The GOP candidates for governor jumped at another chance to echo their Trump-centered talking points–with the exception of Joe Lombardo, who is still dodging tough questions and hiding from Nevadans. After one skipped debate and in the wake of another, No Show Joe refused yet another opportunity to explain his conflicting stances to Nevadans. Meanwhile, the field further proved their conservative bona fides by embracing the Big Lie and promising to end COVID mandates.

Las Vegas Sun: Republican talking points dominate answers in survey of Nevada gubernatorial hopefuls

Of the eight Republican candidates expressing interest in running for governor, two of them, Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo and North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee, declined to participate in this article. We asked their campaigns multiple times for answers. 

A survey conducted by the Sun of some Republican hopefuls looking to unseat Democrat Gov. Steve Sisolak mostly provided answers that toe the party line. A sampling: Promising to ban mask mandates, to strike harder on illegal immigration and to audit the 2020 presidential election.

And they’re still being called out for their Trumpian debate on January 6th…

Nevada Independent: John L. Smith: As if we needed more proof, the recent GOP gubernatorial primary debate left no doubt about the elasticity of the Big Lie as a campaign strategy. Candidate after candidate endorsed the deception without blinking or blushing. After all, at least in theory, they have a lot riding on the ability to keep a straight face and pretend that hordes of the Walking Dead and rigged voting machines were all that kept their fearless leader from maintaining power.

Read more about the field’s far-right campaigns below.

Las Vegas Sun: Republican talking points dominate answers in survey of Nevada gubernatorial hopefuls

Jessica Hill
January 16, 2022

Key Points:

• Editor’s note: Of the eight Republican candidates expressing interest in running for governor, two of them, Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo and North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee, declined to participate in this article. We asked their campaigns multiple times for answers.

• A survey conducted by the Sun of some Republican hopefuls looking to unseat Democrat Gov. Steve Sisolak mostly provided answers that toe the party line. A sampling: Promising to ban mask mandates, to strike harder on illegal immigration and to audit the 2020 presidential election.

• Despite many lawsuits from Republicans, no irregularities were found in President Joe Biden’s win over Donald Trump. Still, it’s became a rallying cry for Republican Party members, including those vying for Nevada governor.

• “The 2020 election was perhaps the most poorly administered election in American history. We must have secure elections to ensure our democracy works,” said candidate Michele Fiore, a Las Vegas city councilwoman. “The mass distribution of absentee ballots in the 2020 election opened up an unprecedented opportunity for election and voter fraud. If I am elected, mail-in voting and voting without an ID will be gone.”

• Other candidates, such as former U.S. Sen. Dean Heller and businessman Guy Nohra, wouldn’t directly say they thought the presidential election was stolen. But they still are calling for changes.

• “When I served as Nevada’s secretary of state, we had solid election laws and policies that upheld the integrity of the voting process,” Heller said. “I was not afraid to replace election officials who did not uphold the highest standards of election integrity. As governor, I will oppose ballot harvesting and the overuse of mail-in ballots, among other steps to return our state to the highest level of election integrity.”

• [Fiore] pledges to stop the pushes for vaccine mandates, green energy and defunding police. She said she was also the biggest supporter of the Second Amendment and would enact constitutional carry in the state, which basically means that people would not need a permit or a license to carry a firearm.

• “I have not wavered in my commitment to Second Amendment rights, protection of the unborn, freedom from government overreach, opposition to sanctuary cities and commitment to quality health care and education choice,” [Heller] said.

Read the full story here. 

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