Caucus fever heats up

Thursday night's big Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas might have felt like a culmination, but for the Nevada caucuses, it's just the beginning.

"It's like you wake up after the debate and go, 'Wow, it's two months away,'" Nevada Republican Party Executive Director Zac Moyle said. "We're getting ready to do a blitz here."

With the debate over and considered a success, the parties and campaigns are looking ahead to the Jan. 19 caucuses, with the process now officially in the home stretch.

"Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, there'll be no sleep," Moyle said. "We may have a day or two for Christmas, and then it's all-out from there on in. We won't even know what sleep means."

The debate might have been just Democrats, but both parties and the state as a whole reaped benefits that will contribute to the caucus effort as it gears up. With more than 4 million viewers, it was the most watched debate of the year.

"It's a positive thing for Nevada," said Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards as he campaigned in Henderson on Friday, the morning after. "I always strongly believed the caucus here in Nevada made a great deal of sense. It offers a perspective not represented in the other parts of the early primary process."

Edwards expressed disappointment that more Nevada-specific issues didn't come up in the debate, saying he would have liked to talk about water and mining, even though he hasn't taken a position on the latter.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson expressed similar thoughts just after the debate, saying he would have liked to demonstrate his facility with the Western issues that are his bailiwick.

The CNN panelists who ran the debate asked about Yucca Mountain, and Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois got in a mention of the local Culinary union. Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York spoke of "playing the winning card," and Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut looked exceedingly pleased with himself after answering a question partly in Spanish.

But the Nevadans who played a role in the debate preferred to pose queries of national import, on topics such as civil rights and military contractors.

To Clark County Commissioner Rory Reid, that showed Nevadans' sophistication and made the debate meaningful. "The whole country was watching us, and we talked about issues they (the candidates) had never been asked about to that degree before, like the Supreme Court," he said.

"I was sitting there with other people I've worked with over the years to improve our party, and we were so proud and amazed," said Reid, a Clinton supporter.

If there was any doubt before whether the Nevada caucuses were on the map, the debate put it to rest. The rest of the world now recognizes Nevada's place in the 2008 political calendar and the effect the state could have.

"I'm hearing the national media starting to talk about how important Nevada will be as a tiebreaker if Iowa and New Hampshire split in their decisions," said Kirsten Searer, deputy executive director of the Nevada Democratic Party. "A lot of them are also talking about the 11-day window between Iowa and New Hampshire when the candidates will focus exclusively on Nevada."

Searer was speaking Friday after a day spent reading all the coverage of the debate, which featured Las Vegas in nearly every headline. Whether it was decks of cards, boxing matches, Frank Sinatra or, regrettably, that careworn slogan from the commercials, you could tell from the images evoked by the debate coverage where it was coming from.

Most of the journalists who came to town for the event also took a look outside the debate hall at Nevada's political landscape. Some went deeper, like PBS' "The NewsHour," which stayed all week and explored a variety of local topics.

"I think what people are beginning to understand is that the (Democratic National Committee) did the right thing in changing an antiquated process of having the candidates for president decided in Iowa and New Hampshire," by adding Nevada to the list, said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.

"This debate," he added, "is just wonderful."

Perhaps more important than the attention from outsiders, the debate also seemed to wake Nevadans up to the coming caucuses. Moyle and Searer said phones were ringing off the hook at their parties' headquarters with people wanting to learn more, to participate, to volunteer.

"It's go time," Searer said. "We were talking in a staff meeting this morning about how the debate was a dress rehearsal. It's going to pale in comparison to the work and the buzz around the caucus. We're really excited. It's a boost to Nevada Democrats and the state as a whole."

Contact reporter Molly Ball at mball@ reviewjournal.com or (702) 387-2919.