Shelley Berkley

Nevada could have the country's youngest House delegation in 2010. Consider the following:

State Sen. Dina Titus (D-Henderson) appears to be in a good position to unseat U.S. Rep. Jon Porter (R-Henderson), and it's not outside the realm of possibility that Democratic challenger Jill Derby could defeat U.S. Rep. Dean Heller (R-Carson City).

If that happens and Democrats sweep all three House seats, it could set up an interesting situation in two years.

Whether or not Gov. Jim Gibbons (R-Sparks) runs for re-election in 2010 is irrelevant. If he runs, there will likely be a bruising primary, and if not there will be an open seat. Either way, it would be an enticing prize for Democrats -- and potentially for all three House Democrats --  considering the state's shifting demographics.

Titus could end up being a one-term representative. She has challenged Gibbons in the past and was expected to challenge him again in 2010 until she decided to pursue Porter's seat. And U.S. Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Las Vegas) insists she has no desire for statewide office, but then again, so does almost everyone who goes on to run for statewide office.

If all three House members run in the primary for the gubernatorial seat, then under this admittedly unlikely scenario, there could be three freshmen filling the state's House seats in 2010, and another in 2012 when the state picks up an additional seat after the census.

The Reno Gazette Journal is reporting that presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama will appear in Reno on Sunday.

Obama, the junior U.S. senator from Illinois, is scheduled to appear at a town hall meeting in front of a few hundred area residents with tickets to the event.

The appearance is Obama's first to northern Nevada since U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) conceded the nomination, the paper reports. Clinton appeared last weekend in Henderson on Obama's behalf.

A recent poll shows Obama trailing presumptive Republican nominee, U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) by a small margin in the Silver State.

U.S. Sen. John Ensign's decision to vote against a mortgage rescue bill during last Saturday's weekend session of Congress not only conflicted with a majority of the Senate, but nearly every major political figure in his home state.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Searchlight) and Reps. Shelly Berkley (D-Las Vegas), Dean Heller (R-Carson City) and Jon Porter (R-Henderson) all voted in favor of the bill. Even Republican Gov. Jim Gibbons hopes that the bill will help his home state, according to the Las Vegas Sun.

Tuesday marked the reporting deadline for second quarter campaign contributions, and the figures from Nevada's U.S. House races revealed some interesting developments.

Tuesday marked the reporting deadline for second quarter campaign contributions, and the figures from Nevada's U.S. House races revealed some interesting developments.

Democratic challengers Dina Titus in the 3rd District and Jill Derby in the 2nd District both outraised their Republican opponents, incumbent U.S. Reps. Jon Porter and Dean Heller. Porter and Heller both maintained significant cash-on-hand advantages, however.

Fundraising totals for all major candidates are below:

U.S. Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Las Vegas):

Second quarter — $228,626.38

Cash on hand — $1,144,917.54

U.S. Rep. Dean Heller (R-Carson City)

Second quarter — $224,232.52

Cash on hand — $984,007.25

Jill Derby (D-Gardnerville):

Second quarter — $293,393.39

Cash on hand — $353,058.80

U.S. Rep. Jon Porter (R-Henderson):

Second quarter — $418,802.39

Cash on hand — $1,277,180.88

State Sen. Dina Titus (D-Henderson):

Second quarter — $575,392.75

Cash on hand — $553,462.22

Las Vegas casino tycoon Sheldon Adelson and his right-leaning advocacy group Freedom's Watch could be key in financing Republican campaigns across the country, according toa story in the Wall Street Journal.

As PolitickerNV.com reported, Freedom's Watch targeted congressional candidate and state Sen. Dina Titus (D-Henderson) earlier this month with a series of robocalls highlighting her lack of action on Nevada's high gas prices. In June, the group aimed at Rep. Shelley Berkley with allegations that she doesn't back U.S. troops.

U.S. Rep. Jon PorterThe Las Vegas Sun ran a story in Sunday's paper detailing U.S. Rep. Jon Porter's (R-Henderson) efforts to create a government fund to promote U.S. tourism abroad.

The paper noted that Porter has led a spirited charge to marshall support for tourism since taking over as co-chair of the U.S. House Travel and Tourism caucus early last year.

A key source of economic activity in Porter's Las Vegas-area district, tourism has been sluggish in recent months thanks to the rising cost of gasoline and flagging attendance at area casinos.

Nevada's Congressional delegation presented a united front in a letter they sent to the U.S. Dept. of Energy Tuesday asking the DOE to recuse a contracted law firm with ties to nuclear utilities from working on projects related to the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste reserve.

U.S. Sens. Harry Reid (D-Searchlight) and John Ensign (R-Las Vegas), and U.S. Reps. Shelley Berkley (D-Las Vegas), Dean Heller (R-Carson City) and Jon Porter (R-Henderson) all signed the letter, the second the delegation sent to the DOE.

A bipartisan trio of U.S. Representatives from Nevada last week defeated a bill that would give two Native American tribes land in the suburbs of Detroit and Port Huron. Their reason for doing so, according to the Las Vegas Sun, was to protect the interests of the MGM Mirage corporation which has a hotel and casino outside of Detroit that it has spent over a billion dollars developing.

"The Nevada lawmakers' stunningly lopsided victory," Lisa Mascaro wrote in the Sun, showed "the far-flung efforts Nevada's representatives undertake on behalf of the home-state industry as gaming interests spread across the country."

LAS VEGAS -In this YouTube video, Republican 1st Congressional District candidate Chris Dyer attacks Nevada Republican Party Chairwoman Sue Lowden on the controversy surrounding the state Republican convention.

Dyer, a supporter of U.S. Rep. Ron Paul's (R-Tex.) defunct presidential campaign, believes he was elected a delegate to the Republican National Convention at the previous attempt at a state convention.  He will be attending a Jun. 28 event in Reno that some other Paul supporters and disaffected Republicans hope to use as a vehicle to seat their own slate of delegates to the national convention.

Dyer is one of seven Republicans who hope to unseat U.S. Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Las Vegas) in November.