Posted on 10/23/2002 5:37:50 PM PDT by pke
George W. Bush may be the last Republican presidential candidate to carry Nevada. One of the nation's fastest-growing states, Nevada officially put Bush 43 over the top in the Electoral College balloting in 2000. But his narrow 2 percentage point victory over feckless Al Gore likely was the last hurrah for the Grand Old Party in this land of neon and sagebrush. Breaking down the vote, Gore lost 16 of Nevada's 17 counties. But he carried Clark County (better known as Las Vegas) by some 20,000 votes. Home to roughly two-thirds of the state's residents, Clark County has a hefty and expanding Democratic registration of 248,799, compared with 213,104 registered Republicans — while the rest of the state still tilts Republican.
The problem for Republicans, and everyone else in Nevada, is that metastasizing Las Vegas will have 85 percent of the state's population by the end of this decade. By that time, Clark County could own three congressional seats while the rest of the state shares one.
Prominent among the wave of newcomers to Las Vegas are senior citizens and immigrants, both legal and illegal. The elderly and those younger than age 15 (mainly minority) constitute the fastest-growing segments of Clark County. While the old folks blow their Social Security checks at neighborhood casinos, the local school system bursts at the seams. Now the nation's sixth largest, it recently became a majority-minority district. Reconquista is well under way.
In this emerging multicultural mecca, change comes faster than from a loose slot machine. The University of Nevada-Las Vegas mascot may be a musket-toting antebellum rebel, but the prototypical Vegas wage slave is a Mexican maid making beds in some of the city's 130,000 hotel rooms. A member of the Culinary Union, she has no high-school education, speaks little English and might, or might not, have a bona fide green card.
Big Labor, along with Big Gaming (as gambling is called here), has transformed Las Vegas into a 21st century Detroit. Robust union growth — and the resultant Democratic Party hegemony — makes Las Vegas a popular stop for bosses from the AFL-CIO, National Education Association and, of course, the Teamsters (some things never change). National politicians, mainly Democrats, regularly swoop in to pick up campaign cash from the corporate suites along the Strip. Feted at numerous local fund-raisers, Bill Clinton handily carried Nevada in 1992 and 1996.
Though Gore never connected the way Slick Willie did, Nevada's senior senator, Democrat Harry Reid, figures to keep the mojo going. Heavily backed by unions and the Democratic Party, he has called for amnesty programs for millions of illegal aliens. Now he is proposing same-day voter registration — an open invitation to the estimated 50,000 illegals residing in Clark County, not to mention voter fraud on a grand scale.
Following California, where the future happens first, Nevada is becoming a one-party state. Hispanics, the largest and fastest-growing ethnic minority, have tended to vote overwhelmingly Democratic. And no amount of bilingual pandering from Jorge Bush has changed that. As political sharpies gerrymander ever more "Hispanic" districts, Latino candidates are, almost without exception, Democrats.
This is culture shock for old-timers who remember Las Vegas as a redneck, cowboy town. Others fondly recall the Mafia, the Rat Pack, Elvis and crazy Howard Hughes. They long for the days when Democrats voted like Dixiecrats; when country music was on all the radio stations; when there weren't homosexual publications at every newsstand.
But those days are as dead as Bugsy Siegel. Arrivistes have lugged in their bicoastal notions and brought a sea change in local politics. Oscar Goodman, an ex-mob attorney and Philadelphia native, was elected mayor of Las Vegas in 1999. Today he, along with fellow Democrats in control of the county, lead the charge for more social services and an ever-expanding panoply of municipally driven projects.
Nevada is not alone as it lurches leftward. Other Western states — notably Oregon, Washington, New Mexico and Colorado — have been, in the regional parlance, "Californicated." What once were strongholds of conservatism and individualism are being overrun by a rainbow coalition of self-righteous busybodies, gays, feminists, migrants, tree-huggers and the welfare class.
The result has been creeping liberalism in cities throughout the West. And, as sprawling urban areas tighten their grip on rural regions, you ain't seen nothing yet. In Nevada, you can bet on it.
Ken Ward writes on education, politics and culture from Las Vegas and is the author of Saints in Babylon: Mormons and Las Vegas.
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The bottom line is either immigration is brought back down to traditional levels, the borders closed and the laws against illegal enforced or the party is history, probably for at least 40 years or longer, depending on whether immigration is ever reformed.
The Republicans in Washington are importing their demise but they won't listen.
Liberalism is a cancer. The liberals destroy the places that they live in, then after it becomes unliveable, they move to other places to destroy them.
There are examples of this on the East Coast as well. Take Vermont for Example, Vermont was one of the most reliable Republican States in the Nation. From 1900-1988 Vermont went Republican in Every Presidential Election except one. Then in 1992, It went Democrat and has gone Democrat in every election since. Vermont now has an avowed socialist as it's lone represenative in the House, and is home to Jumpin Jim Jeffords.
Vermont's leftward shift can be explained by NYC residents retiring and moving there.
Florida is another example, Florida was also a reliable Republican State, then South Florida began to get overrun by retired NYC liberals who brought their liberal idealogy with them.
Kalifornia is exporting it's liberals in a rapid state. Nevada seems to get most of them, but Arizona is getting more than it's share of them now.
I fear that one of the Most Conservative States in the Nation, Utah, may soon be at risk. Utah is reliably the Most Republican State in the Nation right now, and one of the few states that still holds morality in high regard, but Utah has seen a huge surge in Population in the last decade, many of them come from Kalifornicators.
If only the few conservatives left in Kalifornia would understand that it is lost, and that they could leave for better pastures, maybe they could move to some of these states and offset the liberal vote. If not, the Democrats are going to get a lock on the Presidency and Senate for a long time.
The only ray of hope is that the South has become more and more Republican Since the 1980's as more and more of the "Southern" Democrat idiots start to see that the Republicans are not "Yankees" and that the Democrats do not represent their values.
I only hope that the west can hold out.
Both Michigan and Pennsylvania have many socially conservative democrats. These are also known as the "Blue Dog" or "Reagan" Democrats. Most are Pro-Life, Anti-Homosexual and Pro-Gun, but are also strongly Union.
The Traditional Republican Campaign Strategy of pushing economic issues do not work in these states as economically the Democrats tend to support unions and the idea that Republicans are "not for the workin man". If the Republicans flipped the script into Abortion and Guns they really could have a shot at getting a lock on these states.
Strong Union South Western Pennsylvania is putting up much more Republican numbers than ever before, due mostly to the fact that the RATS are pushing further leftward on social issues each year.
If we lose Florida and Nevada, we can pretty much kiss all hopes of a GOP whitehouse goodbye for a long time if we cannot get some other big states in the GOP win Column.
I hate to say this. Many Conservatives, including ones here on FreeRepublic take Florida for granted as a Republican State. I fear there are too many NYC blue-hairs in South Florida for that to be the case.
Take a look at how well a complete and total idiot named Bill McBride is doing in a race that he should be far behind in. McBride is a bumbling idiot, he should be no threat to a sitting Gov. who has done a good job like Jeb. But the (D) next to idiot mcbride's name makes all the difference in the world to the blue-hairs.
Conservatives better start working or we are going to be in trouble. If the rats ever get another Clintoon type in the Whitehouse they are going to do far more damage than they did the first time.
The Rats have taken West Virgina for granted since it has voted democrat consistantly save the 1972 and 1984 Republican Landslides.
Yet the NRA and Pro-Life groups turned enough socially conservative rats against Gore to give Bush the Win.
We need to replicate this in PA and MI.
20% of Nevadans were Hispanic in 2000.
You do the goddamn math! Isn't that almost TRIPPLE in 10 years? Hispanics are not bad in themselves but they continue to hand state after state to the Democrats.
I never thought Nevada would go Democrat. Now I am seeing it with my own eyes. Son of a bitch.
Any strategy to increase Republican shares in elections will have to include scaling back on immigration.
Our problem is a seriously biased Fla. press. That's it. Without the press spinning McBride and smearing Jeb, McBride would be toast. He's still toast, but the press continues to spin.
The rats have a cow anytime anyone suggests stopping the flow of their voters though.
Pennsylvania and Michigan don't have the immigration problem that the western states do.
If we can reach West Virgina on a social conservative platform, then I know we can do it in PA and MI. If we keep PA and MI out of rat hands, they rats have no chance at getting in the whitehouse.
The NC General Assembly and Senate are solidly RAT. In fact the North Carolina State Senate has been RAT since 1900.
The Southern States still put RATS in like Edwards and Cleland.
In addition all of the gains we made in the South will be for nothing if we lose Florida.
Never mentioned in polite circles: many of these NY Liberal Bastards vote in both jursidictions.
Please watch it. Thanks.
Furthermore, the Democrat Party pulls at the "heartstrings" of the black community, manipulating to "get out the vote" or some vital black community interests is at stake. Of course, it's usually something like, "education, daycare" or some type of socialist policy that they claim must not be taken away. Hence, "elect me and it'll be here for the long haul". This is despite that the other candidate hasn't even weighed in on the issue.
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