A new website hammering moderate Nevada Republican state senate candidate (District 4, Washoe County) Ben Kieckhefer includes an audio clip whereby reporter Ray Hagar gets right to the heart of the matter: “Yes or no, you are not going to sign the no new tax pledge?” Ben’s response: “No I’m not.”
That response pretty much tells conservative voters in this district all they need to know about young Ben.
However, the website also includes a brief video clip where one of Ben’s conservative primary opponents, Todd Bailey, speaking at the North Valleys Republican Women’s meeting on Thursday, announced to the crowd that he’d signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge and brought an additional copy for Ben, sitting in the audience at the table in front of the podium, to consider signing as well.
Once again, Ben said no. Just as conservative Republican primary voters in his district will say to his candidacy on Election Day in June. Thank goodness he didn’t quit his day job….working for the government at Health and Human Services.
Meanwhile, Karri Bragg, executive vice president of Citizen Outreach is in the process of putting together a comprehensive race-by-race listing of which candidates are taxpayer champions and have signed the Pledge and which candidates don’t want to have their hands tied so they can stick it to taxpayers if elected. Look for it later this week.
In the meantime, the only Republican U.S. Senate candidate who has not signed the Pledge yet is John Chachas and the only Republican gubernatorial candidate who hasn’t put ink to his no new taxes lips is Brian Sandoval.
But so as not to be accused of always just focusing on the negative, here’s a partial list of conservative Republicans who HAVE signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge:
Incumbents Who Have Signed the Pledge
Gov. Jim Gibbons
Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki
Sen. John Ensign
Rep. Dean Heller
State Sen. Barbara Cegavske
State Sen. Maurice Washington
Assemblyman Ed Goedhart
Assemblyman Don Gustavson
Assemblyman James Settelmeyer
Assemblyman Ty Cobb
Assemblyman Richard McArthur
Assemblyman John Carpenter
Assemblyman John Hambrick
Candidates Who Have Signed the Pledge
Sue Lowden (U.S. Senate)
Sharron Angle (U.S. Senate)
Chad Christensen (U.S. Senate)
Danny Tarkanian (U.S. Senate)
Mike Montandon (Governor)
Joe Heck (Congress)
Craig Lake (Congress)
Patrick McNaught (State Senate)
Mike Roberson (State Senate)
Elizabet Halseth (State Senate)
Gary Gladwill (State Assembly)
Todd Bailey (State Assembly)
Scott Chappell (State Assembly)
Janine Hansen (State Assembly)
Annie Black (State Assembly)
Calanit Atia (State Assembly)
Glenn Greener (State Assembly)
Tyler Andrew (State Assembly)
Again, this is only a partial list from memory. Karri will document the full list later this week…of both those who have signed the Pledge….and those who have not. Like Brian Sandoval, Ben Kieckhefer and John Chachas.
Did I mention that Sandoval, Kieckhefer and Chachas haven’t signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge yet? Just checking.
