On Monday, state Sen. John Lee unloaded on his fellow Democrat, Assembly Speaker John Oceguera, for allegedly trying to soak up all the pro-gun credit in the legislative building. Lee sent a letter to Oceguera complaining that the speaker had consolidated the language of at least four bills on firearms into a single, omnibus bill, under Oceguera’s primary sponsorship.
“I am compelled to ask you your reasoning for plagiarizing other legislators [sic] work and sweeping their bills into your omnibus bill?” Lee wrote. “I hope that in your zest for self-promotion and aggrandizement in trying to receive a coveted A+ rating from the National Rifle Association that you haven’t jeopardized the ability to pass sensible and much needed legislation concerning the gun rights of Nevadans.”
(You can read Lee’s letter in its entirety here: JohnLee-gunletter.)
Now, Lee is angry at more than Oceguera’s “plagiarism” of his fellow lawmakers; he’s angry that Oceguera will get credit for the legislation and use that in a potential campaign for Congress. That especially frustrates Lee because Lee himself may want to run for Congress, and NRA backing never hurts with gun-loving Nevada voters. But, honestly, if Lee ends up in a Democratic congressional primary with Oceguera, getting credit for gun bills will probably be the very least of the senator’s worries.
Anyway, Oceugera responded to Lee’s letter with a missive of his own, reminding Lee that Oceguera has always been endorsed by the NRA, even when he ran against a gun-shop owner in 2010. And there’s no missing the head-patting patronage in this delightfully dismissive paragraph:
“By the tone of your letter, I can tell you are very angry about the legislation I am sponsoring which protects the rights of gun owners all across the state. I do wish I had known about your anger, so we could have talked about it in person. … I’m sorry you felt like you could not take advantage of [my accessibility]. Next time, just give me a call, shoot me an email, or stop by and see me and we can arrange a meeting.”
(You can read Oceguera’s letter in full here: Oceguera-LettertoLee.)
Oh, and by the way: Almost all of the authors of the original bills are co-sponsors of Oceguera’s omnibus bill, AB 282.
But that wasn’t the end of it. Lee actually went so far as to return Oceguera’s letter unopened with a handwritten message saying he wouldn’t continue the debate, because “…we both have too much to do and be responsible for.”
No, seriously, he did. Look:
Well, if Lee has so many more important things to do and be responsible for, why did he bother to write to Oceguera in the first place? And, having opened the door by not only calling out a fellow high-profile Democrat and releasing his letter to the media for maximum political impact, how does Lee then justify ignoring Oceguera’s reply? If Lee’s going to play in the big leagues, he can’t just take his ball and go home when the game doesn’t go his way. That makes him look petulant, childish and not at all congressional. Um, I mean, state senatorial.
Tags: John Lee, John Oceguera
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really it sounds as if Sen. John Lee was just trying to drop it instead of continue with useless argument. just so it’s clear i support Sen. John Lee