Photographer Sarah Gerke has taken on the rare politics beat for the Buffet as Nevada sees unprecedented attention as a battleground state. First she attended, Krave nightclub Monday at the mall at Planet Hollywood. Bette Midler was there to voice support for Barak Obama.

This in itself is a mark of how things have changed this political season in Vegas. When the property was known as the Aladdin in 2004, Linda Ronstadt was escorted right out the casino door for talking politics at her own concert to the audience. Her sin: she praised the Michael Moore film that famously criticized Bush.

Flash forward to 2008 and the property, now Planet Hollywood, has the Strip's only explicitly gay nightclub, and Caesars headliner Bette Midler was on stage, urging the crowd to contact "your friends, your family, old boyfriends, new boyfriends, people you slept with, people you hope to sleep with -- do me a favor, call every single one of them, say, 'Vote for Barack Obama!'"

 

Meanwhile, a battleground has two sides.

Yesterday trying to leave my condominium, I found all the roads blocked off by police as Sarah Palin was leading a rally across the street from my home. There were also a significant number of protesters there who supported Obama.

Once again Sarah Gerke headed over to photograph the event and here is some of what she overheard.  (Apparently, according to Gerke, the Obama supporters weren't as quick on the comebacks or memorable on the attacks, though both were offered.)

"Get a job!"

"How about a dope dealer in the White House?!"

"Nobama" (I heard this one most often.)

"Are you waiting for your government check from Obama?"

"Did you say U.S. or U.S.S.R.?"

"Don't they have anything better to do?"

"Smile for socialism!" (while taking a picture of the Obama supporters)

"Don't get to close to them, you might catch something!"

"Hold onto your wallets everybody!"

(photos by Sarah Gerke)