Nevada Said NO to Hollywood — Next Up: The RINOs

The Nevada Legislature wrapped up a special session last week, and I think a lot of us are asking a very reasonable question.

What the heck just happened?

The governor called everyone back to Carson City to handle “urgent” public matters — and I agree, strengthening public safety is absolutely urgent.

Stopping crime should be our number one priority.

But instead, the major political push became a billion-dollar tax credit package for Hollywood film studios.

Now look — I’m not against new industries coming to Nevada.

I love growth.
I love opportunity.

But working families and parents across this state aren’t exactly losing sleep over whether California movie producers have enough access to our hard-earned tax dollars.

And when every dollar should have a purpose — a massive corporate incentive package shouldn’t leapfrog the needs of Nevada families.

Thankfully, lawmakers in the Senate said NO to the Hollywood handout.

That was the right call.

School Choice? Denied.

It’s also no secret that school choice never made it into the conversation.

Not once.

Parents asked for help… and they got crickets.

And the timing is hard to ignore.

Just days before the special session, the Governor accepted an endorsement from Nevada’s largest teachers union — CCEA.

The same union that endorsed Biden/Harris.

So when school choice didn’t even make the agenda?

Parents didn’t get an explanation…

But we definitely got the message.

Crime Bill Hijacked

Gov Lombardo’s crime bill did move forward. And yes, Nevada needs safer streets and law enforcement that isn’t forced to walk on eggshells while trying to keep us all safe.

I fully support getting this done.

But in the final hours, Democrats slipped in an amendment limiting cooperation with federal immigration enforcement — specifically restricting ICE.

Here’s the issue:

The governor made an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice affirming that Nevada “is not and will never be a sanctuary state.”

Yet this amendment moves the needle the opposite direction.

So now we’re left wondering:

Do we keep the promises we made?
Or are we drifting toward policies we were told would never happen?

That contradiction isn’t small — and it could put Nevada at odds with the federal government.

Which leads to a very real question:

Will the governor be forced to veto his own crime bill?

What in the Sam Hill is Going On?

In the middle of all this, Democrats managed to get their own special session — with the help of two Republicans:

Assemblywoman Alexis Hansen and Senator Ira Hansen.

At some point regular people look at this circus and ask, “What in the Sam Hill is going on up there?”

Representation at Home

And speaking of representation… let’s talk about ours.

Appointed, not elected… and you can tell.

Assembly District 19 was just filled by appointee Jason Patchett.

That’s the law — and I respect the process (even though I disagreed with the candidate).

And when big votes landed in the Special session — the kind that couly really hurt us — the conservative backbone we expect was not there.

Here’s what happened:

1. Patchett voted against putting the Hollywood bill on the agenda. Good start.
2. Then he voted to allow remote voting by two GOP lawmakers (Heidi Kasama & Brian Hibbetts, both Rs from Las Vegas) — which flipped the numbers and let the bill advance.
3. And finally… he voted YES on the Hollywood handout itself.

Our district is one of the reddest in southern Nevada.

We expect a champion — not someone who goes along to get along.

When you’re making decisions that could cost taxpayers hundreds of millions?

You get one chance to show who you are.

And the spotlight raised a very fair question:

Is this the kind of leadership we want in Carson City?

Representation is a privilege — not a rubber stamp.

And soon enough, voters will get their say.

So Where Do We Go From Here?

Here’s what I know — and what you know…

Nevada’s priorities are:

• Safe communities
• Parents in the driver’s seat
• Responsible spending
• Leaders who remember who they work for

Nevada doesn’t belong to Hollywood.
Nevada doesn’t belong to unions.
Nevada doesn’t belong to lobbyists.

Nevada belongs to YOU and ME.

And to any Republicans who forgot that during the special session?

You better lace up… because the primaries are just around the corner.

The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Nevada News & Views.