Nevada's economic woes highlight challenge for McCain

[UpInArms]

Source: Dallas Morning News

LAS VEGAS – Just four weeks ago, John McCain was a good bet here. Now, in a state built on rebound and luck, he will need both to succeed.

The oddsmakers would say it shouldn't be this way. Nevada has been as red politically as its iron-rich desert. President Bush won here twice. The governor is Republican. And Mr. McCain hails from a neighboring state. And yet, according to polls, he is at best tied and at worst lagging Barack Obama by 7 points.

<snip>

In many ways, Nevada is a magnified version of how the rest of the nation – and Mr. McCain's candidacy – are suffering. Only a few years ago, the state was on a roll of high growth and low taxes, fueled by construction and tourism dollars. But then last year, the dice changed: Nevada began leading the nation in foreclosures, now hitting one out of every 74 homes.

Construction firms packed up. Gambling revenues have dropped. Businesses began layoffs, and unemployment has jumped 49 percent since last year.

Read more: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/politi...

[enlightenment]

1. I'll quibble with the "has been as red"

comment.

Nevada went blue in 1992 and 1996 - in 2000 the split was 49% to 51% for Bush and in 2004 it was 48% to 51% for Bush . . . that hardly represents an overwhelming "red" state. It does represent yet another state where nearly half of the voters have their vote tossed because of the electoral college.