Political Eye: No samples in marijuana dispensary tour

CARSON CITY

At a hearing Friday on a bill to establish dispensaries for medical marijuana in Nevada, state Sen. Ruben Kihuen, D-Las Vegas, made it official: He did not bring back any samples from a Senate Judiciary Committee trip to Arizona last week to view the operation of a dispensary in Phoenix.

Sen. Scott Hammond, R-Las Vegas, who took the tour as well, said he too could state that he returned to Nevada with no samples from the Arizona Organix medical marijuana dispensary.

“We’re not sure about Senator (Tick) Segerblom,” Kihuen said, getting a big laugh from those attending the hearing.

“As I’ve been quoted: ‘Best bud I’ve ever seen,’ ” Segerblom, D-Las Vegas, said, getting another laugh from the audience.

— Sean Whaley

TOWNS AND CITIES

Many Pahrump-area residents have called the Review-Journal Capital Bureau during the past week to complain that Pahrump was not rated among Nevada’s 10 largest cities in a March 21 story.

For the record, Pahrump has 36,593 residents, according to the state demographer, Jeff Hardcastle.

That population would place it between Carson City and Elko as the state’s seventh largest city — except Pahrump is an unincorporated part of Nye County, not an actual city.

If we counted unincorporated areas, Pahrump would not be even in the Top 10.

Whitney has a population of 38,910, more than Pahrump.

Sunrise Manor’s population is 190,570; Spring Valley, 184,910; Paradise, 184,745; and Enterprise, 162,872. They are unincorporated areas in Clark County, although their mail address is most often Las Vegas.

If these urban towns were included in Las Vegas, as visitors assume they must be, then Las Vegas’ population of 589,000 would be close to 1.5 million.

That would put its population between Philadelphia and Phoenix, and it would be the sixth largest city in the United States.

— Ed Vogel

MCCLOSKEY, 86, TALKS ANIMAL TRAPS

Former Rep. Pete McCloskey, R-Calif., made an unexpected appearance Thursday in the Nevada Legislature to testify for a bill that would require trappers to inspect their traps at least every 24 hours.

McCloskey, 86, who was in the U.S. House from 1967 to 1983, co-authored the Endangered Species Act. He spoke of the pain animals suffer when caught in a trap for extended periods of time.

He noted that he had served in combat in the Korean War 62 years ago and expressed his disappointment in two members of the U.S. Marines who more than a decade ago killed more than 20 wild horses in the mountains near Virginia City. They received short jail sentences.

“I might have shot them (the soldiers) myself,” McCloskey said.

McCloskey, who spoke only briefly, was one of dozens of people who complained the current 96-hour trap inspection requirement causes horrendous pain for animals.

He mentioned he served with U.S. Sen. Paul Laxalt, R-Nev., in Congress.

Some witnesses even said trapping should be prohibited on public lands and be allowed only on private property.

— Ed Vogel

Contact Capital Bureau Chief Ed Vogel at evogel@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3901. Contact Capital Bureau reporter Sean Whaley at swhaley@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3900.