Nevada Democrats re-energize in Washington

About 70 Nevadans, including a half-dozen Democratic state lawmakers, have descended on Washington, D.C., for a set of policy and political briefings today at the White House.

The Nevada contingent was invited as part of a summer series of briefings by President Barack Obama's administration. The weekly gatherings are expected to help the president re-energize Democratic supporters and community leaders as he runs for re-election in 2012, participants said.

"This is a great opportunity to be briefed on what's going on in Washington," said state Sen. Sheila Leslie, D-Reno, who planned to attend a meeting on health care because she's concerned about the rising cost of Medicaid. "It's a good way to get people together to energize them, too."

Some Nevadans were focused on personal politics as well as policy, such as state Sen. Ruben Kihuen and state Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford. Both Las Vegas Democrats are potential congressional candidates and were meeting with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

Kihuen said his meeting with leaders of the campaign committee would happen today . He also plans to visit with other members of Congress and Hispanic leaders and attend the National Council of La Raza Conference during his trip. Kihuen is seen as a potentially strong U.S. House contender, especially if he runs in a congressional district that has a heavy Hispanic population.

Horsford, a Democratic national committee­man, said he planned to attend the White House briefings as well as a Saturday meeting of the Democratic National Committee.

Before work got under way, U.S. Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., hosted a dinner Thursday night for about 50 people at her Capitol Hill townhouse. On the menu: salad, beef, salmon, vegetables, dessert and politics.

"The good news is that there is a roof deck" at Berkley's home, her spokesman, David Cherry, said as temperatures in Washington hit a Las Vegas-like 100 degrees on Thursday.

U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, the Democratic leader whose staff helped put together the trip, also planned to host a lunch on Saturday for his fellow Nevadans at the Library of Congress.

More than 200 Nevadans were invited to the White House briefings. About 70 confirmed and were paying their own way. Participants represent all parts of the state, from Las Vegas to Elko, and included business owners, nonprofit leaders, community activists and elected officials as well as labor groups.

Assemblywoman Debbie Smith, D-Sparks, and Assembly members Lucy Flores and Jason Frierson, both D-Las Vegas, were among the lawmakers in Washington for the political and social events. No Republican legislators were known to be on the list of Nevadans attending the White House briefings.

Another 70 community leaders and elected officials from other states were being briefed today as well during the daylong meetings at the White House, which they'll also get to tour.

There's a chance the Nevadans will see President Obama, but there's no guarantee since he's got his hands full with the U.S. debt debate and an Aug. 2 deadline looming to resolve it.

Besides the grass-roots community meetings, elected officials will get a special briefing from the Inter Governmental Affairs staff at the White House. The head of the Office of Public Engagement also will chat with the lawmakers about issues important to Nevada, according to organizers.

Stephens Medical Capital Bureau Chief Steve Tetreault contributed to this story. Contact Laura Myers at lmyers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2919. Follow her @lmyerslvrj on Twitter.