A chance for Obama to help rather than hurt Nevadans

Let me be the first to welcome the president to the state of Nevada. I believe his visit will bring some much-needed positive attention to a state suffering severely from the downturn in the economy.

But I also believe he has some repair work to do while he is here.

In a recent address to a New Hampshire crowd, President Obama decided to once again single out Las Vegas, telling the audience that, “You don’t go buying a boat when you can barely pay your mortgage. You don’t blow a bunch of cash in Vegas when you’re trying to save for college.”

Presidential remarks carry great influence, and unfortunately, remarks similar to these from the president in the past have left their mark. But this week he has the unique opportunity to help the people of Nevada. He has an opportunity to make up for these comments and to see for himself the true spirit of hardworking Nevadans. He has the chance to talk directly to the people he has affected with these remarks, to see firsthand just how much this industry means to people who are trying to make a living here. This could be an excellent “teaching moment” for the president.

I strongly urge him to say publicly while he is here that Las Vegas is one of the best dollar-for-dollar value destinations for companies, families and federal agencies.

While his most recent remarks targeted the individual tourism market, last year the president targeted our convention industry by urging bailout recipient companies to refrain from organizing trips to Las Vegas. Due to those comments, companies, regardless of whether they accepted bailout funds, canceled meetings in Las Vegas and held them in more expensive locales. Furthermore, reports suggested that some of the federal agencies within his administration put in place policies to ban travel to Las Vegas.

I cannot overstate the devastating impact his remarks have had on the tourism industry in Las Vegas, traditionally a major source of economic growth for the region and the country.

The people of Las Vegas, like Americans all across our great nation, work hard to put food on their tables and keep roofs over their heads. At a time when Las Vegas is experiencing one of the highest unemployment and foreclosure rates in the nation, the president’s remarks have further jeopardized our economic well-being — and the damage needs to be repaired. Las Vegas remains among the most equipped and experienced vacation destinations worldwide, creating “economies of scale” that make the city a highly affordable option for tourists and corporations.

This should also make Las Vegas particularly attractive to federal agencies that are looking to save taxpayer dollars. In fact, the administration has stated that “the test of government travel is what will be accomplished by that travel and whether the cost to the government is reasonable as opposed to other options.” I wholeheartedly agree, and I am confident that Las Vegas can compete on cost and service with any other U.S. city.

I hope that the Obama administration will lead by example in showing that Las Vegas is open for business and that companies and individuals will receive great value for their hard-earned dollars. That would be a good start to creating as many jobs as he has destroyed.

John Ensign, a Republican, represents Nevada in the U.S. Senate.