Adelson vs. Berkley

It is nothing new to stretch the truth when running a campaign. However, Sheldon Adelson's right-wing group Freedom's Watch is running a robocall campaign against U.S. Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-NV) that is so far from the truth that it deserves a post of its own.

Freedom's Watch has a call that hits Berkley for not supporting the troops. The truth on this issue is that Berkley has proactive and steadfast in her support of Nevada's troops time after time. In addition to voting for every pay increase for troops and spearheading a new VA Hospital in North Las Vegas to serve Nevada's growing veterans population, Berkley has supported:

• The Family Medical Leave for Families of Soldiers Wounded in Combat, which would provide six months of unpaid, job-protected leave for families taking care of service members suffering from service-connected injury or illness.
• The 2008 Pay Raise for the Troops, giving all service members a 3.5 percent raise - 0.5 percent more than the President's budget - as well as special pay and bonuses to combat troops.
• The 2009 Pay Raise for the Troops, providing all service members with a pay raise of 3.9 percent, again 0.5 percent higher than the President's budget.
• The FY 2009 DOD Authorization, which took steps to expand suicide prevention in the Armed Forces and included extra provisions to expand quality housing for troops, increase family support programs, improve education for military children and pay a family separation allowance when both military parents are deployed at the same time.
• The Military Family Tax Relief, providing $1.3 billion in tax relief for military families to respond to economic hardships caused by deployments, plus permanent tax relief for service members receiving combat pay under the Earned Income Tax Credit.
• The Preserving the American Dream for Our Nation's Veterans bill, increasing VA Home Loan limits and helping returning soldiers avoid foreclosure by lengthening the time a lender must wait before starting foreclosure and protecting disabled veterans in bankruptcy.
• The 2009 Cost of Living Increase for Disabled Veterans.
• The Military Reservists and Veterans Small Business Reauthorization, which expands small business opportunities for veterans while strengthening relief for small businesses that employ National Guard or Reserve troops.

Adding to the bizarre nature of a campaign based on a complete lie is that it also seems to be a campaign based on a personal grudge. Absolutes are rarely true in politics, but this is one of those cases: Berkley will absolutely not lose this race. It will absolutely not be close. And none of her fringe GOP opponents will get within 20 points of her. So why the big expenditure of funds from Adelson's group?

I'm guessing here, but I doubt it is for the on-the-record reasons that Freedom's Watch gives, saying that this is a message that will make a difference in a district that is worth targeting. More likely is the reasoning that this is a billionaire with a grudge against his former employee and a lot of time to spend trying to make her job more difficult.

Berkley appears to be one of the only elected officials in Nevada who realizes how dire the physical and mental health challenges will be for our returning troops. David Cherry, her press guru, keeps us informed a couple of times a week as to her progress on troop issues and her tireless protection of our men and women in uniform. We read all of those releases and although we can not cover each individual story with a pro-Berkley soliloquy, we can set the record straight when someone like Freedom's Watch decides to lie in order for a billionaire to continue his personal grudge match against her.

Nevada troops are lucky to have Shelley Berkley defending them in Washington.