The Paid Piper Plays Their Tune:
Guinn and the Gamblers

The buy-off finally shows its true fruit. Kenny Guinn, the governor openly purchased by the gaming industry, articulated in his State of the State taxation harangue why the money was well spent.

Guinn, in a money-inspired trance worthy of Rasputin, saw the now common GOP “vision” of mushrooming government as a good thing, worthy of financing, and called for a billion dollars in new taxes.

Out of that $1,000,000,000 the casino industry would pay, through the “gross gaming tax”, an extra 0.25 percent, from 6.25 to 6.50, accounting for a token 25 million of the 1 billion in taxes Guinn proposed.

Considering that most states tax the gaming industry at about double our rate, the industry’s measly $3 or $4 million spent on Guinn’s campaign was certainly a magnificent investment.

The nice part for the big casinos is, as an added safety net, they also invested another couple of million in buying up the State Assembly, the State Senate and both political parties— assuring themselves absolute protection from the tax man.

Kenny Guinn is a very nice person but is well known to be someone with very limited commitments to any social, moral or political opinion or view. He is a blank page, and the gamblers filled in the lines. And, no real surprise, what they wanted is remarkably identical to Guinn’s “vision”: to keep government from doing in Nevada what state governments have done across the country—sock it to them so they will help pay for all the social malaise they help create.

To nip that potential bud they bought Kenny Guinn and his clones in both parties, effectively isolating themselves. Democrat Joe Neal, who I voted for in the last election (despite of my right-wing views), saw clearly how this power play was coming to pass. Neal posed no real threat for a variety of reasons but should be credited—unlike almost all our current crop of legislative bootlickers—for not bowing and kissing the hind-ends of the Harvey Whittemore-types as they generously passed out the cash.

Now that the Republicans have come out of their Ronald Reagan era cocoon and turned into the once loathsome “big spending” Democrats, the question of taxes and their true need has also become anachronistic. GOP Governor Guinn pretty much called “cowards” anyone who dared to challenge the need for one billion extra tax dollars. He thus labeled Republicans who still cling to quaint notions about limited government and individual responsibility as losers and traitors to the new Republican vision of becoming Democrats in actions if not always in plain rhetoric.

Guinn has also attempted to conceal his blatant subservience by creating a diversion, a smokescreen—the supposed need to change our tax base. According to him Nevada faces fiscal calamity if gaming and sales taxes remain the foundation. Throwing sales taxes into the debate was a nice touch; if he had merely mentioned the “need” to get away from taxing the multi-billion dollar gaming industry the buyoff would have been too grotesquely blatant.

When we recall the $400 million surplus of only a legislative session ago and how the legislature spent it like a drunk sailor on a spree, and now only a couple years later we supposedly have a $1 billion shortfall, bringing up questions about “need” is hardly an act of cowardice. Instead it’s something clearly absent in the speech: a focus on fiscal necessity.

Has taxation in real dollars truly been outstripped by the explosive growth of the State? Or has spending increased well beyond the rates of both inflation and population growth?

In fact the tax-and-spend policies of government—once the whipping boy of GOP office holders and seekers—has far outpaced both inflation and growth.

In short, what is needed is not more taxation, but a mere freeze of spending at levels considered adequate only a few years previous. Remember, the surplus was put into budgets and now, in true government fashion, what was then considered a bonanza of extra money is now regarded as absolute rock bottom necessity.

Guinn’s proposal sticks it to those most vulnerable and also those most politically unorganized, especially the sleeping giant of small business. With the gaming hacks and the teacher unions linking arms in a tax search-and-destroy mission, few escape their web; mom and pop businesses, cigarette smokers, theaters, beer drinkers, entrepreneurs—everyone except those living off some sort of government check and, of course, the gaming magnates.

Perhaps being in the fiscal crosshairs in a big way will stir a largely apathetic populace to meaningful political action, perhaps not. Getting the small clique of billionaire gamblers together and united is relatively easy, but pulling together a broad coalition—of people often willing to jump ship as soon as their particular potential tax burden is dropped or sharply amended—is frustrating and fragile.

Today, as in so much of Nevada’s history, a “machine” dominates what in theory is a government of the people. Ultimately, it is the people who must be held accountable for their lack of interest, for allowing by default the control of government to fall into the hands of those who use the public trust to their own selfish interests.

Truth is, as tax levels spiral ever upward, we have no one to blame but ourselves. Kenny Guinn, a mere figurehead at best, is governor because we really didn’t give a damn.