Quantcast
MobileRJ | RSS Twitter Twitter FacebookFacebook E-mail Alerts
Home manage Las Vegas Review-Journal
  Jobs Cars Homes Shopping Travel Weddings Golf Best of Las Vegas Photo   Search:

RECENT EDITIONS
Fri Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu

sponsored by
News
Jul. 10, 2008
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Titus touts fundraising tally

Porter opponent getting attention from Democrats nationally

By MOLLY BALL
REVIEW-JOURNAL
More Info


Dina Titus
Congressional candidate says 43 percent of donations came from in-state contributors

State Sen. Dina Titus has raised more than $575,000 in the first two months of her run for Congress, a number the Democrat touted Wednesday as a sign of enthusiasm for her candidacy.

"I feel excited, I feel encouraged, I feel like there is a real message in this that people are wanting change," Titus said of the fundraising total she is reporting to the Federal Election Commission for the quarter that ended June 30. Titus announced her candidacy in April.

Most Popular Stories
  • NORM: When live news shots turn bad
  • NORM: Terry Fator, wife ending marriage
  • NORM: Blaze breaks out during magic act
  • NORM: Jackson worked on album at Palms
  • NORM: Jacksons set up LV memorial area
  • Ex-Ensign aide details wife's affair
  • Coroner says sexual assault suspect killed by police was shot in back
  • Ensign wrote lover a letter, saying their affair was a 'sin'
  • Official: Fatal gunshot in back
  • Motorcyclist killed after hitting light pole




    • Titus hopes to unseat incumbent Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., in the 3rd Congressional District, the suburban Clark County district that had traditionally been evenly divided between the two parties but now is home to 25,000 more Democrats than Republicans.

    Titus jumped into the race after Clark County prosecutor Robert Daskas, a political newcomer who was recruited by the Democratic Party establishment, suddenly ended his run. Daskas had raised more than $580,000. Titus has duplicated his fundraising in a very short time, but she's also only about where Daskas was three months ago, with just four months until the election.

    According to her campaign, Titus raised more than any other Democrat in the country who launched a congressional campaign since April. "It lets people know that even though we got into the race late, we got cranked up fast," she said.

    In a news release from the campaign, Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, hailed Titus' haul.

    "Dina Titus' impressive support confirms that Nevada families have had enough of the Jon Porter-George Bush special interest agenda that gives tax breaks to Big Oil making record profits, rather than helping middle-class Nevadans," Van Hollen said.

    Porter said Wednesday he does not plan to disclose how much he raised prior to the July 15 federal deadline, but he said his fundraising would top any previous election cycle, both in total to date and for the quarter.

    Through March 31, Porter had raised $1.6 million and had more than $1 million on hand.

    On Wednesday, Porter argued that what counts is not how quickly you can drum up donors but how much you have, total, to run a campaign. He noted that Titus, whose candidacy is a top target for Democrats nationally, has had assistance from Democratic leaders in Congress and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

    "With the amount of help that she has, I think she's probably where she should be if not a little lower," Porter said.

    Titus' fundraising nearly equaled the most Porter has ever raised in a three-month period. In 2004, he raised $579,000 from July to September.

    Of the $575,393 raised, Titus' campaign reported spending just $21,931, leaving $553,462 in cash on hand, according to the election commission filing.

    Titus said 43 percent of the contributions came from individual in-state donors, with the rest divided between out-of-state donors and political action committees.

    A letter Daskas sent to one contributor indicated Titus had to start from scratch. In the letter, dated July 5, Daskas thanked the donor, explained that he left the race for family reasons, and said that there was no money left to return. The letter did not mention Titus.

    In another sign that Titus is in the national spotlight, the national conservative advocacy group Freedom's Watch began calling voters in the 3rd District with a message bashing Titus on Wednesday.

    "Did you know Nevada gas taxes add more than 32 cents to every gallon of gas?" the automated message states, according to the group. "And what are Carson City politicians like Dina Titus doing about it? Nothing." The call encourages people to call Titus and "tell her to be a leader and fight to roll back Nevada's gas tax this summer."

    Titus is one of 32 Democratic incumbents and candidates in congressional races across the country that the group, which is backed by Las Vegas Sands Corp. Chairman Sheldon Adelson, is campaigning against with this round of calls, a spokesman for Freedom's Watch said.

    Titus said she could hardly be said to have done nothing about gas taxes.

    In last month's one-day special legislative session, she proposed a bill that would allow any potential federal gas-tax holiday to be passed on to Nevadans, instead of being absorbed by the state as is currently the case.

    Contact reporter Molly Ball at mball @reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2919.

    Newsvine Digg Fark Technorati reddit StumbleUpon del.icio.us Slashdot Propeller Mixx Furl Twitter MySpace Facebook Google Bookmarks Yahoo! Bookmarks Windows Live Favorites Ask MyStuff myAOL Favorites

    Leave Your Comment 13 Reader Comments
    Terms & Conditions
    The following comments are provided by readers and are the sole responsiblity of the authors. The reviewjournal.com does not review comments before publication nor guarantee their accuracy. By publishing a comment here you agree to abide by the comment policy. If you see a comment that violates the policy, please notify the web editor.

    Some comments may not display immediately due to an automatic filter. These comments will be reviewed within 48 hours. Please do not submit a comment more than once.
    Current Word Count:

    Note: Comments made by reporters and editors of the Las Vegas Review-Journal are presented with a yellow background.

    UNLVStud wrote on July 10, 2008 06:52 PM: I can't wait until Titus can represent the interests of the PEOPLE in Congress.

    It will be quite the change from Porter who instead represents the interests of Big Oil and hedgefund managers.


    Nancy wrote on July 10, 2008 01:16 PM: All I can say is look at the idiot in the gov's mansion and realize that we could have had Dina! I have my "Don't blame me, I voted for Dina" sign prominently posted and I won't make the same mistake again. If you want to believe the bile the repub machine spews - it is a free country - but if you would spend a few minutes with these people you would see that Porter is a Moron and Senator Titus is not. Pretty simple decision for me. (Of coruse it was pretty simple when she was running against Gibbons too - choice of dumb or smart). I'll keep on picking "smart" every time.


    tim wrote on July 10, 2008 11:47 AM: i thought this was about tina the taxer?you think getting paid twice,double dipping is all the rage in nv.ya know ,she could pay for her own campaign.i wonder if you can still get a teachers paycheck and be a congresswoman?s i sure she'll find a way.


    theo wrote on July 10, 2008 09:14 AM: Tom, if you think we have 200 years of oil reserves, I have a bridge in Brooklyn I'd like to talk to you about...

    Wake up, people. By all accounts, even McCain's, drilling will not significantly lower the price of oil, which in turn, will not significantly lower the cost of gas. It will not happen. Rush and O'Reilly are selling you a fantasy if you believe gas will ever be under $3.50 a gallon again.

    This isn't a partisan issue, it's reality, and the sooner we move towards updating our transportation infrastructure, the better.


    two much tax Tom wrote on July 10, 2008 08:56 AM: dave! the nest time you use you car, think it is big oil that makes it go, or if you use the bus, think big oil makes it go, not solar and not a wind mill. Yes! that is great that Jon Porter voted to drill now, America has about 200 years of oil reserves. With the democracks blocking drilling and it took Marathon Oil some 24 years to get license and permit to build a new refinery, you can thank moron harry reid.


    two much tax Tom wrote on July 10, 2008 08:40 AM: The one who is anti-union is harry reid!! He is against building coal fired plants that would put 1000s created union positions. It would put about a 1000 union workers to build it, union workers to get the coal mined, union railroad workers to deliver the coal, and union electric workers to operate the plant. Titus will be another anti union rep.


    dave wrote on July 10, 2008 08:37 AM: If Only;

    You ignore the fact that Titus is in the minority party in the Nevada Senate and without the actions of the Republicrat majority party running the state senate, along with republicrat governor Gibbons approval, the loathsomeness you articulate could not come into being!

    Too, attacks are made on Titus as being a member of the Nevada senate, but, Porter was on the state payroll before he moved into the congressional district to run for national office!

    Jon Porter just voted to allow big oil to lease federal lands without having to drill for oil (house resolution 6251; june 26,2008)! Big oil can buy the lease fromo us and then sit on it and not let anyone else drill for oil on it! Jon Porter says this is his contribution to his Party's 'drill here, drill now' summer media campaign!

    Thanks, Jon, good solution for working families...NOT! But hey, the transfer of wealth from working families to the richest people and corporations (many of them located overseas), demonstrates that your concern for the majority of Americans is limited due to your elitism.

    Sally, Obama is a muslim? What rock do you get your "information" from the bottom?


    two much tax Tom wrote on July 10, 2008 08:34 AM: I would like to know where Titus stands on taxes? harry reid said back in 2006 " If you want change - change congress." Congress was changed and gas went from $2.36gal to $4.25gal. I guess we got our change. With Titus will gas prices go up another $2.00gal?


    John wrote on July 10, 2008 07:51 AM: A Harry Reid clone just what we need.


    Another AM Radio Loudmouth wrote on July 10, 2008 07:19 AM: To the poster below: DOWN, BOY!

    Okay, we get it that you are anti-union and against working families and probably supported the idiot governor as well as Bush, twice. Congratulations.

    Where is the republican legislation to deal with illegals, bullet trains, Amtrak, etc?

    Hot gas, and more AM radio hot gas.


    Read All Comments