With her slight frame, delicate features and feathery Georgia drawl, Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus hardly cuts an intimidating image. But hers is a look that has fooled a thousand legislative opponents. Through her decade in the state Senate, the Las Vegas Democrat has proven time and again that she is anything but a political lightweight.
Deciding on a Best Legislator for the Best of Las Vegas Publisher's Picks in the early days of the '99 session is a sure-fire way to tempt the fates. Although often criticized, there are many hard-working legislators from both sides of the political aisle who might find themselves atop such a category.
Perhaps the most obvious political play would be to choose State Senate powerhouse William Raggio, and tell a joke about how the most effective legislator in Southern Nevada happens to get his mail in Reno. Raggio is the pre-eminent force on the floor of the state Legislature, but that fact makes Titus' stock even stronger and arguably makes her the practical choice for the accolade.
As the leader of the minority party in the Senate, she has battled often and with an admirable success rate against King William and his Senate Republicans.
Born Alice Costandina Titus in 1950 in Thomasville, Ga., she was educated at the College of William and Mary, the University of Georgia and received a doctorate in political science from Florida State University. She is a tenured professor in the political science department at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and is the author of two books, "Bombs in the Backyard: Atomic Testing and American Politics" and "Battle Born: Federal-State Relations in Nevada During the Twentieth Century."
"I love what I'm doing," Titus says. "I love being in the classroom, and I love taking part in the Legislature. Being in the Legislature makes me a better teacher, and being a teacher makes me a better legislator."
One of the pearls of irony that stands out on her resume is the note that one of her hobbies is tap dancing. In the mosh pit of the state Legislature, such a skill might not seem to have a place.
When it comes to politics, Titus can tap dance when it's appropriate, slam dance when necessary.
In her decade in the Senate, Titus has colorfully and successfully melded the study of political science with its practical application in the Legislature.
"Dina does not get enough recognition for what she does," Assemblywoman Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, says. "It's hard leading the minority party. Dina is very practical. She can size up in a second whether something will work or not, and she has tremendous political acumen. She'll hear for example, Senator Raggio speak out on an issue, and in an instant she'll know the shortcomings of the argument and respond with a sound bite that resonates. It takes me a page to explain my point. She has it in a sentence, she's acerbic: She uses her words as weapons. She has an acerbic wit and is able to express herself; we don't have an overabundance of elected officials in this state who can express themselves."
Longtime state Sen. Bob Coffin, D-Las Vegas, recalls first hearing the strength of Titus' rhetoric in action. It was back in the late 1970s, and Titus was involved with the Young Democrats, just getting her start in street politics.
"Everyone criticizes her for her abrasive side, but she has a real charming side too," Coffin says. "She turns that Southern accent on just at the right moment to defuse arguments, sometimes the very arguments she's created. She's got the skill and desire to manage this group of eight other individuals. It's very difficult to get a consensus. She has an impossible job in our caucus, but she doesn't try to accomplish the impossible. She knows when to turn everyone loose to vote their conscience. That's a good trait in leadership because you have to know when to crack the whip, and you can't be afraid to do it when the time is right. To know when to do it is just as important as doing it."
On the other end of the Senate spectrum is Valerie Wiener, D-Las Vegas, only in her second session. A relative political newcomer, Wiener says she has learned much from Titus in a short time.
"Dina was with me when I decided to run for office," Wiener says. "She's been very supportive. In the first session, she was always there to help answer questions, but she helped me learn the process my way. She didn't hover over me. It was the best of both worlds. Whenever I have a question about the history of the Legislature, she's always been very resourceful and helps point me in the right direction. She's an educator as well as someone with political experience.
"Dina can take something very complicated and make it understandable for us and the people she serves. And she's a fighter. I've watched her take an issue that might not be popular or might not even be one we've known was out there, and she will fight for that cause. She'll fight like a champion for the cause of those people who might not otherwise have a voice. She'll make sure they have a voice. That's the ultimate compliment for a person in her position."
Assembly Leader Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, is another admirer of Titus' ability to think on her feet and prove her point.
"If you've ever seen her operate in her political science classes, she's amazing in her ability to capture both sides and capture the essence of objectivity and do it so unemotionally." Perkins says. "In the legislative area, her passion is unrivaled. She shows so much emotion it certainly gets her point across. With Dina, some people would criticize her in being too hard in her approach, and others say she's doing what she needs to do."
Nuclear waste and Southern Nevada's growth are two areas in which she has illustrated undeniable leadership.
As an author and recognized expert in the field of nuclear politics, Titus has provided an articulate voice in the debate over the future of Yucca Mountain as a site for underground storage of radioactive waste.
Her advocacy of the so-called "ring around Las Vegas" has been controversial, but has had the effect of forwarding the often contentious issue of controlling growth in burgeoning Southern Nevada. At a time when local politicians lacked a unified front, Titus stepped up with the growth ring suggestion, one which has been used with positive results in Portland, Ore., and other cities.
By focusing on growth in Southern Nevada at the state level, she sped the debate and effectively helped force local politicians to act.
Growth issues are surfacing during the '99 session, and Titus is in the middle of the discussion. Her progressive position on "smart growth" issues commands the respect of her colleagues.
"Her stance on nuclear waste is important to the state," Perkins says. "She's a published author on it. I think that's a threshold issue. And the whole growth issue, with the ring around the valley and wanting to control urban sprawl, for a long time she was the only one forwarding it. She is the one who pushed that. In any type of pluralistic debate, you have to have a minority debate to push the issue."
Adds Buckley: "We need leaders who aren't afraid to take on difficult regional issues. I think Dina excels in that area. She's not afraid to call attention to those issues. We need that."
