So who is this guy, in the messy crazy person's office, keeping large ancient vases within reach of his laboriously carved Oaken Throne. Well he's the mayor of Las Vegas, that's who. Mayor Goodman. Mayor Goodman, along with Harry Reid, along with other Nevadan legislators, along with Republicans aiming to score points, is furious that Barack Obama said this at yesterday's Dick Swett town hall: "When times are tough, you tighten your belts. You don't go buying a boat when you can barely pay your mortgage. You don't blow a bunch of cash on Vegas when you're trying to save for college." Why was he being so racist and Making Fun of Trig about Las Vegas?

Last year Obama made similar comparisons, but with little ruckus. This time around lawmakers were peeved and showed it. Several Republicans were quick to score some predictable points. But even fellow Democrat, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, jumped on the bandwagon. "The President needs to lay off Las Vegas and stop making it the poster child for where people shouldn't be spending their money," Reid told local Channel 8, a CBS affiliate. "Las Vegas is suffering through one of the highest unemployment rates in the country and we cannot afford for the president to bring us down any further."

Harry Reid is grasping for anything in his re-election campaign so whatever. Local officials are just doing their jobs defending their city whenever they get the chance, because it's absolutely one of the worst-affected economies of the Great DepRecession, so whatever. (Still, this is what happens to gambling economies during recessions! Sorry!)

But we truly would love to hear what the national Republicans were saying in their stupid stupid stupid political point bullshit of the hour. Remember their ONE SINGLE TALKING POINT EVER during the stimulus debate last year? About something that actually would have tangibly helped the Las Vegas economy?

It is the Republican talking point that won’t die, even though it has little if any basis in reality: what they claim is an earmark in the federal stimulus package for a high-speed train from Disneyland to Las Vegas.

[...]

Oh, and the money was requested by the White House, not by Mr. Reid, people close to the negotiations said.

But that has not prevented Republicans from hammering away at the project for days. Some have even called it a "Sin Express."

But who wants to google for individual Republican leadership names regarding yesterday's comment? No one. Let's just assume "John McCain" and criticize him for hypocrisy, because why not.

Anyway, Obama was forced to be gay for Harry Reid, in a letter:

Dear Harry:

I hope you know that during my Town Hall today, I wasn’t saying anything negative about Las Vegas. I was making the simple point that families use vacation dollars, not college tuition money, to have fun. There is no place better to have fun than Vegas, one of our country’s great destinations. I have always enjoyed my visits, look forward to visiting in a few weeks, and hope folks will visit in record numbers this year.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama

Summary: there's seriously a controversy right now about the president trashing the good name of Las Vegas, Nevada, in a single independent clause.

President Obama (kind of) apologizes for Las Vegas remark [Dscriber]