Titus defense on communications spending

Rep. Dina Titus' office called Political Eye this morning to offer a defense of the taxpayer money she spent last year on newsletters and teleconferences.

This was following a report last Friday that, at $470,000, Titus was the top House spender on mailers and communications, one strategy that lawmakers use to keep themselves in the public's eye.

The Associated Press pointed out that Titus spent more than lawmakers from Alaska, Delaware, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming combined.

Andrew Stoddard, Titus' communications director, disputed the comparison, saying those states are not suffering from the housing mess as much as Southern Nevada.

Titus' spending, he maintained, was the result of her activism in putting together workshops and other outreach to people facing foreclosure and joblessness.

"So we do a lot of robo calls and other mailers to let people know about them and to get the word out," Stoddard said. "It is something we feel is well worth using those funds so people can come out and get help with some of the issues they are facing."

Figuring the 3rd Congressional District consists of roughly 960,000 people, Titus' spending of $470,000 in taxpayer money in mailers and calls works out to "less than 50 cents per person in the district," Stoddard said.