It’s about time Las Vegas mayoral hopefuls throw some punches

Well, now, that's more like it.

For weeks I've waited impatiently for the Las Vegas mayor's race to get interesting. And by interesting, I mean negative.

The candidate forums and occasional debates have been festooned with talk of issues and vision, but have lacked the rabbit punches and kicks to the shins I've come to enjoy over the years.

Perhaps that's because the race hasn't been close, at least not according to Carolyn Goodman's polling.

Candidate Chris Giunchigliani's campaign, meanwhile, recently produced a poll that showed her closing fast on the front-runner.

It's fast becoming clear from the tough talk at last on display that at least some observers believe this race might be close, or at the very least entertaining.

Of late, Goodman has been accused of everything from knowing zilch about the issues and process of government to scoffing at troubled homeowners. (I found the former ads more effective than the latter.)

On the foreclosure issue, Giunchigliani campaign spokesman Nick Miner jabs, "Time and again Carolyn Goodman has shown she is tone deaf to the concerns of Las Vegas homeowners. Rebuilding is not an option for people who lost half the value of their home, and Carolyn is out of touch for saying it."

Goodman hasn't directly addressed what her advisers call a blatant distortion by Giunchigliani. Goodman campaign manager Bradley Mayer reminds anyone claiming his candidate is out of touch to refer to the endorsements she has received from both daily newspapers, which rarely agree on anything.

"It means something when those two papers agree," Mayer said.

But until Thursday, I think Goodman appeared tentative about counterpunching with her opponent. While she recently produced a TV spot that portrayed Giunchigliani as an elected official with a foul mouth and quick temper, at a minute in length it lost its impact and merely served as a reminder that local politics isn't a Junior League tea party.

On Thursday Goodman's campaign emerged with a mailer that thumped Giunchigliani as a die-hard tax-and-spender with an eye on raising property taxes. Maybe that will stick.

It's a little surprising Goodman's camp hasn't tried to pick apart Giunchigliani's longtime loyalty to the now-controversial Clark County Firefighters Union. The local heroes have looked like zeroes during their wage war with the county in a time of recession, and until recently Giunchigliani was a loyal department supporter. (She's not alone in that distinction.)

In a February media release, Giunchigliani called "on county officials Monday to schedule an open, public discussion of recent arbitration findings regarding manipulation of scheduling so some firefighters could 'game' the system for more pay." But back in 2005 when she briefly was a hearing officer in an employment dispute involving a county firefighter accused of malingering and napping on the job, I'm told she was soft on the six-figure sleepy head.

The late-week mailer shows Goodman's campaign is more focused on making sure a hard-working opponent remains in the rearview mirror.

And Giunchigliani?

She's still pounding away at Goodman on the mortgage front.

TAVERN SMOKE: In a response to this week's column, Golden Gaming CEO Blake Sartini argues that AB571 makes necessary changes to the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act of 2006, which tavern owners blame for much of their economic downturn.

To read Sartini's letter, check out my blog at lvrj.com.

ON THE BOULEVARD: Casino concierge Mariann Mohos has just published an entertaining collection of anecdotes about the service side of Sin City. It's titled, "You Want What???" It's safe to say she's heard it all. ... Randy Kiefer's recent death is reminding Vegas party veterans of a time when his Elephant Bar and Play It Again Sam's were among the hottest spots in the valley. My favorite was Kiefer's atop the Carriage House.

Have an item for Bard of the Boulevard? Email comments and contributions to Smith@reviewjournal.com or call (702) 383-0295. He also blogs at lvrj.com/blogs/Smith