Las Vegas Review Journal - Former Congresswoman Vucanovich Endorses Lippold for 2nd District Seat
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Former Rep. Barbara Vucanovich endorsed Kirk Lippold for Congress on Wednesday, saying the former commander of the USS Cole is the "only real conservative" running for the House seat she was the first to win in 1982.
The endorsement came after Vucanovich met Lippold last week at a Reno Republican Women's lunch. He narrated a slide show, talking about the October 2000 al-Qaida attack on the Cole in a Yemen harbor. The bombing killed 17 sailors, although the ship was saved.
Vucanovich, considered a conservative icon in Northern Nevada, said she liked Lippold's conservative ideas, not just on holding the line on taxes but on keeping the federal government small.
"Of course, I know all the other players and I respect all of them, but I didn't feel anybody else represented my thinking," Vucanovich said. "I think he's the only real conservative. He doesn't want Congress and the president telling people what to do. I'd like to see him be a member of Congress from our district."
Vucanovich, in her 80s, contributed $1,000 to Lippold's House campaign. She held the 2nd Congressional District seat for more than a dozen years.
Lippold, who lives in Carson City, said he was "proud, honored and grateful" to win Vucanovich's support.
"Her advice and insight will no doubt prove extremely valuable on the campaign trail in the weeks and months ahead," Lippold said in a statement.
Vucanovich's endorsement could help him gain more attention in what will be a crowded Sept. 13 special election. State Sen. Greg Brower of Reno, Nevada GOP Chairman Mark Amodei and tea party favorite Sharron Angle also are running .
Three Democrats are in the race: state Treasurer Kate Marshall, former Nevada Democratic Party Chairwoman Jill Derby and Nancy Price. Price and Derby, who were both elected higher education officials, have run for the seat before, losing to former Rep. Dean Heller.
The special election was called by GOP Gov. Brian Sandoval to fill the House vacancy after he appointed Heller to finish U.S. Sen. John Ensign's term through 2012.
Under rules set by Secretary of State Ross Miller, a Democrat, any qualified candidate can get on the ballot.
Republicans object to the free-for-all election rules, arguing the law calls for the major parties' central committees to nominate one candidate each. A judge will hear the case in Carson City today .
A free-for-all election could splinter the GOP vote, allowing a Democrat a chance to win the 2nd Congressional District for the first time. It covers Northern and rural Nevada.
The GOP central committee is scheduled to endorse a candidate on June 18.
A Republican debate has been scheduled three days before, on June 15, in Reno. The 6 p.m. debate, sponsored by Reno's PBS TV station, will be broadcast from the Boys and Girls Club of Truckee Meadows. Several broadcasters will ask questions of the candidates, according to Paul Jackson, a GOP consultant.
In 2010, Vucanovich endorsed Angle in her failed bid to unseat U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, the Democratic leader of the Senate. Vucanovich said that was "a different race and a different time" and she no longer believes the former Reno assemblywoman should represent Nevada in Washington, D.C.
"I don't think she's the kind of person we want," Vucanovich said of Angle, who has run on an anti-tax and small-government platform.
Vucanovich said neither Amodei nor Brower are conservatives in her view. Amodei, a former senator from Carson City, has backed tax-hike packages, including $800 million in 2003. She said Brower was appointed to complete the term of former state Sen. Bill Raggio of Reno, a moderate who also signed on to major tax packages.
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