Iowa results will affect Nevada

Four years ago, you had to be a true political junkie to watch television coverage of the Iowa caucuses. Yet, there at the Tap House on West Charleston Boulevard, a crowd of fervent John Kerry supporters, many of them clad in the signature yellow T-shirts of the firefighters union, cheered wildly as Kerry "came from behind" to nab the Hawkeye title.

This year, it'll be hard even for those with only a casual political interest not to watch the Iowa results with the hopes that Nevada might play a role in the presidential nomination process. Silver State partisans won't caucus until Jan. 19.

The media can't seem to pin down Iowans, probably because so few of them participate in the caucuses, and a good chunk of those who do are as unpredictable as the Iowa winter.

Polls suggest any of the so-called three leading Democrats could win tonight, and that the race is so uncertain on the Republican side of the aisle that as many as five candidates could walk away victorious.

Winning isn't everything, of course. Neither Ronald Reagan nor Bill Clinton won Iowa prior to their first terms. Almost as important as winning the thing is finding a show or place horse to round out your political trifecta.

That, I think, will be the story tonight. And if the media give as much attention to the third-place finishers as they do the winners, Nevada could become national news central very quickly.

Let's say Hillary Clinton does a Kerry and achieves her "come from behind" victory as Iowans settle on the candidate they've liked all along. But what if it's John Edwards, not Barack Obama, who places second? And what if one of the "also rans" actually gives Obama a run for third place?

(How cool would it have been if Nevada were still in the second-in-the-nation spot the Democratic National Committee designated a year ago when the party shook up the early nominating calendar? Instead, Nevadans will have to play another waiting and watching game -- this time with eyes on New Hampshire for next week's primary.)

After two states vote, you'll either see a totally open field in which any of eight candidates could emerge as his or her party's nominee. Or it'll be almost all over.

Either way, Nevada will have 11 days of almost unprecedented attention. National media may swoop in for the obligatory Yucca Mountain story, or a look at the foreclosure crisis, only to find that the war, the economy and immigration are still the top issues for voters here.

Of course, only the national media covering the Democrats will come to Nevada. Those following the Republicans will be headed for South Carolina to analyze who can win the evangelical vote. South Carolina Republicans set their primary for the same day as Nevada's caucuses, rendering Nevada -- at least on the GOP side -- political fly-over territory, good only for layovers from which to pluck a few dollars.

For now, Iowa retains its importance as the first state, and New Hampshire will still follow.

But with any amount of luck tonight, Nevada could be poised to really shine. And the Southern Nevada sun will only help the rest of the nation see just how different we really are.

Resolutions

It's hard enough for politicians to keep promises, let alone stick by New Year's resolutions. But in the spirit of 2008, here are a few resolutions we'd like to see.

Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani, Mike Huckabee, Sen. John McCain and Fred Thompson should resolve to try to find Nevada on a map after tonight.

Sen. Joe Biden should resolve to be the best secretary of state possible.

Rep. Dennis Kucinich should resolve to funnel unused campaign money to a research center in Rachel -- the gateway to Area 51 -- for his other hobby.

Rep. Ron Paul should resolve to have a Las Vegas convention to determine the viability of a third-party run as an independent. Bet he'd draw tens of thousands.

Sen. Hillary Clinton should resolve to dispatch her top surrogate -- past and future Bill -- to Nevada as often as possible. He'll always have a nice place to stay, and the golf's not bad, either.

The Democratic nominee for president should resolve to short-list Southern Nevada Water Authority General Manager Pat Mulroy for a Cabinet post.

Gov. Jim Gibbons should resolve to stick to all of his promises.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid should resolve to spend more time in Nevada. After all, he's got all those East Coast senators happily keeping the Senate in session for him until January 2009.

All eligible Nevadans should resolve to caucus on Jan. 19.

Contact Erin Neff at (702) 387-2906, or be e-mail at eneff@reviewjournal.com.