Reporters’ Notebook

DURING AN APPEARANCE ON "THE DAILY SHOW" Tuesday night, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich criticized President Barack Obama for urging people not to blow their money in Las Vegas.

To say something like that about a city so dependent on tourism "may not be a good jobs program," Gingrich said.

Host Jon Stewart, who recently performed two nights of stand-up at The Mirage, said he did what he could for the city while he was here.

"I was just in Las Vegas, and I think stimulated their economy quite well when I was there," Stewart said. "I left in a barrel."

HENRY BREAN

Here's a bit of Nevada political trivia courtesy of the Senate Judiciary Committee's Web site, which listed this under "Noteworthy" last week:

"Did You Know? In 1940, Senators Patrick McCarran (D-Nev.) and Frederick Van Nuys (D-Ind.) battled for the Committee chairmanship. Both Senators served in the Senate and on the Committee for the same number of days. Their equal claim to be the 32nd Chairman was resolved in favor of Van Nuys, because Indiana had joined the Union almost 50 years earlier than Nevada.

CARRI GEER THEVENOT "DEADHEAD" MIGHT BRING TO MIND AN AGING HIPPIE in a tie-dye T-shirt and Birkenstocks following the Grateful Dead from town to town, but the word means something else to the transportation department of the Clark County School District. It refers to an empty passenger load.

The distance a bus travels between the yard and its first pickup is called "deadhead miles."

JAMES HAUG

AND NOW, A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT:

The city of Las Vegas' "Your City, Your Way" outreach program is in no way affiliated with Burger King or any of its agents or franchisees.

Have a nice day.

ALAN CHOATE