Well, the “John McEnroe of Politics” struck again last night at my monthly First Friday Happy Hour event at Stoney’s in Las Vegas. Here’s how entertainment columnist “Norm!” reported on the incident in his column this morning:

Danny Tarkanian and KXNT radio talk show host Alan Stock were involved in an altercation Friday night at a Republican gathering. Tarkanian in an e-mail to Review-Journal political reporter Laura Myers acknowledged the incident, saying that Stock raised his voice when Tarkanian said he was leaving because “they would not let me speak early.”

The outburst occurred at Stoney’s Rockin’ Country on Las Vegas Boulevard South. Tarkanian, a Republican U.S. Senate candidate, said Stock accused him of lying. Tarkanian said he tried to calm Stock down and put his arm around him, but Stock yelled louder, “Don’t touch me.” “I then left Stoney’s,” Tarkanian said.

Not surprisingly, Danny’s account is less than truthful, but I’ll get to that in a minute. But first, Norm! updated his story in a series of Twitter posts later this morning:

Here’s more from the Danny Tarkanian-Alan Stock dustup Friday in front of a large G.O.P. gathering and U.S. Senate hopefuls. A source who attended the event said Tarkanian asked to speak 1st because he had a commitment to throw out first pitch at the LV 51s game. Tarkanian grew agitated and was seen trying to grab the microphone out of Stock’s hand. “It’s a totally different version from what Tarkanian said in your column today,” the source said.

New source: “The story is factual in the fact that there was an altercation in which Danny placed his hand on the shoulder of Stock. However, the altercation was not over whether Stock would allow Tarkanian to speak…rather it was the order in which they were slated to speak. Danny wanted to speak first and Stock would not allow him to change the pre-selected random ordering. Stock told him that the order was set and Danny was supposed to go 3rd and began to walk towards the stage. That is when Danny grabbed Alan and the altercation erupted.”

OK, first, there were no punches thrown. I know, because I was standing right next to Alan when Danny confronted him as Alan and I tried to make our way up to the stage to begin the program at 6 pm. More on that in a minute.

Secondly, here’s exactly what was involved in the speaking matter.

Late last week we decided that our “theme” for this month’s First Friday would be “Last Call” and we’d invite the major candidates running for governor and the U.S. Senate to speak for two minutes each in a final effort to win over voters before Tuesday’s primary.

Karri Bragg, our First Friday “Hostess with the Mostest,” sent email invitations out to Jim Gibbons, Brian Sandoval, Mike Montandon, Sue Lowden, Sharron Angle, Danny Tarkanian, Chad Christensen and John Chachas on Thursday, May 27th inviting them to speak. They were advised to confirm their participation with Heather Kydd who would be substituting as “Hostess with the Mostest” in Karri’s absence (she getting married!)

On Friday, May 28th at 4:03 pm, Mike Montandon confirmed.

On Friday, May 28th at 4:45 pm, Chad Christensen confirmed.

On Saturday, May 29th at 7:37 am, Sue Lowden confirmed.

On Monday, May 31st at 8:39 pm, Sharron Angle confirmed.

On Tuesday, June 1st at 3:39 pm, I was advised by Heather that Danny Tarkanian wanted to participate but had to go first. I advised Heather to advise Danny that the speakers would speak in the order in which they responded and confirmed.

At 8:50 pm that night, I received an email from Karri asking me to call Danny’s executive assistant, Judy, because he wanted to go first.

At 9:02 pm I wrote back to Karri: “He can’t. They already tried to get this past Heather…and since I already told Heather to tell them no, I guess they figured they’d try an end-run by going to you. Please inform Judy that Danny’s free to call me directly if he wants to discuss this further.”

Danny never called. So as far as I was concerned, he just decided not to participate.

Danny did show up at Stoney’s and started working the crowd right around 5 pm when the doors opened. We saw each other numerous times over the next hour and I said hello to him and to his wife Amy who was with him. At no time did he say a word about speaking.

At around 5:45 pm, Alan Stock, host of KXNT’s afternoon news show and monthly First Friday master-of-ceremonies got a call from KXNT’s program manager while on his way to the event. Apparently Danny had complained to a KXNT employee who was already at the event and claimed that Heather Kydd wouldn’t let him speak. The KXNT employee called the program manager back at the studio…who then called Alan to give him a heads up.

Danny’s complaint, of course, was an outright lie. He was never told he couldn’t speak; he was simply told he couldn’t get special treatment and that if he wanted to discuss further, to talk to me directly. Again, he never said a word to me.

When Alan arrived just before 6 pm, Danny immediately got in his face, claiming that we weren’t going to let him speak. Alan told him that of course he could speak. But Danny, quite agitated, kept yelling, “They won’t let me speak! They won’t let me speak!”

Which was total bull…well, you know.

Anyway, Danny apparently realized what a little scene he was creating in front of so many witnesses, so as Alan tried to leave him and walk towards the stage with me to start our program, Danny grabbed him forcefully and tried to move him towards the front door, I guess in an effort to talk to him outside where there wouldn’t be a crowd of witnesses.

Alan broke free of Danny’s hold and he and I walked up to the stage as Danny stormed off in a huff.

All because Danny was demanding special treatment and because he was too big of a baby to talk to me directly even though he had PLENTY of chances. Instead he tried to get everyone else to extend him the pampered prince treatment he feels he so royally deserves, I guess because his last name is “Tarkanian.”

So to sum up:

Stock never raised his voice; Danny did. Danny didn’t tell Stock that we wouldn’t let him speak early; he lied to Stock and said we wouldn’t let him speak at all. Stock never accused Danny of lying; he merely assured him that he absolutely could speak. Stock had nothing to do with the speaking order; I did. Danny didn’t try to calm Stock down; he tried to strong-arm him away from the crowd. And it wasn’t Stock who was yelling; it was Danny.

As a closing note, if it’s true Danny had to leave early because he wanted to throw out the first pitch at the 51s game, the game wasn’t scheduled to start until 7 pm…and Cashman Field is only about 15-20 minutes away from Stoney’s. So if he really wanted to, he could have spoken last – been finished by 6:20 at the latest – and still made it to the baseball game with plenty of time to spare.

Instead he opted to throw a hissy fit just because he didn’t get his way.

Who said he’s not senatorial material?

P.S. I understand Norm! spoke with Alan Stock today and will have more about this in his column tomorrow.

Then again, we’re talking about Danny Tarkanian.

What does failure to report a lease agreement on your FEC report have to do with the critically important issues that’ll come before the United States Senate? Nothing. However, a candidate’s stand on an important issue such as constitutionally-protected gun rights is absolutely relevant. Here’s how the National Rifle Association (NRA) describes a candidate who gets an “F” rating from the organization:

“True enemy of gun owners’ rights. A consistent anti-gun candidate who always opposes gun owners’ rights and/or actively leads anti-gun legislative efforts, or sponsors anti-gun legislation.”

Danny Tarkanian received an “F” from the NRA in his 2006 race for Secretary of State. In addition, he was endorsed by the Brady Campaign, the leading gun-control/confiscation organization in the universe. Let’s talk about THAT instead of lease payments for a bus.

I also think that Ms. Angle has a tendency when the spotlight is on her to not deploy, as Austin Powers might say, an inner monologue on what to say and not say as the heat is on. My great concern is that while she is a true winger who I would love to see in federal office, she would, during the general election campaign, say something more perplexing than Sue Lowden’s bartergate comment, then dig in.

See, I do not think a pile of cow pies can beat Harry Reid as some do. We’re going to have to mount a very serious challenge to Reid in the general election. Between Tarkanian and Angle, I think Tarkanian will provide a more serious challenge.

Erickson’s concerns about Angle’s electability in November against Reid are legitimate, but hardly an argument for Tarkanian as the alternative. Danny’s never been elected to anything, unlike both Angle and Lowden. And as we Nevadans have witnessed over the last few months, Tarkanian, at one time a lawyer by trade, will say whatever he thinks the audience in front of him wants to hear, whether it’s true or not.

How would that provide a more serious challenge to Reid? That IS Reid!

According to the Wild, Wild Law blog, here’s an example of GDH trying to put the blame where it belongs from a case decided a little over a year ago:

“Plaintiff was a passenger in a vehicle traveling 75 MPH in a 25 MPH zone. The vehicle ran a stop sign, lost control, and slammed into Defendant’s cinder block wall. Defendant had constructed a flowerbed abutting the cinder block wall at the exact spot where Plaintiff’s vehicle impacted the wall. Plaintiff sustained injuries that were worse than they would have been if the flowerbed was not there. Plaintiff claimed that said flowerbed made the wall into a ‘death trap.’ Plaintiff sued defendant for (1) negligently building the flowerbed, (2) failing to warn her of said flowerbed, and (3) negligence per se for building the flowerbed in a manner that violated the building code.”

That’s right. These people sued the homeowner for failing to warn a reckless moron driving 75 in a 25 mph zone that they had built a flower bed inside the wall on their own property! Fortunately, the judge laughed the case out of court; however, it’s frivolous lawsuits such as this that drive the cost of insurance through the roof.

So what’s this have to do with politics in Nevada? Oh, did I forget to mention that G. Dallas Horton & Associates faxed out an invitation yesterday to a fundraising reception it’s hosting for other lawyers on behalf of ex-lawyer and supposedly conservative Republican U.S. Senate candidate Danny Tarkanian at their offices on May 20?

I wonder how Danny feels about tort reform that would reign in lawsuit cowboys such as G. Dallas Horton?

“(Danny Tarkanian) launched his first direct chickens-for-checkups attack on Lowden today (Thursday), pointing to it as proof that she doesn’t have what it takes to take on Harry Reid in a general election.

“The occasion for this move: Lowden gave an interview to a local TV station on chickens-for-checkups that has only landed her deeper in the manure. In attempting to explain herself, she looked a bit like a chicken who had begun to cross the road only to realize a truck was bearing down on her.

“The Tarkanian campaign is circulating video of the interview in an email that says: ‘Watch this video and ask yourself if Sue Lowden is prepared to run against Harry Reid.’”

Folks, this is what I’ve said this Republican primary should have been about since Day One: Who has the best chance to defeat Harry Reid in November? Not who’s the most conservative. Not who hates taxes more. Not who’s more pro-life. Not who owns the most guns. Who has the best chance to beat Harry?

And until this “chickens for checkups” fiasco blew up, that person has clearly been Sue Lowden. But her campaign’s failure to manage and put out such a minor brushfire does call into question how the campaign would handle the fireballs the Reidites are gonna hurl their way in November.

So while some will jump on Danny for “piling on” and going after Lowden over this, it’s absolutely a legitimate issue that goes to the very heart of what this campaign SHOULD be all about: Who’s the most electable candidate against Harry Reid? And there’s nothing wrong with pointing to how poorly your primary opponent has handled a campaign issue and raising questions about that campaign’s ability to win in November against the Democrat.

Don’t get me wrong. I still don’t think Danny can (or should) win either the GOP primary or the general. But since I’ve beaten him up so often for beating up on Sue for things he shouldn’t have been beating her up on, it’s only fair to give the devil his due when, for a change, he actually doesn’t do something wrong.

I know….faint praise. But it’s the best I’ve got in this case.

The problem is Danny’s not running against Harry Reid. At least not yet (and probably not ever). He’s running against a field of Republicans in the June primary for the privilege of running against Reid in November. And in that primary race the most recent poll shows him behind front-runner Sue Lowden by 17 points.

That makes his pitch to supporters for more of their money more than just a little disingenuous. But then again, when has Danny ever let the truth get in the way of his ambition in this race?

And get a load of this little bit of misleading propaganda included in the same fundraising pitch:

“I am the conservative in this race to defeat Harry Reid. Senator Jim DeMint has praised my ‘impressive leadership’ on cutting federal spending. Glenn Beck has called me a ‘tea party radical.’ Sarah Palin’s family has campaigned for me personally in Nevada, and conservative leader Erick Erickson of RedState has endorsed my campaign to defeat Harry Reid.”

1.) “Impressive leadership”? How? Where? Danny’s never been elected to anything, nor has he ever run a political or public policy organization in which to demonstrate leadership. Danny’s “leadership” amounts to telling audiences what he thinks they want to hear.

2.) Alas, our “tea party radical” wasn’t endorsed by the Tea Party Express or any other tea party organization. Sharron Angle was. ‘Nuff said.

3.) While Sarah Palin’s father may have campaigned for Danny, Sarah Palin has not. What’s that tell you?

4.) Erick Erickson’s endorsement was about as weak an endorsement as you could possibly give somebody and still have it considered an endorsement.

It’s bad enough trying to mislead Republican voters about Sue Lowden’s record; it’s another thing altogether for him to mislead his own supporters in an effort to shake them down for more money to keep afloat a sinking campaign. Have you no shame, Danny?

“(Narrator): Sue Lowden told conservatives she was pro-life, but since then the truth has come out. Sue Lowden supported Roe v Wade. Sue Lowden voted for an initiative supporting abortion on demand. And she felt so strongly, she even tried to change the pro-life position of the Republican party. No wonder one leading newspaper said she could quote: easily be convicted of political convenience.”

Lowden IS pro-life now, and has been for several years. Know who else used to be pro-choice but is now one of the staunchest pro-life advocates on the planet today: Norma McCorvey – “Roe” in that very Roe v. Wade decision. So if this is the best Tarkanian’s got, again, it ain’t much.

Worse, however, is Danny’s timing. With Lowden under heavy fire on the health care issue, he chooses now to whip out….the abortion issue? What political nincompoops are running his show? Laurel and Hardy couldn’t have botched this campaign any worse.

Here’s my prediction: If Lowden does end up tanking in the primary, it will be Sharron Angle, not Danny Tarkanian, who will be the GOP’s nominee. This guy never met a political opportunity he hasn’t blown.

I miss Jerry Tarkanian’s son already. The blunt pandering. The willingness to exploit his children at every opportunity. The utter and utterly obvious dearth of sincerity. The comprehensive pointlessness of the string of failures that constitutes his political “career.”

Touting an endorsement from Sarah Palin’s obscure father has to count as one of the most hapless campaign ads of this or any other election year. All of Tarkanian’s ads have the effect of making the listener feel a little sorry for the desperate unaccomplished son of a semi-famous man. But the ad with Palin’s dad is truly, deeply pathetic.

It’s tragic, really, that the coach’s son’s latest hare-brained scheme to compensate for his insecurities by getting elected to something hasn’t caught on, because it would have been a pleasure to make fun of him.

Alas, wee Tark knows he’s toast. Even before Sharron Angle got her well-deserved endorsement from the professional teanuts, the almost daily missives in which Tarkanian called Sue Lowden a socialist and stuff had all but dried up. Apparently the coach’s kid has decided to back off of Lowden, so that if and when she survives the televised destruction of her conduct and character that Harry Reid has in store, she’ll be nice to tiny Tark in turn. Maybe she’ll even use some crony juicy-juice influence to funnel some lucrative make-work to the shiftless, unemployable coach’s son. After all, that is the Nevada way.

So Jerry’s kid is just going through the motions now. And Lowden must be delighted to have him around. Whatever small number of votes he garners might hurt an Angle surge.

A few weeks ago I made the case that if Tarkanian was really and truly a wingnut who doesn’t want Republicans to nominate an establishment insider like Lowden, he’d get out of the race and endorse Angle. Now he should for sure. But I betcha he won’t. That’s the difference between Tarkanian and Angle. She was soaking in whackadoodle ultra-wingnuttery long before the teabaggers found out the president was a secret Muslim communist dictator illegally planted on American soil by Kenyan criminal masterminds. Tarkanian, by contrast, is just another asshat on the make.

Which reminds me: Hot rumor of the day is that Danny has been quietly talking to some other consultants about coming in to try to resurrect his dying political ambitions. Don’t know if it’s true or not (for some reason, the Tarkanian campaign doesn’t tell me much), but the Angle tea party endorsement might have been the final straw for his current out-of-state political hacks, Jamie Fisfis and Brian Seitchik.

Except….it wasn’t on KDWN. It was on KXNT.

On the other hand, maybe the Tark campaign accidentally stumbled upon the truth with this statement from the same email: “(W)e continue to show the momentum needed to defeat Harry Reid with a conservative.”

Tarkanian’s “momentum” is going backwards, falling further and further behind with every poll – which means Sue Lowden, not he, will be the likely GOP nominee – which means a conservative, Sue Lowden, will go up against and have a shot at defeating Reid in November.

So I guess this is as close to an accurate statement as we’ve seen from Danny’s campaign in a long, long time.