Nevada
Let them eat memes • Nevada Current
What do Donald Trump and Joe Lombardo have in common?
If you said they both gave speeches within one week of each other in which neither of them mentioned the price of eggs, you’re right.
But while both men demonstrate they have higher priorities than your grocery bill, they’re not entirely two (overpriced) peas in a pod.
“I was saved by God to make America great again,” Trump explained in his speech.
The only non-corporeal source of salvation Lombardo invoked was an imaginarily benevolent “Nevada Way.”
And that’s not the only difference between the president and the governor.
In his speech, Lombardo boasted of presenting “a budget that’s centered and balanced,” but followed that up by firing his budget director because the budget Lombardo had sent to state lawmakers was unconstitutionally unbalanced. And then Lombardo tried to let his chief of staff take all the blame. Classy!
Trump, by contrast, has been following up on his speech by carpet-bombing the nation with what he calls “executive orders,” even though a good deal of them aren’t so much specific orders as nebulous executive thoughtlets of things Trump thinks it would be nice for somebody to do someday if someone in the government Trump’s underlings are in the process of depopulating can figure out how to do them.
Trump’s executive “order” on lowering prices to consumers falls into that category.
Trump & eggs
“President Donald J. Trump Delivers Emergency Price Relief For American Families to Defeat the Cost-of-Living Crisis” reads the title of one of Trump’s “Presidential Actions” issued Monday.
Emergency price relief?
Cool.
How’s he going to do it?
Glad you asked.
“I hereby order the heads of all executive departments and agencies to deliver emergency price relief, consistent with applicable law, to the American people,” the order reads.
Okay, how are the department heads going to do it?
By “pursuing appropriate actions” to lower the costs of housing, health care, and appliances, and eliminating “harmful, coercive ‘climate’ policies that increase the costs of food and fuel,” the “order” reads.
The aforementioned heads are supposed to report their progress in 30 days. And then again 30 days after that. And then every 30 days until …consumer morale improves?
Two days later Trump issued another executive “order,” with the exact same title. It reiterates all the original’s vague nothings but has additional whining about Biden that somebody probably forgot to put in the first time.
Unless you want to count the iffy-at-best proposition that petroleum companies (or more to the point, their shareholders) want to heavily invest in new oil & gas production, the “emergency price relief” orders have no details for how to actually relieve prices. And even if you share Trump’s faith that there’s nothing drill baby drill can’t do, the “emergency” order is devoid of any measures that could be described as “emergency” actions.
Lombardo & eggs
Lombardo’s strategy for addressing consumer costs likewise flirts with nonexistence.
“We all know working families need to catch a break,” Lombardo said at one point in his address. In the same vein, a few sentences later he declared “prices are higher because of the compounding effects of inflation,” demonstrating what a great sleuth he must have been back when the former lawman was on the force.
The governor presented some housing and health care initiatives of questionable efficacy as if they might someday translate into savings for households. But that’s a stretch, to put it charitably.
The “break” that he can bestow on consumers, Lombardo added, is “the promise of not raising taxes on hard-working Nevada families.”
That’s the least he can do.
No, seriously, not raising taxes is literally the very least the governor, and the Democrats in the Legislature, can do, because doing that would be doing nothing at all, when in fact something should be done.
Nevada’s tax system is upside down — the less money you make, the larger percentage of it you pay in taxes. Turning the tax system right side up — and actually lowering the costs of many consumer goods in the process by cutting the sales tax rate — is not rocket science.
It’s politically hard though. So Nevada elected officials in both parties rarely even indicate an awareness of Nevada’s inflation-compounding tax system, let alone talk about it.
Crypto & eggs
After Trump proclaimed that he is God’s holy vessel on Earth, he (Trump, not God) signed an executive order directing the Department of Interior to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America. Later that day while heralding Trump as civilization’s savior, Elon Musk gave what he (Musk, not God) insists was absolutely positively not a Nazi salute.
What does all of that (and so much more) have in common with the policy agenda in Nevada?
If you said none of it will bring down the price of eggs, you’re right.
But while the executive branches in Washington and Carson City are both AWOL on consumer prices, there are of course many differences between the nation’s capital and the Reno exurb.
For instance, Nevada politics and policy in the next several months promise to fail to bring down the price of eggs while being rather dreary.
National politics and policy, by contrast, promises to fail to bring down the price of eggs by providing a plurality (though not a majority) of the U.S. electorate something it perhaps craves even more than lower prices: A freak show.
In an interview with Time magazine after the election Trump confessed that he might not be able to bring down prices because that’s hard, even though on the campaign trail he suggested it would be easy peasy because he’s TRUMP!
But for Nevada families who, as Lombardo put it, “need to catch a break,” maybe there is a silver lining.
A couple days before his inauguration Trump rolled out a crypto meme coin, along with artwork depicting an image of Trump that is uncannily realistic if Trump was only 40 years younger and had Ryan Gosling’s body. The meme coin’s website warns it is not an investment opportunity “of any type,” but that’s just a thing Trump’s lawyers put on there so if you lose all your money it’s not Trump’s fault, which seems silly because nothing has been or ever can be Trump’s fault (there’s probably an executive order that says that, but if not there’s a definitely a Supreme Court ruling that does).
So perhaps this is really Trump’s plan, as well as the break Lombardo says Nevadans need to catch: Working families will get rich trading Trump’s crypto coins and never have to worry about the price of eggs again.
NEVADA (KOLO) – Three more Nevada counties have been included in a disaster declaration over drought conditions.
Elko, Lincoln, and White Pine Counties have now been added to the list of counties in the state of Nevada the USDA says are experiencing extreme drought.
Their inclusion in the list allows the Farm Service Agency to extend emergency credit to producers through emergency loans.
The loans can be used to replace essential items, reorganize farming operations and more.
The deadline to apply for such credit is Dec. 10.
Extreme drought has previously been declared in Clark, Esmeralda and Nye Counties in Nevada as well as for Mono County and Inyo County in California.
Copyright 2026 KOLO. All rights reserved.
After getting shut out by Liberty on Tuesday, the Desert Oasis baseball team bounced back with an 11-4 victory Wednesday over the visiting Patriots.
With the win in the regular-season finale, the Diamondbacks secured the Desert League’s No. 2 seed in the 5A Southern Region playoffs, which start next week.
“All year, they’ve responded after we’ve lost games,” Desert Oasis coach Paul Buboltz said. “This is an experienced group of guys that are hungry, and they knew what was at stake today.”
The Diamondbacks (21-9-1, 6-4 Desert) didn’t waste any time getting on the scoreboard Wednesday. After Liberty (15-16, 5-5 Desert) jumped to a 1-0 lead in the first inning, Desert Oasis came out swinging.
Senior third baseman Brody Griffith got it started by driving home sophomore second baseman Jayson Marquez to tie the game. Then junior left fielder Ryan Roshak launched a fastball over the wall in right-center for a three-run homer, giving the Diamondbacks a lead they didn’t relinquish.
“That early momentum meant everything for the team,” Roshak said. “It takes a lot of pressure off the guys.”
The Desert Oasis bats made life easier for senior pitcher Crue Smith. After getting into early trouble, Smith kept a potent Patriots lineup at bay for most of the afternoon. The right-hander yielded four runs — one earned — on five hits and two walks while striking out three in 5⅓ innings.
“I think this win will boost our confidence and give us more motivation going into the playoffs,” Smith said.
The Diamondbacks continued to tack on early runs — three in the second inning, off a bases-loaded walk to senior center fielder Aidan Smith and two more on a single from senior designated hitter Ashton Kidd — to go up 7-1.
Liberty crept back into the game, thanks to solid relief pitching from senior Cayden Rodgers-Ramirez. The Patriots added two runs in the sixth, off RBI singles from Rodgers-Ramirez and senior Austin Pepe, to get within 8-4. But the Diamondbacks answered with three runs in the bottom of the inning.
Marquez went 2-for-4, driving in a run and scoring twice. Desert Oasis batters drew seven walks, including two each by senior catcher Landon O’Dell and freshman right fielder Sebastian Mansell.
Junior center fielder Nevan Chandler led Liberty’s offense, going 3-for-4 with two RBIs.
Nevada’s List of Excluded Persons — the notorious “Black Book” filled with names of people forever banned from the state’s big casinos — is expected to change over the next few months as the Nevada Gaming Commission on Thursday will consider the addition of the 39th person to be listed and a petition from a person already listed to be removed.
The five-member commission will consider the inclusion of San Juan Capistrano, California, resident Mathew Raymond Bowyer, who pleaded guilty to federal charges of running an illegal gambling business, money laundering and filing a false tax return. He took sports bets from an estimated 700 gamblers, including Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter and de facto agent for Los Angeles Dodgers baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani.
Thursday’s commission meeting begins at 9 a.m., an hour earlier than when the panel normally gathers. The meeting is in Las Vegas and is livestreamed on the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s YouTube channel.
Bowyer served about five months of a one-year, one-day sentence that began in October. He was released from a federal prison in Lompoc, California, to a halfway house in March and will be on supervised probation for two years.
Won’t fight inclusion
In a February telephone interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Bowyer indicated he does not expect to fight inclusion to the list, citing the expense of hiring an attorney to represent him. As of Tuesday, there was no indication from Gaming Control Board representatives that Bowyer would attend the hearing, although he has been notified of it.
But in his interview with the Review-Journal, Bowyer expressed his disdain for being considered for inclusion in the book, which lists the worst of the worst criminals that regulators say should be banned from Nevada casinos for committing crimes that hurt the gaming industry and could bring a bad reputation to the state.
“I think it’s absolutely ridiculous that they are telling me I can’t set foot in a licensed gaming property in the state of Nevada,” Bowyer said in the interview. “I mean, I understand that they don’t want me to be able to gamble again, but to tell me I can’t take my 4-year-old boy to Circus Circus or go have dinner at Javier’s at Aria to me is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of.”
Fall guy
Bowyer said he believes he is “the fall guy for everything and everybody in this situation.”
He said the day before the RJ interview that he was visited by two Control Board agents who notified him of his nomination to the list and explained his options for fighting inclusion. But he doubts he’ll fight it because he said he can’t afford the legal representation needed to make his case before the commission.
In the wake of Bowyer’s case, three casino companies have been disciplined by the Gaming Commission and fined.
Bowyer’s name has come up in three previous disciplinary actions taken in 2025 involving fines of $10.5 million assessed to Resorts World Las Vegas and its parent company, Genting Berhad, in March; an $8.5 million fine against MGM Resorts International in April; and a $7.8 million fine against Caesars Entertainment Inc. in November.
Those actions involved the second-, fourth- and fifth-highest fines ever assessed in a gaming disciplinary matter.
Nicole Bowyer
There’s still unfinished business before the Gaming Commission for Bowyer’s wife, Nicole Bowyer.
More than a year ago, on Jan. 30, 2025, the Gaming Commission delayed action on a complaint against Nicole Bowyer, who worked as an independent agent for Resorts World Las Vegas.
Nicole Bowyer faced at least a five-year ban as an agent who encourages a gambler to play at a specific casino and is paid a commission from the casino based on the player’s losses.
Commissioners put off a decision on a stipulation for settlement with her because they wanted to see her hit with stiffer penalties. Commissioners separately said they wanted to see Nicole Bowyer fined or possibly have her agent status revoked for life.
Mathew Bowyer alleges that Resorts World never trained his wife about money-laundering compliance, saying casino operators “never did one ounce of AML (anti-money-laundering) training.”
“That was something that was supposed to be done,” he said. “I found out later because I knew nothing about being a casino host and nor did my wife because they were so hungry for our business. They clearly were OK with that. But the fact that they did zero training. I feel like it’s just completely, you know, unfair would be the best word I could use.”
Since Resorts World was fined, Genting has made several moves to bolster AML compliance, including applying for and receiving licensing for two board members, former Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval and former Gaming Control Board Chairman A.G. Burnett.
If approved for inclusion on the list, Bowyer would become its 39th member, after commissioners unanimously approved the inclusion of Newport Coast, California, resident Wayne Nix as No. 38 in February.
Nix, a former minor league baseball pitcher, is an illegal bookmaker whose casino play at MGM Grand, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas and other MGM Resort properties led to former MGM Grand President Scott Sibella pleading guilty to failing to report to federal officers about illegal gamblers playing at the casino when he worked there in 2018.
Prospective removal
While Bowyer’s inclusion would add to the list, commissioners also will consider the unprecedented removal of a living person from it.
Scheduled right before the Bowyer hearing is discussion of a petition for the removal of Francis Citro Jr., 80, whose attorney asked in November for a hearing on the matter.
A popular entertainer at Las Vegas’ Italian American Club, Citro is hoping his removal from the list would enable him to perform his collection of bebop music, Italian folk songs, jokes and stories about Las Vegas’ mob past in a casino lounge setting some day.
Las Vegas attorney Michael Lasher submitted the 10-page request to be removed from the list in November saying Citro has changed his life since he was placed on the list Nov. 21, 1991.
In a hearing in January, Lasher said, “In the decades that have passed, petitioner’s character and reputation have become stellar. He is a reformed man, doing good for his community by charity fundraising as an entertainer.”
In January, commissioners opted to delay a hearing by a month and then Citro asked for a further delay until April in order to prepare his case.
No decision Thursday
At Thursday’s hearing, commissioners aren’t expected to render a decision on removal, but to decide whether to schedule a comprehensive hearing on Citro’s request. If commissioners vote against it, the matter would be considered resolved and Citro would remain on the list. If a hearing is set, Citro could bring witnesses to testify to his character before a decision on removal is considered.
If successful, Citro would be the first living person ever removed from the list.
The Gaming Commission routinely peruses the list to remove people who have died over the years. Currently, there are at least two people on the list who have died in recent years.
Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on X.
TOP FINES
Here’s a list of the top 10 fines imposed by the Nevada Gaming Commission for disciplinary action against casinos.
1. Wynn Resorts Ltd., $20 million, 2019.
2. Resorts World Las Vegas, $10.5 million, 2025
3. Steve Wynn, $10 million, 2023.
4. MGM Resorts International, $8.5 million, 2025
5. Caesars Entertainment, $7.8 million, 2025
T6. CG Technology (then known as Cantor G&W Holdings), $5.5 million, 2014.
T6. Wynn Resorts Ltd., $5.5 million, 2025.
8. The Mirage, $5 million ($3 million fine, $2 million compensatory payment), 2003.
9. Stardust, $3 million, 1985.
10. Santa Fe Station, $2.2 million ($1.5 million fine, $700,000 compensatory payment), 2005.
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