Today is caucus day in Nevada. Here are ten things you need to know today.
- Nevada votes: Republicans in Nevada will actually cast ballots today in their statewide caucuses. The individual caucuses have different meeting times, but most start at 9 a.m. Pacific Time, and GOP officials told the Las Vegas Sun that meetings could be done within 20 to 30 minutes. But despite the early start time, results don’t start coming in until around 5 p.m. Eastern, with tallies from Clark county, home of Las Vegas, coming later. Additionally, Clark Co. will have a special nighttime caucus for Jewish voters that observe the sabbath, which begins at 10 pm Eastern, Vegas TV station KOLO reports.
- Sun: Republicans offering little help in foreclosures: The Sun also has an interesting item on Republican candidates’ plans for the foreclosure crisis that’s hit Nevada to hard — namely, do nothing. The paper details the outward resistance from candidates to propose anything involving government to address home values and underwater mortgages (when a home is worth less than an owner owes). Seventy percent of homes in the Las Vegas area are underwater, the Sun reports, yet all the candidates have at one time or another said the free market should be the only arbiter.
- Polls show a likely win for Romney: As a reminder, there may not be much drama in the results, no matter what time they are finally released. Public Policy Polling (D) did an extensive survey of the state on Wednesday and Thursday, finding former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney at 50 percent, while the rest of the GOP field split the rest among themselves. The TPM Poll Average shows Romney up by 16.7 percent.
- Romney will celebrate in Vegas: Mitt Romney will hold a campaign rally in Vegas tomorrow night to watch as the results roll in. The party will be at the Summerlin Ballroom of the Red Rock hotel. Details about Gingrich’s plans were not immediately available.
- Santorum and Paul have moved on: Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum will spend Nevada’s caucus day campaigning across Colorado, which is hold its own GOP caucuses on Tuesday the 7th. Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) has taken off for Minnesota, which is also holding a Tuesday night caucus. The polling numbers for both of those contests are thin.
- Denver Post endorses Romney: The biggest newspaper in Colorado, the Denver Post, has endorsed Mitt Romney for the GOP nomination. “With a ballooning federal deficit, a stubborn unemployment rate and a stagnant housing market, Romney’s executive experience in government and business sets him apart from the field vying to take on Democratic President Barack Obama,” the paper writes.
- House Republicans campaign arm taunts Blue Dogs: The National Republican Congressional Campaign Committee reacted colorfully to the announcement that one of the most prominent Blue Dogs (conservative Democrats), Rep. Heath Shuler (D-NC), would not seek re-election. The NRCC sent a rather gleeful email out to reporters citing the Schuler exit as a further sign that the Blue Dog ranks are thinning. Their excitement draws on a very specific reason — Blue Dogs tend to represent swing or conservative leaning districts that are harder for Democrats to win.
- DCCC hits House Republicans on Ryan Plan: While the NSCC was needling Dems on Schuler, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee revisited a more general message they plan to use in 2012 — Rep. Paul Ryan’s budget plan that included a Medicare voucher program that would end the program as Americans know it. The vehicle this time is faux movie post, touting the sequel to the Ryan Plan — another Republican Congress. See it here.
- Walker will meet with DA investigating his former campaign aides: An ongoing issue that will certainly influence the likely Wisconsin recall election, Gov. Scott Walker will voluntarily meet with Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm, who is investigating former Walker aides for raising campaign cash on state time while he was County Executive of Milwaukee. “While all of us need to let this matter run its course, I will continue to cooperate and provide any appropriate information that is requested,” Walker said in a statement.
- Newt gets a little nasty: Newt Gingrich isn’t having the greatest run after he won the South Carolina primary in January, and it may be getting to him a little. Asked by CNN’s Wolf Blitzer whether President Obama deserves any credit for the improving economy, Newt said yes, “If it makes you happy, give him some credit.”
