pass the test for the long road of a campaign.”
• “I was a strong supporter of Sam Brown last go round, and a strong supporter this time. The alternative Republican candidate (Jim Marchant) and sitting Senator Rosen are too awful to contemplate. However, even though I sent Sam Brown a check last week, I also sent an email asking to be removed from his mailing list. The emails were coming daily and were becoming repetitive. I hope he heeds your advice.”
• “Sage advice the Brown campaign should follow. As a vet, I like seeing vets run and it is an important attribute, but it cannot be the only attribute. Tell me how you are going to help make tomorrow better.”
• “About two weeks ago, I took precious time from my day to compose and send a message to Mr. Brown via his campaign website. I told him I thought he could be a great candidate, but he must not rely on the past failed campaign strategies and tactics. It has been a disappointment to me that he has not replied in any manner to my direct message. Yet I still receive his pleading, narcissistic emails and letters. His campaign’s non-response to my communication is an indicator of the probability of a second failed campaign. So sad.”
• “I love Sam and his family but what does he stand for? His announcement of Mitch McConnell’s endorsement was not well received. Wish Sam would stop now.”
• “As a veteran, I was not overly impressed with the dialog that Sam Brown was campaigning on. I was chastised regarding my view because I was denigrating a disabled veteran. You are so correct in your assessment of how he should appeal to voters, and as long as he continues his current tack, I’m not voting for him.”
• “I wonder what his qualifications are, other than heroism. I’ll still vote for him over Rosen, but I have no reason, yet, to be enthusiastic about him.”
• “I supported Sam as well when he announced his candidacy and asked for money. I specifically asked him what he is going to do for our state.  To date, I’ve had no response.  My concern is that Sam is a ‘poor me’ paper tiger.  We don’t need politicians like him.  We need more Joe Lombardos that can roll up their sleeves and get sh..t done.”

Granted, Brown still has legions of fans and has enjoyed significant early financial support.  But much of that comes from outside Nevada and, as you can read above, his support here is tenuous.

Brown’s anointment is not a done deal, especially because…

Here Comes the Grady Bunch

As noted in yesterday’s Muth’s Truths PLUS+, Tony Grady – who ran a strong, though unsuccessful, GOP primary campaign for lieutenant governor last year – is expected to jump into Nevada’s U.S. Senate race next week.

Grady has an extensive military background as a test pilot in the Air Force, as well a solid background in the private sector as a pilot for FedEx after he retired from the military.

He’s also a much more congenial “people person” on the campaign trail. People just can’t help but like him the minute they meet him.  I know I did.  Reminds me a lot of my late friend, Herman Cain.

Brown is, indeed, the establishment’s choice in the race.  And Brown is off to a strong fundraising start.

But it’s a long way to filing for office, which opens next March. And a third candidate, Jim Marchant, with a following among some base Republicans, means the winner isn’t likely to get to 50%-plus-one.

In fact, in the LG primary race last year, Stavros Anthony won the nomination with just under 31 percent of the vote to Grady’s 25 percent.  But Grady won 13 out of Nevada’s 17 counties, including winning Washoe County by over 4,000 votes.

Grady won’t have to match Brown dollar-for-dollar but will have to post some significant numbers by the end of the year to bolster belief that he can win the primary and be the strongest GOP candidate in the general.

As usual, it won’t necessarily be the best candidate who wins, but the candidate who runs the best campaign.  Gentlemen, start your engines.

Politics on the Rocks

Monday, August 21, 6:00 – 8:00 pm.  Citizen Outreach will be hosting a one-of-a-kind “Politics on the Rocks” cocktail reception in Las Vegas featuring Nevada Congressman Mark Amodei and Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo.  Additional details to follow.

Inner Circle members will get first crack at tickets with an advance notification.  For information on how to join the Inner Circle, click here.  Enter the promo code “member99” for $50 discount.

Pigpen Project

Anyone wishing to join our Pigpen Project to clean up Nevada’s voter rolls is invited to our next free training workshop in Las Vegas on Saturday, August 12 from 10:30 am – 12:30 pm.  Click here to sign up.

FAMOUS LAST WORDS

“Shocking as it was, Trump’s behavior on Jan. 6 did not violate any laws in obvious ways. He never directly told those at the Jan. 6 rally to attack Congress. During his speech that day, he even said he knew the protesters would behave ‘peacefully and patriotically.’ … As for Trump’s broader effort to overturn the election result, no federal law specifically bars politicians from attempting to do so.” – David Leonhardt, New York Times, 8/3/23

Mr. Muth is president of Citizen Outreach, publisher of Nevada News & Views, and founder of CampaignDoctor.com.  You can sign up for his conservative, Nevada-focused e-newsletter at MuthsTruths.com.  His views are his own.