Homestate boy makes good

Nevada state legislator Jim Wheeler placed first on the Rolling Stone list of the “50 Dumbest Things Right-Wingers Said in 2013” with his answer—“Yes, I would”—to the question of whether he would vote for slavery if his district constituents wanted him to do so.

This was no small accomplishment, given the competition, such as “The best thing about the Earth is if you poke holes in it oil and gas come out” from U.S. Rep. Steve Stockman (#50) or New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's “I think we disproportionately stop whites too much and minorities too little” (#12).

Wheeler's comments, captured on video, drew wide attention, and the Colbert Report even designed a red, white, and blue bumper strip for him. It read, “JIM WHEELER/YOU WANT SLAVES? YOU GOT 'EM!”