Even Tom DeLay Won't Take His Calls

My my my. Sometimes they just write themselves. Nevada's chapter of the Young Republicans has basically imploded, leaving its chairman with up to $25,000 in personal debt amid allegations that he mishandled money. "I'm thinking of becoming an Evangelical Christian," said the chairman of the group, Nathan Taylor. "They can raise money so fast it makes your head swim."

Taylor plans to hold a press conference attacking three of the state's party leaders -- Sen. John Ensign, Rep. Jim Gibbons and Rep. Jon Porter.

"It's a really sad day when my congressmen and my senator, who are sitting on millions, can't cut me a check for $25,000," Taylor said. "I don't think I'm asking for much. I mean come on. These guys can spend that much on dinner."

"It's not like I should be responsible for the bills I ran up," said Taylor, a 29-year-old political science senior at UNR who said he had to quit his food service job and drop classes to plan the convention. "I mean the whole idea of politics is live large on someone else's dime, right?"

Quit his job in food service? Is that the Republican way of saying "would you like fries with that?"

Last spring, Kriston Whiteside, president of the UNR College Republicans filed a complaint with Reno police about Taylor, asking them to investigate where $25,000 in money meant to plan the national convention went. "He's 25K short, and there's 25K missing. Coincidence? I don't think so," said Whiteside.

The College Republicans later dropped the charges, citing a letter from the chairman of the Young Republican National Federation that gave Taylor authority to loot the convention, but within days, all but three members of the group resigned, saying they were convinced the convention would turn up short of money.

"We knew Ken Lay was Taylor's hero," Whiteside said, "But we just didn't think he could pull off the skimming and the convention too. Turns out we were right."

"Those guys imploded the Nevada Young Republican organization," Taylor said. "It was utterly destroyed. I'm trying my level best to pick up the pieces here, so by rights, the 25K should be mine for all my troubles."

Taylor also is facing a lawsuit from fellow Republican and former Las Vegas City Council candidate Steve Sanson, who says he gave Taylor $500 to help plan his campaign. Sanson has been in contact with producers from both Judge Judy and The People's Court about taking the case. "I'm just trying to avoid liberal activist judges," Sanson said at his American Idol tryout.

Taylor said the charges against him are all politically motivated. "I see liberals coming after Tom DeLay and Karl Rove so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that they're coming after me."

Representatives of the Nevada congressional delegation remained mum on the press conference, with Jon Porter's campaign consultant Mike Slanker simply saying, "I wish him well in his future after politics."