So who's the best politician in Las Vegas?

You readers -- if you stay true to form -- will probably answer with somebody such as Mayor Oscar Goodman, whose flash shines so brightly, hardly anybody remembers there was supposed to be some substance, too. Still, it's not as bad as picking Olive Garden as the city's Best Italian Restaurant. Now that is an awful choice.

In many ways, Goodman is the perfect politician: He feels your pain, speaks your mind, drinks after work like you do and always has a witty rejoinder at the ready. The fact that his first term is almost totally without a solid, lay-your-hands-on-it accomplishment is beside the point. Love him or hate him, you've got to love him.

But is that the way we really want to define best politician in town? Somebody you'd like to drink with as opposed to somebody you'd trust to run the place?

You probably answered yes, on your way to check Taco Bell for the city's Best Taco. You people are unbelievable sometimes.

Let's try for a new definition of best politician. Let's try to think of people who espouse principles, and stick by those principles no matter what it costs them. Suddenly, the list narrows.

There's Bob Beers, the Republican Las Vegas assemblyman who infuriated the gambling industry recently with an e-mail that suggested the children of casino workers don't value education and thus incur all manner of social ills. Although he tried on defenses like Gore-Tex jackets trying to avoid the deluge of casino criticism, Beers is generally one who sticks to his guns. He's been one of the harshest critics of Gov. Kenny Guinn's tax plan in a Legislature where conformity in tax hiking means safety in numbers. He's joined by state Sen. Ann O'Connell, the Las Vegas Republican, who is similarly loath to abandon her conservative credentials.

How about Democrat Chris Giunchigliani, the reliably liberal Las Vegas assemblywoman? She's one of the few lawmakers who won't shrink from the L-word like a Best of Las Vegas® balloter from a good cup of coffee. (You once said 7-Eleven had the Best Coffee in town. Are you nuts?) While we're on the left side of the aisle, let's also mention state Sen. Joe Neal, the North Las Vegas Democrat. He was, as they say, a principled liberal before it was cool, although he shocked fellow Democrats last year by endorsing a Republican (Las Vegas Councilwoman Lynette Boggs McDonald) over an incumbent Democrat (Shelley Berkley) for Congress.

What about pragmatism? The ability to make a deal is no small part of what goes into being a good politician. In Carson City, Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, the Henderson Democrat, and Majority Leader Barbara Buckley, the Las Vegas Democrat, are consummate pragmatists. They're able to grasp the complexities of legislation and work behind the scenes with other deal makers (such as Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, the Reno Republican, who is probably the best example of the genre).

An offshoot of the pragmatic breed of pol is the effective one, those who use the pulleys and levers of government to supply their constituents with a steady stream of pork. U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, a Democrat, is a genius at this. On the local level, Las Vegas Councilman Michael McDonald has made responding to constituent needs a top priority, and will probably owe his re-election to it. (Speaking of McDonald's, it's amazing you readers didn't pick McDonald's for Best Hamburger. But even taste-challenged people can't deny In-N-Out Burger is the best.)

Perhaps the ability to suffer scandal yet still survive in office is the mark of a great politician. For that, we have plenty: Sen. Maurice Washington, the Sparks Republican, has struggled with insurance regulations and still was re-elected last year. So was Las Vegas Democratic Assemblyman Wendell Williams, although he was once again late filing his consistently tardy campaign fund-raising forms. Las Vegas Councilman Michael Mack outlived the city's Ethics Review Board, which once sought to do him in politically. Clark County Commissioner Yvonne Atkinson Gates' ethics woes are a rapidly fading, distant memory. And the aforementioned McDonald is on a sure and certain path to re-election, despite his tangles with city and state ethics boards.

So -- before you go back to munching on some of that ³best² Pizza Hut pizza you love so much -- let's settle this. Who is the best politician? The one who combines principle with a proven record of getting things done, who has had a lasting impact on the public scene and who can always be counted on for a good quote or a unique insight into the process?

That's an easy one: Ralph Nader, baby!