Nevada GOP Chair Paul Adams should resign.
If there’s one thing we at MMP appreciate, it’s a good, spirited political debate. We like good candidates seeking higher office . We don’t much care of they’re democrat or republican. (”But,” you’re going to interrupt me and say, “MMP, the only good candidates for office are Democrats” — shut up). We like for people to think about their political persuasion. We like for races to be competitive. And, since that never happens, we at least like a good show.
And this is why Republican Party Chairman Paul Adams needs to resign after this election. The Nevada Republican Party is riddled with infighting, embarrassing missteps and bad recruiting. Meanwhile, the Nevada Democrats are stronger than they’ve been in years. The recent resignation of the GOP’s executive director over a ridiculous Minuteman fiasco is only the latest example of Adams’ ineptitude. His leadership has done nothing but take the party away from the mainstream.
Don’t get us wrong, we like to see the GOP fall on its face. But it’s getting to be a bit like playing a video game with all the secret cheat codes that make it too easy to be fun anymore. Adams’ leadership has led the party into the tall grass, wandering in search for a message or, these days, a platform. Sure, national follies have made it tough to stay on task, but that’s the role he was elected to. And so far, he’s underperformed.
Adams failure #1: A breakdown in party unity. Adams’ tenure has seen a split in the Party’s activist base. He’s allowed folks like Tony Dane and Chuck Muth alienate the mainstream, plotting their go-nowhere candidates against established Republican officeholders. Not only does this skew public perception of the party, but when these plots fail — as they are apt to do with Dane and Muth at the helm — it leaves a bad taste in traditional Republicans’ mouths.
When Sharron Angle asked for a recount in the Republican Primary for Congress up in the 2nd district, Adams stood with her, causing a rift with the party’s numerous Heller supporters. It was a big gamble for Adams to take, and Angle’s recount went nowhere. Despite Adams’ personal beliefs, he somehow failed to realize that his goal was to help republicans win elections. Not only would Angle have been positively smashed by Derby in the general, but now — thanks in part to Adams’ failed quarterbacking — Dean Heller can barely edge her out in most polls.
Adams has alienated so many sitting officeholders, it’s no wonder there have been repeated calls for his resignation. It’s unfortunate for republicans that he won’t be replaced soon enough.
Adams failure #2: A wholesale recruiting fiasco. Don Chairez for Attorney General? Don Chairez’ blatant racism and isolationism paint the whole Republican slate in an awful light. Sadly, he’s not the worst. The ticket is roundly balanced by a corrupt businessman named Mark DeStefano, whose myriad financial indiscretions — like his bankruptcy — are still unmatched by the facts he was thrown off the ballot in 2004 for, ahem, lying AND his being fired from a job for… a “psychotic disorder.” If that’s not enough, they’ve got Danny Tarkanian, who went so far as to publish a press release against himself.
Perhaps the Republicans don’t do much to train these folks and get them out there. Or maybe there’s no discovery process, nobody in the party directorate whose job it is to, you know, run a background check. In any case, Adams would try and defend himself from this particular allegation, noting that the party can’t take a position before a primary. Which, while true, is also BS. The Democrats choose favorites in primaries all the time. And the GOP used to. Adams just doesn’t have the acumen to find a good candidate then pull it off. Plus, he sent a mailer out on official GOP letterhead calling a sitting Republican Assembly Member a liar. If that’s not taking sides, we don’t know what is.
Adams failure #3: Fundraising and fiscal management. In the last contribution cycle, the Nevada Republican Party raised a whopping $50,544.48 and spent $55,742. So, Adams here is just playing into the Republican need to spend more money than they actually have. But, so the party went $5k in the hole. Who cares? Well, let’s compare this to the Democratic party. Last filing period, the Democrats raised $900,689.94. About eighteen times what the GOP brought in.
We ran a post earlier in the year about how outmatched Adams was by Democratic Party Chairman and Clark County Commissioner Tom Collins. But even we couldn’t fathom how absolutely awful Adams would compete.
Now, you may be thinking: “Hey, Harry Reid sure most raise a lot of money for the Democrats, and he’s super powerful.” You should know, Senator Reid’s tied up raising money for Senate candidates all across the country. We hear that, while his promises to raise money are many, his follow-through on party dollars is rather limited.
Adams failure #4: Failed media strategy. Every story you read about the Republican party in Nevada is about how they’re losing ground to the Democrats. If not, the story’s inevitably about some new flub-up by the Chairman or his staff. How many voters are the Republicans registering? How much money are they raising? Which Republican commissioners are they calling to the carpet? We don’t know.
Instead of piling on weak Democrat electeds, the Republicans have been attacking the strongest democrats to weaken them. In the long run — this will prove only to annoy and distract, not to get any Dems out of office. Meanwhile, under Adams chairmanship, the GOP is consistently missing opportunities.
Nevada is often slow to follow national trends. And this year could have been no different — the fastest growing parts of the states are filling up with likely GOP voters. But Adams somehow has missed the bus. We all knew that this would be a rough year for Republican candidates. But instead of playing solid offense to pick up yardage on third and long, Adams just punted — before the fourth even arrived — and doesn’t have strong enough defense to take the field.
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Paul Adams certainly seemed qualified as a leader when he was elected as the Republican leader. However, in my opinion, he has shown himself to be an inept marketer, a poor decision maker and possibly a huge chauvinist. All the races/issues he stuck his nose into were women’s races. Odd, isn’t it.
You’re right. Adams has to go…and hopefully never be heard from in Republican circles again. Surely, there’s some concensus builder out there who’s not subject to the extremist whims of the Chuck Muths and George Harrises of the world. Perhaps those three, along with Tony Dane, can go start a consulting company for Democratic Candidates since they’re trying so hard to sink the main-stream Republicans!
Funny, I thought this post would cause all kinds of consternation and conversation. I guess everyone agrees with MMP. Speaking of, have you read the RNR’s recommendation for Heller over Derby?
http://www.newsreview.com/reno/Content?oid=oid%3A227387
We did. The unfortunate thing about it is that their portrait of Derby is pretty accurate.
I read that article recommending Heller over Derby. I have to agree that the line “She seems anti-intellectual, using aw-shucks commercials that are all pose, digging her toe in the sand while never mentioning her doctorate in anthropology” seems right on. I do not like that sort of simplistic “let’s kick the bums out” approach to campaigning. That being said, having talked to a number of people that I highly respect and hearing them sing her praises, I’m more convinced of her credentials than Heller’s.
Wish she’d “give the boot” to that lame campaign slogan though.
Unfortunately, she’s tarred by the Board of Regents’ legendary bad behavior. But most of the people I know, with the exception of one, believe that Derby would be great.
Paul Adams is an embarrassment. His days will be numbered once the election results are in, but the damage has already been done. With each hate filled press release and bigoted party plank it becomes more difficult for rational people to justify seeing an R after their name.
I think that Dean Heller is a decent candidate with a par for the course political record. Until recently he has been moderate, and does not support a lot of the wing nut policies of the state party. My problem with Heller is that he seems to think that he has paid his dues and deserves the office just because it’s his turn. There is no fire or passion in his performance on the campaign trail. I would feel much better knowing the CD2 was a seat that could think on its own and not just follow the leader…funny how the leader already came to raise a lot of money for Heller.
I, for one, think Carter and Derby are doing a GREAT job with their campaigns. Their ads in particular seem very well done and will likely appeal to both Native Nevadans and our non-natives alike. To me, they both come off as down-to-earth and relatable without being too “anti-intellectual”.
Don’t get me started on the Dina Titus ads. As much as I shudder at the thought of a waffling, good ole boy like Gibbons becoming our next Governor, I have to say he is running the better campaign. That’s not really shocking given his vast campaign contributions though, now is it?
Why does every smirking politico in a suit look like Foley?
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Paul Adams is certainly a failure, but he should be the poster boy for why Republicans in Nevada are inept as an organization; in and of himself, he’s not the reason for the Republican struggles.
Don’t be fooled, there are certainly those in the party that are MORE THAN CAPABLE of leading the organization, however, the Vegas-types wanted a man they could control in the helm of the party structure. Instead of using their clout as a group (remember, they BUSSED hundreds up to Sparks last October to make sure he was elected) to put in somebody that could actually help Las Vegas become a Republican powerhouse, and retain a slipping majority in Reno, they put in Paul Adams. This debacle goes far beyond him, although he’ll take the fall (as he well should).
The problem still lies in that nobody can emerge that truly represents Nevada Republicans, only certain segments of the state (i.e., Clark County or the Rurals) at the expense of others. To a greater extent, the Democrats have done a better job bridging this divide (not a much greater extent, but enough).
Furthermore, there’s no excuse for Republicans NOT doing this either. Ensign is from Reno, but moved to Las Vegas. Porter’s from Clark, Gibbons is from Washoe. The Republicans have Constitutional officers from Clark County, Carson City, and Douglas County. Fellow party members of mine, unfortunately, can’t see past their own selfish desires to do what’s best for their state. It’s sickening, and I’m glad I no longer take part in it.
Having said that, though, doesn’t make me want to be a Democrat. I’d rather not vote, which I will be doing proudly (with thousands of other Republicans) as a sign that we’re tired of what makes our party like our adversaries. We used to mean something; now, we’re just meaningless.