Amber Phillips

Story Archive

Reid to undergo surgery to restore vision in injured eye
Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2015
U.S. Sen. Harry Reid will undergo surgery Monday to help restore full vision in his right eye, which he injured earlier this month while exercising, according to his office. Reid found out after ...
Nevada delegation’s response: 2 thumbs up, 2 thumbs down and a couple of shrugs
Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2015
President Barack Obama laid out an ambitious vision for the country for his last two years in office, and Nevada's lawmakers were split down party lines about whether that's a good thing ...
What Obama said in his State of the Union address that affects Nevadans
Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2015
President Barack Obama proposed a bevy of ideas in his second-to-last State of the Union address on Tuesday, some of which don't require the approval of the Republican-dominated Congress. Here's what Obama proposed that could immediately affect Nevadans ...
Sen. Harry Reid returns to Capitol after exercise injury
Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2015
Sen. Harry Reid returned to work today on Capitol Hill, 20 days after an exercise injury in which he broke bones and at least temporarily lost vision in his right eye. The Nevada Democrat and Senate minority leader ...
What if Nevada’s members of Congress wrote the State of the Union?
Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2015
Nevada's six congressional lawmakers will be listening closely to what the president says in his second-to-last State of the Union address — and they'll be sure to give their opinions afterward. But what if Nevada's representatives in Congress had a chance to ...
Four steps to being granted federal money
Sunday, Jan. 18, 2015
Without earmarks for legislators to bring home the bacon, the process for getting funding is longer, more complex ...
Washington memo: Immigration, sage grouse get attention of Nevada delegation on Capitol Hill
Friday, Jan. 16, 2015
Congress' second week of the year had a slightly more contentious tone than its first. Here's a recap on what happened with Sen. Reid's exercise accident, Sen. Heller's flurry of bills, and Rep. Dina Titus, a Democrat, standing alone among ...
Nevada Republicans straddle the line on Obama’s immigration action
Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015
Nevada’s three House Republicans bucked most of their party today and voted to keep the president’s 2012 immigration action in place, then voted to stop Obama from ...
What does terrorism insurance program mean for Las Vegas? Quite a lot
Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2015
In its first week back, there was one thing virtually all of Congress could agree on: Las Vegas casinos and other large commercial businesses should be protected financially from a major terrorist attack. A bill to restart a federal program helping to do just that passed the new Republican Congress last week and was signed into law by President Barack Obama on Tuesday. The legislation renews a 2002 federal program that ...
Welcome to Washington, Cresent Hardy
Sunday, Jan. 11, 2015
For a new Congressman, there is plenty to do in the first few weeks on the job. There are two offices in two states to set up, a staff to hire, ethics rules to learn and underground tunnels to find ...
Reid says he has temporarily lost vision in right eye
Friday, Jan. 9, 2015
U.S. Sen. Harry Reid has temporarily lost vision in his right eye and is under doctor’s orders to stay home after a New Year’s Day exercise accident in which he broke several ribs and bones in his face. In an interview ...
Washington memo: Cresent Hardy gets feet wet, while Harry Reid rests his eye
Friday, Jan. 9, 2015
The first week of Congress is a little bit like the first week of school: Nervous excitement, getting lost in the hallways and a pause before the real work begins ...
Sen. Harry Reid working from home after accident
Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015
Sen. Harry Reid will miss the first day of the 114th Congress after breaking several ribs and bones in his face and suffering a concussion in a fall while exercising over the holidays. He’ll work from his home in Washington, D.C., according to a statement his staff sent 30 minutes before the new Congress was ...
What’s ahead on the Hill: A look at issues Congress will tackle this year
Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015
As a new Congress convenes today, Sen. Harry Reid finds himself in the Senate minority for the first time in eight years. His actions over the next few weeks could set the tone for the next ...
Sen. Harry Reid out of hospital after exercise accident at home
Friday, Jan. 2, 2015
Sen. Harry Reid was released from a Las Vegas hospital today after he broke "a number of ribs and bones in his face," according to statements from his office. The Nevada Democrat ...
Eight years later: Harry Reid’s highs and lows as Senate majority leader
Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2014
To understand the pinnacle of Sen. Harry Reid's career, let's go back nine years, to Election Day 2006. Senate Democrats were on the verge of taking control of the Senate for the first time since 2001. Reid, their leader, watched election results anxiously with close aides and fellow senators from a suite in the Capitol Hill Hyatt. When one of their most endangered candidates, Claire McCaskill, won a hard-fought race in Missouri, Reid jumped ...
Congressional session is finally over: So what was in it for Nevada?
Thursday, Dec. 18, 2014
Tax breaks and lands bills got the OK and Yucca Mountain got another stiff-arm during the lame-duck session of Congress, but Nevada lawmakers didn't get everything ...
Nevada politicians, advocate react to shift in Cuba policy
Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014
Nevada’s reaction to President Obama’s announcement on re-establishing diplomatic relations with Cuba has been mixed. Some expressed concern over Obama’s efforts to weaken the country’s embargo against Cuba, while others ...
Heller says Ted Cruz shows ‘disrespect’ for Senate colleagues
Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2014
Count Nevada Sen. Dean Heller among Senate Republicans frustrated at the antics of colleague Ted Cruz, who kept the Senate open Saturday and allowed Sen. Harry Reid to ...
Why Nevada has become a leader in immigration reform
Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014
When President Barack Obama gave Astrid Silva a shout-out last month, he did more than put a face on his new immigration plan. He helped thrust Silva, and her home state of Nevada, into ...
Jobs and growth: Why lands bills could mean plenty for Las Vegans
Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2014
New employers and an infusion of economic activity are among the gains that Las Vegas could see from several lands bills in Congress. But if conservative Republicans have their way ...
Titus: In steering lands bills through Congress, Reid pulled a miracle
Friday, Dec. 5, 2014
In orchestrating a surprise deal involving a collection of Nevada lands bills, Sen. Harry Reid proved once again that ...
Nevada miners get cheeky in urging Congress to pass land bill
Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2014
To call attention to political causes, Americans have done everything from dumping tea in Boston Harbor to occupying Wall Street. Now, a group of miners in Yerington is taking its own approach by shaving half of ...
Heller: ‘Votes just aren’t there’ to extend jobless benefits
Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2014
As Congress tries to wrap two years of work into about two weeks, extending unemployment benefits for long-term unemployed Americans won’t be on lawmakers’ to-do list.
A majority of lawmakers don’t feel the need to ...
Is Harry Reid running again? Look to his birthday present for clues
Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2014
For those wondering whether Sen. Harry Reid would seek re-election in 2016, a birthday message from his wife, Landra, to his supporters offers ...
Why Senate Republicans may end up embracing Harry Reid procedural rule
Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2014
With the White House needing Senate approval to fill a host of federal posts, Republicans are wondering whether to adopt a rule used by their nemesis they vilified as ...
Video: ‘Saturday Night Live’s’ take on how laws are made
Monday, Nov. 24, 2014
Remember Schoolhouse Rock? We wrote in July that the cartoon doesn't quite depict how a bill becomes a law. It can take years for ...
Blog: President Obama’s landmark immigration speech in Las Vegas
Friday, Nov. 21, 2014
Astrid Silva, Las Vegas' now famous immigration activist, introduces President Barack Obama. "This announcement will change so many lives, including my own," Silva says.
Why Obama’s speech may be unofficial launch of Reid’s re-election campaign
Friday, Nov. 21, 2014
When President Barack Obama stands on the stage at a Las Vegas high school today and rallies support for his immigration policies, Sen. Harry Reid will be right by the president's side. And he wants to make sure you ...
Newly elected Cresent Hardy on his Tea Party conservatism, pragmatic libertarianism
Thursday, Nov. 20, 2014
Seated in the posh lobby of the Capitol Hill Hotel just blocks away from the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, Cresent Hardy was tired, but excited. Nevada's newest member of Congress was in the middle of a whirlwind seven days of orientation ...
Obama coming to Las Vegas to discuss immigration reform
Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2014
President Barack Obama is coming to Las Vegas on Friday to shore up support for action he's taking without Congress to reform the nation's immigration system. The White House confirmed ...
Erin Bilbray’s once promising congressional campaign collapsed without clear strategy
Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2014
Even before Erin Bilbray announced her campaign for Congress in July 2013, Washington Democrats rolled out the red carpet for her. The talented, connected and telegenic Nevada Democrat captured ...
Don’t count out another Horsford run for Congress
Monday, Nov. 17, 2014
Rep. Steven Horsford isn’t ruling out a comeback. In one of Nevada’s biggest political upsets this November, the first-term Democrat lost the congressional seat to represent North Las Vegas and central Nevada to ...
Harry Reid elected to lead Senate Democrats in minority in 2015
Thursday, Nov. 13, 2014
When Republicans take the helm of the Senate in January, Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada will lead Democrats' strategy in the minority party. Reid was elected by his colleagues Thursday to stay on as leader of Senate Democrats for the next two years. He was approved by secret ballot in a nearly four-hour meeting where senators had a constructive discussion about what ...
Heller loses out in bid for GOP leadership post
Thursday, Nov. 13, 2014
Sen. Dean Heller failed in his ambitious bid to lead the Republican Senate’s 2016 campaign strategy. Heller’s Republican colleagues voted by secret ballot today on ...
Will Harry Reid still be Senate Democrats’ leader?
Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2014
He's only Senate majority leader for two more months. Thursday, Sen. Harry Reid will know if his Democratic colleagues will keep him as minority leader when the new Congress starts in January. Reid must hand over control ...
Harry Reid promises to work in ‘good faith’ with new Republican majority
Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2014
In his first public speech since the Nov. 4 election that swept Republicans into power across the country, Sen. Harry Reid promised to work with the new U.S. Senate majority. "Senate Democrats are ready to work in good faith ...
Five things on Harry Reid’s to-do list before Republicans take over Congress
Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2014
Starting today, Sen. Harry Reid has about six weeks left to run the U.S. Senate. And he's got a long to-do list before he hands over power to ...
What Nevada’s newest congressman has to say on Yucca Mountain, immigration and why he won
Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014
His win was arguably the biggest upset in Nevada's midterm elections. Despite being underfunded, understaffed and counted out, Republican Cresent Hardy ousted Democratic Rep. Steven Horsford to ...
What Republicans’ big win means for Harry Reid’s fight against Yucca Mountain
Friday, Nov. 7, 2014
Sen. Harry Reid is undeniably the nation's staunchest opponent of bringing the nation's nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain. But Republicans' overwhelming sweep in Tuesday's elections ...
Reid spokesman: ‘We got our butts kicked up and down the block’
Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2014
In a night that saw Republican victories across the nation and in Nevada, Sen. Harry Reid's spokesman, Adam Jentleson, had a candid moment on Twitter ...
What you need to know this morning about Harry Reid, Democrats losing the Senate
Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2014
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid lost his title Tuesday night in a Republican sweep that ousted Democrats from power in the U.S. Senate. The Republican wave that gave the party ...
Cresent Hardy closes out surprising win over Rep. Steven Horsford
Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014
With a win that was unthinkable a month ago, Republican Assemblyman Cresent Hardy ousted Democratic Rep. Steven Horsford to represent North Las Vegas and central Nevada in the U.S. House of Representatives. Horsford conceded ...
Harry Reid, Democrats lose control of the U.S. Senate
Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014
Nevada's Sen. Harry Reid has lost his majority leadership position after a Republican wave swept the country and knocked Democrats out of power in the U.S. Senate today. Republicans won Senate races in ...
Republicans have edge, but don’t count Harry Reid out
Monday, Nov. 3, 2014
Polls open across the country in less than 24 hours. In about 48 hours, it's possible Nevada Sen. Harry Reid will know if he still runs the Senate. The campaign to control the Senate is the defining storyline of American politics in Tuesday's midterm election, and Reid is ...
Challenger running Horsford ad featuring Obama in rural Nevada
Friday, Oct. 31, 2014
Rep. Steven Horsford is getting free help sharing one of his newest political ads — from Republican challenger Cresent Hardy. In an attempt to rally North Las Vegas Democrats ...
On the national stage, Dean Heller quietly steps out of Harry Reid’s shadow
Friday, Oct. 31, 2014
Standing on the royal blue carpet of the U.S. Senate chamber in cowboy boots, Republican Sen. Dean Heller looks every bit the Washington power broker as he swaps jokes and slaps backs with the most influential people in the city. Across the chamber, in a scene that plays out daily, Nevada's senior Sen. Harry Reid hunches ...
Rep. Steven Horsford, once a sure bet, fights for his political life
Friday, Oct. 31, 2014
As recently as two weeks ago, Democratic Rep. Steven Horsford appeared on his way to an easy victory in his first re-election bid to represent North Las Vegas and central Nevada in Congress. Now he's in the fight of his political ...
Vice President Joe Biden coming to Las Vegas to rally voters
Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2014
Underscoring the trouble Nevada Democrats are in this election cycle, Vice President Joe Biden will be in Las Vegas on Saturday to try to get Democrats to the polls. Biden will attend ...
Sen. Harry Reid’s daughter seriously ill, undergoing surgery
Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2014
U.S. Sen. Harry Reid’s daughter is seriously ill, and the Senate majority leader returned to Washington, D.C., from Nevada over the weekend to be with her as she prepared to ...