Leading Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D. Nev.), used a Las Vegas green energy conference on Tuesday to raise money from sympathetic business executives, the Las Vegas Sun reported on Wednesday.
The National Clean Energy Summit brought in numerous Democratic politicians and business leaders.
A smiling Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., walked with Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nev., through exhibitor booths touting solar power, electric cars and clean energy think tanks.
Democratic Treasurer Kate Marshall stood nearby, and Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., made an appearance. This wasn’t a fundraiser for Democrats — although two fundraisers for Reid, Horsford and Democratic congressional candidate Erin Bilbray were held at the same location — but it was clear that the National Clean Energy Summit at Mandalay Bay on Tuesday was Reid’s energy extravaganza.
While attendees discussed the future of the struggling green energy industry, Reid and others used the conference as an opportunity to raise funds from executives who have a financial stake in government interventions on behalf of the industry.
Democrats also decided to cash in on the plethora of sympathetic supporters in the audience. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee hosted a fundraiser down the hall from the conference for Horsford and Bilbray, who is challenging Rep. Joe Heck, R-Nev., in Southern Nevada’s Congressional District 3.
Reid also took a break from the conference to host a campaign fundraiser at lunch in a restaurant at Mandalay Bay.
While Democratic donors are enthusiastic about the party’s climate agenda, activists appear less so. A Washington, D.C., Organizing for Action climate rally on Tuesday drew no attendees.