It took thirty-four years before 80-year old Republican Senator Pete Domenici, admitted that as a 46 years old husband and father he fathered Adam Laxalt with 25-year old Michelle Laxalt, the daughter of a then-Senate colleague, Nevada Republican Paul Laxalt.
By keeping her secret, Ms. Laxalt, who never married, was able to work for Ronald Reagan, both George Bushes and held plum jobs at the State Department and Agency for International development (AID). She also built a lucrative practice representing corporations.
The relationship between Domenici and Ms. Laxalt would be a footnote in history if their son Adam had not decide to enter Nevada politics, and perform poorly as the states Attorney General. Now he wants to be Governor. Even 12 Laxalt family members oppose him. Here is why in their own words
According to Gabriel Urza, Kevin Nomura, Amy Nomura Solaro, Alexandra Urza, Kevan Danielle Laxalt, Michelle Terese Laxalt, Peter Laxalt, Michelle Janet Laxalt, Dr. Kevin Marie Laxalt, Dr. Kristin Laxalt, Monique Laxalt, and Meggan Laxalt Mackey, their family member Adam Laxalt is the wrong choice for Nevada governorship.
According to the Laxalt-12, “for those of us who were raised in Nevada, it’s difficult to hear him continue to falsely claim that he was raised in Nevada or has any true connections to Nevadans. The simple fact is that while he may have been born in Reno, he left as an infant and was raised on the East Coast, 3,000 miles away, in Washington, D.C., and moved here only in 2013, only one year later launching his political career. Aside from the occasional short visit, Adam never knew the state or its people. Perhaps if he had, he would stand for Nevada’s values rather than for those of his out-of-state donors.”
Consider the Adam Laxalt August 2017, Basque Fry Republican fundraiser. Attendees included Kellyanne Conway and Devin Nunes, with Laxalt dressed in jeans, a western shirt monogrammed with his campaign logo, his feet encased in “work” boots. Behind the stage was an orange tractor surrounded by hay bales.
The Laxalt-12 point out that Adam rallies against immigrants, the backbone on Nevada’s working force, thus denying his own immigrant family’s history.
His brief experience as a practicing lawyer was described as a “train wreck” by members of his own firm. His tenure in the attorney general’s office has been little more than a four-year publicity tour for his current campaign for governor. He even outsourced jobs in the AG’s office to out-of-state lawyers who were given special exemptions to practice law in Nevada.
According to the 12 family members, “Adam proceeded to undermine, time after time, not only twice-elected Governor Brian Sandoval but the welfare of all Nevadans. Most concerning is the ethical shortcomings that have come to light while Adam has been attorney general, and his willingness to ignore the law for self-serving political purposes. In his short time in public office, Adam has already demonstrated a servitude to donors and out-of-state interests that puts their concerns ahead of real Nevadans”.
The twelve family members argue that Laxalts shortcomings come down to a lack of real, authentic connection to our state, and a failure to understand what is important to real Nevadans.
Laxalt’s relatives point out that Nevada is a state driven by a modern economy and a diverse population, and we take deep pride in our rich, complicated history. Nevadans value their independence and their ability to share in the beauties of our wild state, while still respecting each other’s autonomy. “If Adam is elected governor, these values will be put in danger. Public lands will become less accessible for hunters and fishers and backpackers. Adam’s positions on health care and reproductive rights would limit how Nevadans care for their bodies or be free from government interference in relationships as sacred and personal as marriage. Adam wants to repeal hundreds of millions of dollars of education funding, even though he knows full well that Nevada is ranked 49th in the nation for pre-K-12 education”, the family says.
If Laxalt responds to this column at all, the twelve say, it will probably be to say that he hardly knows the people writing this column. “And in many ways that would be true. We never had a chance to get to know him, really — he spent his life in Washington, D.C., while we lived in Northern Nevada and grew up in public schools and on public lands. He moved to Nevada in 2013 so that he could lean on the reputation of a family that he hardly knew while tapping into support by donors who had no interest in our state or its people”, they say.