Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Dean Heller - Friend of Halliburton
Yep, the company formerly chaired by Dick Cheney, the company getting probably the most bang for the buck out of the Iraq war, the company so infamous that there's an entire website devoted to its shameful practices, that company, Halliburton Energy Services, has contributed $1,000 to Heller for Congress on August 1. And Heller gladly excepted it.
Why? I refer you to the first sentence of this diary. Honestly, though, without the loans he gave to his campaign (his current debts are $365k) and without the big business PAC money his campaign finances wouldn't look so good. In fact, out of the $1.2 million Heller has received this cycle, more than $500k came from PACs or other committees. That's more than 40%. You can view the whole list of PAC money here.
And don't kid yourself about the individual contributions. Doesn't mean they're all ordinary folk. A lot of those are business executives, real estate, development, financial services giving in four figure sums. From casino executives alone Dean Heller received at least $75,500 thus far. That's more than 10% of all his individual contributions.
So, in case you're wondering why we're still in Iraq, why we have a big budget deficit, Heller getting contributions from companies like Halliburton is one of the reasons.
Jill Derby may not have Halliburton. But Jill Derby has ordinary supporters like you. How about giving her ten bucks?
Monday, July 21, 2008
Announcing "Nevada Bloggers for Jill Derby and Dina Titus"
Dean Heller and Jon Porter were almost beaten in 2006 in what were the closest races the 2nd and 3rd Nevada Congressional Districts have seen to date. Considering that Democratic voter registration has significantly increased since 2006 and that Nevada will be a battleground state in the presidential contest both Jill Derby and Dina Titus have a big chance of beating the Republican incumbents this fall.
However, both have one disadvantage: they have significantly less cash-on-hand than the incumbents. While they both reported good fundraising numbers in the last quarter it will be hard to make up the time and incumbency advantages of Heller and Porter. Therefore, Jill Derby and Dina Titus need all the help they can get. Whether you can give $5,$20 or $100 - anything helps!
The following blogs have been and will continue to cover one or both of these contests and today we are announcing that we stand together to help elect Jill Derby and Dina Titus: Blue Sage Views, Desert Beacon, Helluva Heller, My Silver State, Nevada Mojo Rising, Nor'Town, Nye - Gateway to Nevada's Rurals, Reno and Its Discontent, and Vote Gibbons Out.
We support Jill Derby and Dina Titus for Congress! Help us in our effort!
Friday, June 27, 2008
Heller's Provincialism Shines Through: Rural NV Rep. votes against public transportation
Representative Dean Heller (R-NV2) was the only member of the
Friday, June 20, 2008
Heller says no silver bullets, fires blanks at energy issues
The Republican befuddlement over energy policies to address the current spike in gasoline prices and the need to devise a rational nationwide energy policy were never more evident than in Congressman Dean Heller’s (R-NV2) in a conference call with reporters. [EDFP]
Friday, June 6, 2008
Heller makes noise, other members of Congress address oil price manipulation
Representative Dean Heller (R-NV2) would have us believe that he “can do little more than make noise about gas prices.” [RGJ] He’s managed the noise part, first writing provocative epistles to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (hardly a format designed to enhance his reputation for working across the aisle to find solutions), authoring a going-nowhere ‘demand’ for an energy “plan,” and finally asking the Financial Services Committee to hold hearings on price manipulation and speculation.
On the House side - Representative Bart Stupak (D-MI) said that his U.S. House Energy Oversight Committee’s investigation [CNN] hasn’t uncovered illegal practices in oil and gas trading, but that loopholes in current statutes were allowing the biggest traders to ‘game the system.’ Stupak’s committee will hold a second hearing to announce the results of the entire investigation on June 23rd. [CNN]
(1) On consideration of H.R. 6, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007: NO (vote 37)
(2) On a motion to recommit the bill (to kill it) YES (vote 38)
(3) On an appeal of the ruling of the chair (‘yes would sustain the measure) NO (vote 39)
(4) On final passage of the bill NO (vote 40)
(5) On agreeing to Senate Amendments NO (vote 1140)
(6) On agreeing to Senate Amendments NO (vote 1177)
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Heller and The Leadership PACs
Representative Dean Heller (R-NV2) appears in the process of transforming himself into yet another PAC-man in the U.S. House of Representatives. About 38% of the funds he has raised during the 2008 campaign season thus far comes from political action committee contributions. [OS] Leadership PAC funds constituted $113,000 of those PAC contributions. [OS]
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Foster! Cazayoux! Childers! Derby?
Because of this man:
Travis Childers yesterday won a race that he never was supposed to win. He beat a Republican in a district that voted for President Bush with 62%, that his predecessor (who was appointed to Trent Lott's Senate seat) last won with 71% in 2006.
Yet, Childers not only beat his Republican opponent, he beat him by a significant margin: 54% to 46%. This after the Republicans tried to attack Childers by associating him with Barack Obama and Reverend Wright and the bad, bad liberals. The almost bankrupt NRCC spent more than a million dollars here and Nevada's own Sheldon Adelson's dollars didn't help the Republicans either. Neither did Dick Cheney's last minute appearance.
Why is this so important? Because it is the third special election in a heavily Republican district in a row that the Republicans lost. The first was fmr. Speaker Hastert's seat in Illinois, won by Democrat Bill Foster. The second was just a week ago in Louisiana (the only state John Ensign seriously thinks he can beat a Democratic incumbent Senator), where Don Cazayoux won. House Republicans are in pure panic mode now. From The Hill:
The sky is falling on House Republicans and there is no sign of it letting up.
The GOP loss in Mississippi’s special election Tuesday is the strongest sign yet that the Republican Party is in shambles. And while some Republicans see a light at the end of the tunnel, that light more likely represents the Democratic train that is primed to mow down more Republicans in November.
The third straight House special election loss in three conservative districts this year is a clear indication that the GOP brand is turning off voters and the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is in disarray.
All this is good news for Jill Derby of course. Like Foster, Cazayoux and Childers she faces the challenge of winning in a Republican district. She narrowly lost against Dean Heller in 2006. So, what is different this time around? Due to the caucus voter registration is up. In the primary, Barack Obama faired much better in this CD than Hillary Clinton, especially amongst independents. This could mean that Obama's likely to have coattails in November. Dean Heller now has a record that he has to defend. And Republicans are even more unpopular than two years ago.
You can of course help Jill Derby get elected by contributing through the My Silver State ActBlue page.
Jill Derby for Congress website
Cross posted from My Silver State.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Heller Still Promoting Giuliani Tax Cut Proposals
Ah, the joys of living in
Monday, April 21, 2008
Heller Ignores Calls to Upgrade G.I. Benefits
What does a former Iraq War combat medic have to say about Nevada Congressman Dean Heller (R-NV2) and his lack of support for the New G.I. Bill?
Patrick Campbell: “Heller? The phone line goes silent as he consults the spreadsheet. “I sent him e-mail this very morning.” The note to Nevada Republican Rep. Dean Heller suggests that “his chance to sign on to the GI Bill was running out,”
Some days it’s difficult to figure out just who Congressman Heller’s constituents might be. They certainly aren’t working and middle income families who could have been assisted by the passage of the SCHIP legislation. The Congressman refused to support that bill even when the specific issues he raised were addressed in the final version of the legislation. He continued to assert (without any evidence whatsoever) that the bill would benefit “illegal aliens.”
Those constituents definitely aren’t veterans of the operations in
Monday, March 3, 2008
Dean Heller has lowest rating by League of Conservation Voters
Dean Heller, Republican Congressman for Nevada's Congressional District #2 (which includes Nye County) has the lowest rating of the League of Conservation Voters of Nevada's five members of Congress. [Las Vegas Sun]
Heller voted against ending the $18 billion tax incentive for big oil companies. The reason, as I understand it, is that removal of the incentives is essentially a tax hike on the oil companies that will discourage them from exploring for more oil reserves, which in turn, he thinks will lead to higher gas prices. Besides, his constituents, he surmises, drive pick-up trucks.
No Dean, the current thinking is to "end the addiction" to oil, go solar, wind, geothermal, and for alternative fuels to run vehicles. Get with it man