Paul Laxalt
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Paul Laxalt | |
---|---|
Cameron McVicar Batjer | |
Personal details | |
Born | Paul Dominique Laxalt August 2, 1922 Reno, Nevada, U.S. |
Died | August 6, 2018 McLean, Virginia, U.S. | (aged 96)
Resting place | Arlington National Cemetery |
Political party | Republican |
Spouses | Jackalyn Ross
(m. 1946; div. 1972)Carol Laxalt (m. 1975) |
Children | 6 |
Relatives | Robert Laxalt (brother) Adam Laxalt (grandson) |
Education | Santa Clara University (BA) University of Denver (LLB) |
Military service | |
Branch/service | United States Army |
Years of service | 1943–1946 |
Battles/wars | World War II • Battle of Leyte |
Paul Dominique Laxalt (
Early life, education, and early career
Laxalt was born on August 2, 1922, in
Therese and Dominique had six children: Paul, Robert (born in 1923), Suzanne (1925), John (1926), Marie (1928) and Peter (1931). Robert became an author; Suzanne, a Roman Catholic nun; John, a lawyer and political consultant; Marie, a school teacher; and Peter (Mick), an attorney.[citation needed] The Laxalt children were raised largely by their mother, as Dominique spent long periods of time away from the household tending his sheep in the deserts and mountains of Nevada. The children all helped Therese at The French Hotel.[citation needed]
Paul played on the 1938 state basketball champion team at Carson High School[3] before graduating and attending Santa Clara University. When World War II broke out, Paul joined the U.S. Army and served as a medic, seeing action in the Battle of Leyte in the Philippines. After the war, he graduated from the Sturm College of Law.[4]
Early career
After graduating from law school and after serving as a district attorney, Laxalt enjoyed a successful career as a lawyer. His clients included George Whittell, who owned a large portion of the
Political career
Paul Laxalt's first attempt for public office was in 1950 when he ran for
1964 U.S. Senate run
In
Republican candidates, running concurrently with the 1964 federal election, were undermined by the unpopularity of Sen. Barry Goldwater from Arizona, the Republican nominee for President against incumbent Lyndon B. Johnson, and the leader of their political ticket. Not long before election day, Goldwater scheduled a visit to Las Vegas. Laxalt's advisors told him he should "duck" Goldwater, as they feared any association with Goldwater would spell trouble. Laxalt, who often described Goldwater as his "political Godfather", reportedly told his aides, "Listen, Barry Goldwater is my friend. If I snubbed him now, I could never look him in the face again. I would rather lose." The Laxalt-Goldwater meeting on the tarmac was splashed on the front pages of local newspapers. (Goldwater lost Nevada by 28,000 votes.) Still, the Laxalt-Cannon race remained far closer than expected. As he watched the returns come in from his home in Carson City, Laxalt was stunned when one of the television networks actually declared him the winner. The next morning he flew to Las Vegas where he was told that certain precincts reported late and that Cannon had won by 48 votes, among the narrowest margins in a popular election for the U.S. Senate. The race was the subject of intense controversy for years.[citation needed]
Governor
Laxalt then decided to challenge two-term Governor
Laxalt's tenure as governor was noteworthy for coinciding with the purchase of several hotel-casinos by reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes. Laxalt allowed Hughes to secure his gaming license without appearing before the state's gaming regulatory authorities because he thought having an internationally acclaimed businessman involved in Nevada gaming would send a positive signal about the legitimacy of the industry. Laxalt also supported corporate ownership of gaming operations in Nevada, which helped pave the way for modern-day gambling. With the financial support of Hughes, Laxalt helped establish the state's first community colleges and Nevada's first medical school.[citation needed]
Along with Gov. Ronald Reagan of neighboring California, Laxalt helped create the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, to protect scenic Lake Tahoe. He also expanded the park system and promoted prison reform in Nevada. On one occasion, Laxalt, against the advice of his staff, went to the Nevada State Penitentiary during a prisoner uprising. He met personally with several prisoners who described to the governor the deplorable conditions under which they were living. Laxalt sympathized with their concerns and ordered the prison staff to address the problems. When he was later asked by the media if he had qualms about entering the prison yard, Laxalt, a former trial lawyer, said, "No, not really. Many of them were my former clients!"[citation needed]
In 1970, Laxalt lobbied
Laxalt governed Nevada as a
U.S. Senate
After leaving the governor's mansion, Laxalt and his family opened a hotel/casino in
In
Senate tenure
In his first term in the
During Laxalt's two terms in the U.S. Senate, he served on several influential committees, including the
Relationship with Ronald Reagan
Laxalt had become close friends with Ronald Reagan during his time as governor, when Reagan was also in his first term as governor of neighboring California. They worked on many issues of mutual interest to both states, particularly those dealing with the preservation of Lake Tahoe. During Reagan's presidency, Laxalt was sometimes referred to as "The First Friend".[9] Laxalt was national chairman of three Reagan presidential campaigns and placed Reagan's name in nomination at the Republican National Conventions of 1976, 1980, and 1984. During the 1980 Republican National Convention, Laxalt's name was floated as a potential vice presidential nominee for the Reagan ticket, but George H. W. Bush was chosen instead.[10] At the behest of President Reagan, Laxalt served in the then-unprecedented role of General Chairman of the Republican Party from 1983 to 1987.
In fact, during Laxalt's second Senate term, several Nevadans came to Washington, D.C., due in large measure to his relationship with Reagan, to serve in prominent governmental and campaign positions. His long-time aide, Barbara Vucanovich, had been elected to serve in the House in 1982, becoming the first female elected to a federal position from Nevada. A long-time friend and prominent Nevada trial attorney, Frank Fahrenkopf, was elected to serve as Chairman of the Republican National Committee where he helped oversee Reagan's re-election and the 1988 election of President George H. W. Bush. Bob Broadbent of Boulder City became Assistant Secretary for Water and Science in the Department of the Interior; Bob Horton of Reno became Director of the Bureau of Mines; Cameron Batjer of Reno, a former Nevada Supreme Court Justice, served on the U.S. Sentencing Commission; Reese Taylor of Las Vegas served as Chairman of the Interstate Commerce Commission; and Ed Allison of Reno, Sig Rogich of Las Vegas, and Ralph V. Whitworth of Winnemucca all served in key roles in Reagan's 1984 re-election campaign. Laxalt's former Press Secretary and Chief of Staff, Tom Loranger, joined Laxalt in his post-Senate government consulting practice and now runs the D.C. office of the Ferraro Group, a Nevada government-relations firm founded by former Laxalt aide Greg Ferraro. In early 1987, Laxalt was at the top of the short list to replace Donald Regan as White House Chief of Staff, but he declined because he intended to run for president in 1988. Instead, he recommended former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Majority Howard Baker, who took the job.[11]
Pres. Reagan also relied on Laxalt to be his troubleshooter when it came to the precarious relationship with Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos. With Marcos' negative track record on human rights, kleptocratic governance, and erosion of democratic ideals and principles in the Southeast Asian country, and Marcos' penchant off-the-cuff remark that he and Reagan have a special relationship, it has become an embarrassment to the White House. Laxalt visited Manila in October 1985 to relay to Marcos that he should start work on some reforms to deal with the sinking Philippine economy as well as the Armed Forces of the Philippines - particularly the overstaying and overaged generals loyal to Marcos, beginning with Chief-of-Staff Gen. Fabian Ver. Despite Laxalt regaling Marcos of his World War II track record and experience during the liberation of the Philippines, the Philippine President rejected the call on retiring Gen. Ver. On the last night of the People Power Revolution, which saw the Marcoses ousted from power, Marcos phoned Laxalt to get a feel on how Reagan views the situation in Manila. Uncannily, Laxalt was in the middle of a top-secret briefing in Washington to discuss about the coup that was happening in the Philippines. Laxalt informed the Philippine President "cut and cut cleanly. The time has come." Marcos responded that he was disappointed.[12][13][14]
It was the
With his back to the wall, Reagan won shocking victories in North Carolina and Texas, which propelled the race all the way to the national convention in Kansas City. Laxalt nominated Reagan at the convention. Eventually, the Reagan campaign lost a key procedural vote to Ford and the sitting president eked out a victory. Although he was on the losing side, Laxalt's national profile increased dramatically as a result of his efforts on behalf of Reagan. When Reagan defeated
Sacramento Bee libel suit
As a long-time public official in Nevada, where individuals with alleged ties to organized crime were prominent in the early Las Vegas gaming industry, Laxalt came under scrutiny for his relationships with certain individuals. In 1983, during Laxalt's second Senate term and on the eve of Reagan's re-election bid, the
Laxalt sought $250 million in damages. In 1987, the lawsuit was settled. In a statement, the Bee acknowledged that pretrial discovery "had not shown that there was a skim" at the Ormsby House. Laxalt declared that pretrial investigations had found no evidence of the wrongdoing at issue. The Bee maintained that it did not commit libel because it had not stated that Laxalt was involved in wrongdoing; it had merely reported that a third party held suspicions that wrongdoing had taken place at the Ormsby House. Under the settlement, the two sides agreed to allow the question of attorneys' fees to be decided by a panel of former federal judges.[citation needed]
In March 1988, after an extensive review, the judges awarded Laxalt $647,452.52 in fees and costs. One of the panelists, former U.S. Attorney General Griffin Bell, who had served under President Jimmy Carter, said that he would have preferred awarding $2 million, but he felt the final amount was "fair." The Washington Post described the judges' decision as a "slap" at the Bee newspapers. Laxalt was quoted as saying that the case had proven the Bee's allegations to be without basis.[15]
1988 presidential election
Laxalt retired from the Senate in 1987 and was replaced by the man he had defeated in
After politics
Laxalt was a partner in the
One of Laxalt's initiatives that gave him great personal satisfaction was the "Intern" program he established during his two terms in the
On August 2, 2012, Governor Sandoval issued a proclamation declaring that date, Laxalt's 90th birthday, as "Paul Laxalt Day" in the state of Nevada.[19]
Personal life
Laxalt was married in 1946 to Jackalyn Ross (1927–2004), the daughter of John Rolly Ross, who was a federal judge in Nevada.[20] The couple had five daughters (Gail, Sheila, Michelle, Kevin, and Kathleen) and one son (John Paul). They divorced in 1972. Laxalt was married to his second wife, Carol, until his death. She had one daughter (Denise) from a previous marriage. After he retired from the Senate, Paul and Carol Laxalt continued to reside in northern Virginia. Laxalt had twelve grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.[21]
In 1978, Laxalt's daughter Michelle had a son, Adam Laxalt, with Laxalt's then-Senate colleague, Pete Domenici of New Mexico. Michelle Laxalt raised Adam as a single parent. Adam Laxalt's paternity was not publicly acknowledged by his parents until 2013.[22][23] At that time, Domenici acknowledged that Laxalt was his son and was born as a result of an extramarital affair.[23] Laxalt's grandson Adam served as Attorney General of Nevada from 2015 to 2019.[21] In the 2022 midterm elections, Adam narrowly lost his bid to unseat Catherine Cortez Masto, the incumbent United States Senator from Nevada.
Death
Laxalt died on August 6, 2018, at a health care facility in McLean, Virginia, four days after his 96th birthday.[24][25]
Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said in a statement after Laxalt's death: “We came from different political parties and backgrounds, but that didn't matter to Paul Laxalt. He was the epitome of a gentleman. He treated me, and everyone, with the utmost respect and friendship."[26]
Nevada governor Brian Sandoval remarked that “Paul Laxalt was many things – a statesman, a gentleman and a class act – above all, he was a champion for his beloved Nevada and our country."[27]
On September 6, 2018, a funeral service was held for Senator Laxalt at St. Matthew's Cathedral in Washington, D.C. Attendees included former Vice President Dick Cheney, former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, former Attorney General Edwin Meese III and scores of Nevadans who made the trek to the nation's capital to pay their last respects to Laxalt. Just before Thanksgiving, a memorial service took place at the Governor's Mansion in Nevada's capital and Laxalt's hometown, Carson City. Speakers included Governor Sandoval, Greg Ferraro, Frank Fahrenkopf, Ed Allison and Sig Rogich. Attendees included former Governors Bob List, Richard Bryan and Bob Miller. In addition, several former Laxalt staff members attended including Doug Fuller, Robbie Aiken, Hal Furman and Gene Drakulich. A few weeks later, with family and close friends present, and in honor of his service during World War II, Laxalt was interred at Arlington National Cemetery. A 21-gun salute concluded the ceremony.
References
- ISBN 9780804812016. Retrieved August 7, 2018 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b "THERÉSE ALPETCHE LAXALT - Nevada Women's History Project".
- ^ "Paul Laxalt, former Nevada governor, senator, dies at 96". August 7, 2018.
- ^ Davidson, Joanne (March 1, 2006). "DU honors its alumni of distinction". The Denver Post. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
- ^ Banning, Doresa (July 20, 2016). "Golden Rooster: Advertising or Art?". Retrieved November 22, 2016.
- ^ Langdon, Dolly (April 18, 1983). "Will Reagan Ride Again in '84? His Blood Brother Paul Laxalt Is Saddling Up the G.O.P." People. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
- ISBN 0-87417-327-2.
- ^ "Ex-Nevada Lawmaker Mary Gojack Dies : Former Blackjack Dealer Fought on Behalf of Women, Minorities". Los Angeles Times. November 15, 1985. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
- ^ Roberts, Steven (March 21, 1982). "Reagan's First Friend". The New York Times. p. A.26.
- ^ "How the Bush Dynasty Almost Wasn't", Hoover Digest
- ^ Lamar, Jacob V. Jr. (March 9, 1987), "Cover Stories", Time
- ^ Ahern, Tim. "Cut And Cut Cleanly," Laxalt Advises Marcos In Dramatic Call". AP NEWS. Associated Press. Retrieved June 21, 2023.
- ^ Pimentel, Boying (August 9, 2018). "Tale of two Pauls from the Marcos nightmare". INQUIRER.net USA. Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved June 21, 2023.
- ^ Romualdez, Babe. "Paul Laxalt: A friend of the Philippines". Philstar.com. Philippine Star. Retrieved June 21, 2023.
- ^ "American Notes Lawsuits". Time. June 15, 1987. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved August 11, 2007.
- ^ "Finley, Kumble, Major Law Firm, Facing Revamping or Dissolution", The New York Times
- ^ Goldstein, Tom (March 25, 1990). "Finley Kumble sat on a wall". The New York Times. Retrieved February 6, 2009.
- ISBN 978-0-312-03830-4
- ^ "Nevada Governor Declares Thursday Paul Laxalt Day". KLAS-TV. August 2, 2012.
- ^ Jackalyn Ross Laxalt Archived February 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, State of Nevada Official Website
- ^ a b Weiner, Rachel (February 20, 2013). "Former Senator Pete Domenici kept son secret for decades". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ Ralston, Jon (May 26, 2014). "Who is Adam Laxalt?". Politico. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
- ^ a b Clausing, Jeri (February 21, 2013). "Pete Domenici Acknowledges Son From Extramarital Affair 30 Years Ago". Associated Press.
- ^ Tetreault, Steve (August 6, 2018). "Paul Laxalt, former Nevada governor, senator, dies at 96". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
- ^ "Paul Laxalt, U.S. Senator From Nevada and Close Reagan Confidant, Dies at 96". The New York Times. August 6, 2018.
- ^ Lesniewski, Niels; Dick, Jason; Lesniewski, Niels; Dick, Jason (August 7, 2018). "Paul Laxalt, Nevada Senator and 'First Friend' of Ronald Reagan, Dies at Age 96" – via www.rollcall.com.
- ^ Sandoval, Brian (August 7, 2018). "Sandoval Statement of the Passing of Paul Laxalt". The Official State of Nevada Website. State of Nevada. Archived from the original on August 28, 2018. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
External links
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- A Guide to the Paul Laxalt U.S. Senatorial Papers, Special Collections, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Reno.
- United States Congress. "Paul Laxalt (id: L000148)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.