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Catherine Cortez Masto
From Ballotpedia
| Catherine Cortez Masto | ||
 | ||
| Nevada Attorney General | ||
| Incumbent | ||
| In office | ||
| 2006-Present | ||
| Term ends | ||
| 2014 | ||
| Years in position | 6 | |
| Party | Democratic | |
| Websites | ||
| Office website | ||
Contents |
Biography
Immediately upon graduating from law school, Masto joined the Nevada State Bar Association, a membership she has cultivated for nearly twenty years now. Her initial steps onto the Nevada political stage came when she received the position of Southern District Director for then-Governor Bob Miller. Three years later she was appointed Miller's Chief of Staff while simultaneously operating as an assistant to the United States Attorney General. Her employment in both of these roles ended in 2002. That same year, Masto began her work as Assistant County Manager for Clark County helping to improve child services and developing the Juvenile Detention Alternatives Initiative.
Education
- Bachelor's degree, University of Nevada-Reno (1986) in finance
- Juris Doctorate degree, Gonzaga University School of Law (1990)
Political Career
Attorney General (2006-present)
Political issues
Healthcare reform
Republican Governor Jim Gibbons, in a letter date the day after President Barack Obama signed into law the controversial health care overhaul bill, urged Catherine Cortez Masto to join other state attorneys general in filing suit against the federal legislation, arguing that "if there was ever an appropriate time for a governor of this State to request a suit be commenced on behalf of the State of Nevada, this is that time." Health and welfare officials statewide estimated that Medicaid requirement in the bill alone would cost Nevada an additional $613 million by the year 2019. In response, however, the Nevada Attorney General insinuated that she was unwilling to do so, stating that "if this office institutes litigation against the Federal Government, that lawsuit will have a solid basis in law and will be able to withstand the scrutiny of a federal court." [1]
About a week later, Masto came out staunchly against the idea of filing suit against the federal government, insisting that the "authority given to Congress is extensive and appears strong enough to support the act.” Gibbons, arguably upset with the state's top law enforcer's decision, said, in response, that he would consider his options on whether or not to move forward with the litigation on his own. [2]
Controversies
Audit
Masto was accused in December 2008 in the state audit released by the Nevada Legislature of "writing off as bad debts money owed to the state, something she had no authority to do." According to Nevada State Statutes, only the Board of Examiners has the authority to approve such actions. And while the Attorney General is a member of that board, she is only one of three and cannot make unilateral decisions concerning monetary matters on her own. No concrete figure was cited "because of the difficulty auditors had in tracking funds through various accounting systems and spreadsheets," but some have cited the number may have been in the thousands. [3]
Lt. Governor fundraiser
In late-November 2009, Masto came under fire for reportedly playing politics with her state governmental office. Her husband, Paul Masto, a special agent in the United States Secret Service, hosted "a $1,000 per person fundraiser for a Democrat candidate for Lt. Governor – just four days before the Attorney General was scheduled to begin prosecuting the sitting Lt. Governor for following the advice of the Attorney General’s office." Although she eventually cancelled the event, about a week later another invitation with the "same location and time, same invitation format and font, same colors, even the same photo and quote from" Robert Randozzo, Masto's choice for Lieutenant Governor. [4] The only differences were the date of the event and the quote from her husband, which was replaced with one from of the Attorney General's major donors.
Elections
2010
- See also: Nevada Attorney General election, 2010
- 2010 Race for Attorney General - Democratic Primary
- Catherine Cortez Masto ran unopposed in this contest
| 2010 Race for Attorney General - General Election [5] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Democratic Party |  a Catherine Cortez Masto
| 52.8% | |
| Republican Party | Travis Barrick | 35.7% | |
| American Independent Party | Joel F. Hansen | 7.8% | |
| None of these candidates | 3.7% | ||
| Total Votes | 704,332 | ||
2006
- 2006 Race for Attorney General - Democratic Primary
- Catherine Cortez Masto ran unopposed in this contest
| 2006 Race for Attorney General - General Election [6] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Democratic Party | a Catherine Cortez Masto
| 52.8% | |
| Republican Party | Don Chairez | 35.6% | |
| Write-In | 5.3% | ||
| Total Votes | 574,975 | ||
Campaign contributions
Ballotpedia collects information on campaign donors for each year in which a candidate or incumbent is running for election. The following table offers a breakdown of Catherine Cortez Masto's donors each year.[7] Click [show] for more information.
| Catherine Cortez Masto's Campaign Contributions | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 Attorney General of Nevada | 2010 Attorney General of Nevada | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total Raised | $1,653,972 | $654,848 | |||||||||||||||||
| Total Raised by General Election Opponent | $190,459 (Republican) | $23,030 (Republican) | |||||||||||||||||
| Top 5 contributors | MGM Mirage | $20,000 | Murphy Putnam Shorr | $14,300 | |||||||||||||||
| Wynn Las Vegas | $20,000 | Democratic Attorneys General Association | $10,000 | ||||||||||||||||
| Searchlight Leadership Fund | $10,000 | Hollybrook Regency Inc | $10,000 | ||||||||||||||||
| Timothy N Poster | $10,000 | R D Prabhu/Lata Shete MD LTD | $10,000 | ||||||||||||||||
| Bellagio | $10,000 | James S Chanos | $10,000 | ||||||||||||||||
| Individuals | $493,542 | $142,787 | |||||||||||||||||
| Institutions | $1,126,663 | $505,311 | |||||||||||||||||
| In-state donations | $1,412,076 | $469,973 | |||||||||||||||||
| Out-of-state donations | $241,822 | $184,850 | |||||||||||||||||
Contact Information
Capitol Address:
Office of the Attorney General
Carson City Office
100 North Carson Street
Carson City, NV 89701-4717
Phone: (775) 684-1100
Fax: (775) 684-1108
See also
- Attorney General of Nevada
- Governor of Nevada
- Lieutenant Governor of Nevada
- Nevada Secretary of State
External links
- Official Nevada Attorney General website
- Catherine Cortez Masto for Attorney General Campaign website
- Catherine Cortez Masto's Facebook profile
- Project Vote Smart - Catherine Cortez Masto biography
References
- ↑ Las Vegas Review-Journal "Nevada attorney general urged to fight health bill" 24 March, 2010
- ↑ Las Vegas Sun "AG won’t file health reform suit; Gibbons vows to stop ‘intrusion’" 1 April, 2010
- ↑ News Review "Cortez Masto audited" 25 Dec. 2008
- ↑ Desert Conservative "How Dumb Do They Think You Are?" 3 Dec. 2009
- ↑ Nevada Secretary of State - 2010 General Election Results
- ↑ Nevada Secretary of State Secretary of State - 2006 General Election Results
- ↑ Follow the Money.org
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by George Chanos | Nevada Attorney General 2006–present | Succeeded by NA |
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