* Darius Sorrells was convicted and sent to prison in 2019 for killing his sister and mother. He was given a “life” sentence for giving his family members the death sentence.
* Opponents of capital punishment for killers like Sorrells argue that death sentences aren’t a deterrent. I beg to differ. No executed killer has ever killed anyone again.
* Not so for “lifer” Sorrells. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported this morning that Sorrells is suspected “of fatally beating his prison cellmate with a television.” His cellmate, Mitchell Harris, was also a convicted killer who stabbed his ex-wife to death with an ice pick.
* Obvious question: Why the hell did two convicted murderers have a freaking 13-inch television in their cell?!!
* Regardless, a “life” sentence is no guarantee a killer won’t kill again. A death sentence is. Animals like Sorrells should be put down just like a rabid dog.
* On to politics…
* I know Trump wants people to think “it’s over” and he should just be handed the Republican presidential nomination without even bothering to hold a primary, but, um, not so fast.
* Like it or not, there are signs of trouble for Team Trump in Iowa despite his current 20-point lead. And if he loses Iowa to DeSantis, all bets could be off going into the other early states (including Nevada) and Super Tuesday.
* From an NBC News report today…
“A number of Donald Trump’s allies are growing concerned that his lead in Iowa’s first-in-the-nation caucuses isn’t built to last. Trump supporters…are preparing for months of battle against Republican presidential opponents who trail badly in the polls but have built better machinery to find and secure votes…
“The stakes in Iowa are clear. If Trump wins the first contest of 2024, where he starts with a strong polling lead in what was one of his weaker states in 2016, his rivals may not be able to stop him steamrolling through the rest of the nominating process.
“But demonstrating Trump’s vulnerability early could open a window to defeating him - which is among the big reasons DeSantis, still Trump’s closest rival in polls, is digging into Iowa while cutting back operations elsewhere.”
* As Yogi Berra said, it ain’t over ‘til it’s over.
* Meanwhile in Nevada…
* Democrat Reno City Councilwoman Naomi Duerr and race-hustlin’ Democrat Assemblywoman Angie Taylor announced their candidacies for Nevada State Senate District 15 on Thursday.
* Taylor is the anointed one, already grabbing the backing of Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannibizzaro and Assembly Speaker Steve “Donut Boy” Yeager.
* Incumbent Republican Heidi Gansert announced weeks ago that she was not running for re-election.
* Following the redrawing of lines after the 2020 census, SD15 became a big Democrat-majority district. Republicans would have a tough time holding the seat even if Gansert ran.
* If Republicans lose this seat next year – and don’t flip a Democrat seat – Democrats will have a super-majority in the Senate and be able to pass tax hikes and over-ride Gov. Lombardo’s vetoes at will.
* But don’t despair yet. Republicans may have a top tier candidate ready to jump into a different Senate race in Clark County who would have an excellent chance of flipping a blue seat to red.
* Meanwhile, another brick in the Democrats’ “Favor Factory” wall came tumbling down this morning.
* Democrat Assemblywoman Lesley Cohen announced she will not be seeking re-election next year. She has not (yet) been linked to the “Quid Pro Quo Gorelow” scandal, but hard to believe it didn’t weigh on her decision.
* Cohen is now the FIFTH Democrat in the Assembly to announce they will not be going back to the Carson City piggy bank/cookie jar in 2025. Here’s why this is important and Democrats are in a panic…
* Currently, Democrats have a super-majority by one vote in the Assembly.
* If Republicans flip just one seat without losing any of their incumbents – unlikely, as most GOP seats are considered “safe” – they’ll have enough votes to protect Gov. Lombardo’s vetoes in the next session in case they end up in a super-minority in the Senate.
* And usually, it’s a lot easier to flip an “open” seat than one with an incumbent running for re-election.
* I feel a disturbance in the Force. A reckoning is coming.
FAMOUS LAST WORDS
“Sen. Ted Cruz, of Texas, beat Trump by 4 points in Iowa in 2016. But in September of 2015, he was down more than 20 points to Trump in the state, according to averages of polling data by RealClearPolitics.” – CBS News, 9/7/23
Mr. Muth is president of Citizen Outreach, publisher of Nevada News & Views, and founder of CampaignDoctor.com. You can sign up for his conservative, Nevada-focused e-newsletter at MuthsTruths.com. His views are his own.