HIDE THE DORITOS: Whitmer Hits Vegas for Ford as GOP Revives Grant-Fraud, Clemency Controversies

LAS VEGAS, Nev. — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer landed in Las Vegas Tuesday to campaign alongside Democrat gubernatorial nominee Aaron Ford, giving Republicans an opportunity to unload opposition research on two Democrats carrying their own political baggage into the final two weeks of the midterms.

Whitmer joined Ford, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Nevada Democrat Reps. Dina Titus, Susie Lee and Steven Horsford at a reproductive-rights rally in Las Vegas. The Nevada Democrat Party billed the event as a push to elect Ford and turn out voters for the party’s statewide ticket. 

The visit also keeps Whitmer, widely discussed as a possible 2028 presidential contender, visible in a state expected to play an early role in the next Democrat presidential nomination fight. The Nevada Independent is already tracking her Nevada appearances alongside other potential 2028 hopefuls. 

Republicans, naturally, welcomed her with the political equivalent of a flamethrower.

Whitmer became the center of a bizarre national controversy in 2024 after posting a video in which she placed a Dorito on the tongue of an influencer kneeling in front of her. Michigan’s Catholic bishops accused the video of mimicking Holy Communion. Whitmer denied intending to mock the Eucharist and apologized, saying the stunt was supposed to promote the CHIPS Act. 

More consequentially, Whitmer is facing renewed scrutiny in Michigan over Fay Beydoun, whom Whitmer appointed to the Michigan Economic Development Corporation Executive Committee in 2019 and reappointed in 2020. Beydoun later secured a $20 million state legislative grant administered by the MEDC. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel charged Beydoun this year with 16 felonies, alleging she stole grant money, used funds for personal expenses and lied about how the money was spent. Beydoun has been charged, not convicted. 

Ford brings controversies of his own.

His sponsorship of Norman Smith’s clemency application became a flashpoint after Smith, who was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in the killing of a pregnant woman, appeared before Nevada’s Pardons Board. Ford has said sponsoring an application did not mean he supported clemency and that, had he attended the hearing, he would have voted against relief. 

Ford is also facing an ethics complaint involving more than $35,000 in travel paid for by the Attorney General Alliance. A Nevada Commission on Ethics review panel advanced the complaint this year, though no finding of wrongdoing has been made. 

Separately, Ford’s campaign re-edited a television ad after Las Vegas police union officials complained that old footage created the impression that a retired officer and union backing Ford in previous campaigns supported his 2026 gubernatorial bid. The Las Vegas Police Protective Association sent a cease-and-desist letter.

The RNC seized on Whitmer’s Vegas stop.

“Gretchen Whitmer is the perfect headliner for Aaron Ford: a failing governor campaigning for a failed attorney general,” RNC spokesman Nick Poche said. “Nevadans have seen enough of what Democrats deliver.”

For Whitmer, the trip offers another Nevada appearance ahead of a possible 2028 decision. For Ford, it brings another national Democrat into a governor’s race already attracting presidential-level attention.

And somewhere in Las Vegas, Republicans are presumably keeping a close eye on the Doritos.

Speak Up, Nevada! What’s on Your Mind? Send us your opinion!

Got the inside scoop on something happening in Nevada? Or the country? Do you have thoughts about life in Nevada that are too good to keep to yourself? Whether it’s a hot take on our politics, crime, education, or even the secret to surviving our summers, we’re all ears! Swing them our way at editor@thenevadaglobe.com. Come on, give us the scoop on what makes Nevada tick—or what ticks you off. Let’s make some noise and have some fun with it!