I served Washoe County for 30 years. Cortez Masto has lost my support

This opinion column was submitted by Dick Gammick, who served as Washoe County district attorney from 1994 to 2014.

I spent 30 years in law enforcement serving as a deputy district attorney, chief deputy district attorney, and, for 20 of those years, as the district attorney of Washoe County. In my time, I’ve worked with Democrats and Republicans to enforce the law and ensure our state remains safe. I’ve endorsed Democrats and Republicans for different positions because I’ve always valued individual aptitude over party alignment. I even endorsed Catherine Cortez Masto for attorney general in 2006 and supported her throughout her time as attorney general. As a county district attorney, I felt, at that time, that she was the right person for the job.

For Nevada’s 2022 Senate race, however, I’m endorsing Adam Laxalt.

From my experience in Nevada politics and law enforcement, I have reached the conclusion that Adam Laxalt will be a pivotal senator in both Nevada’s history and the history of our country. We need an experienced, energetic and committed leader in the Senate now more than ever. It’s not dramatic to say that the results of Nevada’s Senate election will determine the direction of our entire country.

I have no personal grudges or deep ideological opposition to the Democratic Party in the abstract, but it’s clear to me that in the last two years, the Democrats have dropped the ball, particularly within the realm of law enforcement, the field which I have the most experience in. 

Within the first two years of Biden’s presidency, we’ve seen the results of an effectively open border: illegal immigration is at historic highs; drug trafficking and human trafficking are on the rise. More than 4 million illegal immigrants have crossed our border since Biden took office. Earlier this month, Nevada police arrested a man carrying $3.6 million worth of fentanyl into Utah. On top of the border crisis, Cortez Masto’s voting record on confirming federal law enforcement officers has been beyond disappointing. She has voted to confirm far-left pro-BLM radicals like Vanita Gupta, who openly supported heeding the calls of BLM and defunding police departments, to federal positions. Anyone who has witnessed the rising violent crime in major American cities knows that the Democrats have failed us and that, sadly, Senators like Cortez Masto are unwilling to break with party leadership for the sake of their constituents. I supported Cortez Masto in the past, but in her time in the Senate, she has, disappointingly become a thoroughly partisan voter.

But I don’t support Adam just because he could flip the party line of the Senate, it’s not a mere Democrat-versus-Republican issue for me. I support Adam because he truly has what it takes to be a great senator for Nevada, and his record as attorney general proves it. 

As Nevada’s attorney general, Adam established the first-of-its-kind Office of Military Legal Assistance, which helped those serving in the military access free legal services, the bipartisan Prescription for Addiction initiative to fight opioid abuse, the Financial Fraud and Guardianship Abuse Unit to help protect elderly Nevadans from identity theft and scams, and regular law enforcement summits to help state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies work together to fight crime. Most importantly, he increased protections for victims of domestic violence, expanded resources for victims, and worked with law enforcement to process more than 8,000 rape kits from Nevada's backlog, which had left victims waiting for justice for years before action was taken. Processing these rape kits led to the conviction of serial rapists and murderers who had been on the loose for years before Adam took initiative as attorney general. During this time, I worked closely with Adam and I came to the conclusion that Adam is a very honest man.

In endorsing Adam for Senate, I’m standing with the vast majority of Nevada’s law enforcement community who also have endorsed Cortez Masto in the past and are now endorsing Adam instead. Laxalt is endorsed by 95% of law enforcement in Nevada, including the Nevada Fraternal Order of Police and the Public Safety Alliance of Nevada, which represents more than 10,000 law enforcement officers throughout more than 100 state and local organizations.

In conclusion, I’ve been able to see both Senator Cortez Masto and Adam Laxalt in office. Adam’s list of accomplishments and his platform, compared with Senator Cortez Masto’s disappointing record, make it clear to me that Adam Laxalt is the senator Nevada needs right now.

Dick Gammick served as Washoe County district attorney from 1994 to 2014.

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