|
|
|
Entries for May 2012
Gary Pearce posted on May 08, 2012 10:10
Yes, the gay-marriage amendment has “revealed generational and urban-rural divisions,” as The News & Observer reported Sunday. But, as is so often true in North Carolina politics, the fundamental divide is over religion.
Note how often supporters of the amendment say or write something along the lines of one bumper sticker: “It’s in the Bible. God said it. That ends it.”
Not a lot of room for debate there.
That’s why, as The N&O noted: “The campaign supporting the amendment, Vote for Marriage, has its foundation of support in churches throughout the state.”
Public Policy Polling predicts the amendment will pass with 57-59 percent of the vote. That will not surprise anyone who tracks the religious beliefs of voters.
Back in the days when I was following polls for candidates, we would ask whether people considered themselves “fundamentalist Christians” and “evangelicals.” I can’t recall exact numbers; I just remember our out-of-state consultants being stunned.
The numbers were especially high among African-American voters. And PPP’s last poll shows them favoring the amendment by 55-35.
If you live in a city, you might miss this. And it’s not that opponents of the amendment aren’t religious. Some surely, aren’t “churched,” but those who go to church tend toward a belief system that emphasizes fairness and tolerance. “Fundamentalists” care more about order, tradition and morality.
This moral conservatism runs deep in North Carolina’s political DNA. You have to understand that to understand what’s apparently about to happen.
[Click to read and post comments...]
Posted in: General, Issues
Carter Wrenn posted on May 07, 2012 16:22
It looks like the prosecutors put a pretty big hole in Edwards’ boat last Thursday: For months Edwards has been arguing the million dollars he took from ‘Bunny’ Mellon and Fred Baron wasn’t a campaign donation because he spent the money to hide his affair from his wife and not voters.
But Thursday two Edwards aides testified a furious Elizabeth Edwards confronted her husband about his affair with Rielle Hunter on October 7th, 2007. The problem: After that, Edwards took hundreds of thousands of dollars from Mellon and Baron – and he clearly wasn’t hiding his affair from Elizabeth.
[Click to read and post comments...]
Carter Wrenn posted on May 07, 2012 10:49
House Speaker Thom Tillis spent last week catching hand grenades – first his Chief-of-Staff landed on the front page of the newspaper for having an affair with a lobbyist then a second Tillis aide confessed to a peccadillo with another lobbyist; -- both aides promptly resigned (at Tillis’ request) then the press asked Tillis the million dollar question: Did either of those lobbyist get any special treatment – to help pass their bills – from your aides?
Now a fellow who’d brushed up against a scandal or two would have taken a deep breath and said, I’m calling for an independent investigation today to find out the answer to that question, and if anything wrong was done I’ll do my best to set it straight – but to Speaker Tillis’ misfortune this is his first scandal so when the reporter asked the question he said he’d already investigated himself and the answer was No, those lobbyists hadn’t received one scrap of special help.
When the Democrats read that in the newspaper they couldn’t believe their eyes: Tillis had climbed out on the end of the limb – and the Democrats immediately set about sawing it off behind him: By demanding an independent investigation.
What could Tillis do? If he said No it’d look like a cover-up so he said Yes and if the investigators find one of those lobbyists did get a bit of special help with a bill then Tillis will have a whole different problem.
But one thing is for sure – both Democratic and Republican legislators agree: There will be no independent investigating of peccadilloes involving legislators and lobbyists.
[Click to read and post comments...]
Gary Pearce posted on May 04, 2012 08:20
A Democratic TAPster offers the thoughts below on how quickly things change in politics:
“Just a few days ago Stuart Rothenberg had a column in Roll Call pondering whether President Obama and the Democrats have made a big mistake focusing on North Carolina as part of the 2012 campaign strategy. Given what has come to light the last few days, he might want to reconsider. But perhaps, maybe not?
“For sure, the events of the last three week should be a reminder to political handlers, pundits and prognosticators that the real truth is that in campaigns: What seems to be today can very quickly fade to what used to be.
“Three weeks ago North Carolina Democrats were praying -- yes they do that -- for something, anything, to get off the TV screens and front pages the intra-party bickering over executive director Jay Parmley's resignation amid accusations of sexual harassment and calls for party Chairman David Parker to step aside. State GOP Chair Robin Hayes was quick to add fuel to the firestorm, saying: "They should have been more forthcoming about covering up issues recently about misbehavior, bad conduct and lack of leadership."
“Hayes has been a bit quieter in the last couple days, and who can blame him. The Democrats troubles have seemingly evaporated amid revelations of extra-marital sexual affairs among lobbyists and the top taxpayer-financed advisers to GOP House Speaker Thom Tillis. Our friend Carter Wrenn might be conjuring up images of Roman orgies in the Legislative Building -- if it could be connected to Paul Coble (or if it were the Democrats).
“The collateral damage, even as Tillis' has tried to act quickly to quell the scandal, might hit the top of the GOP ticket in the state. Pat McCrory has made it a mantra to promise to reform the political and governmental ‘culture of corruption.’ He has cozied up to Tillis, a fellow Mecklenburg County politician, in his battle to ‘clean up Raleigh.’ It rings a little hollow in light of the most recent revelations and provides plenty of ‘now wait a minute’ response from the Democrats.
“Even more, it could haunt Tillis' not-so-veiled permanent campaign for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Democrat Kay Hagan. If Tillis can't surround himself now with folks who can withstand the temptations that come with power in Raleigh, what's going to happen if he gets to the big-leagues power and money in Washington?
“Should Tillis and the Republicans be worried? Should the Democrats be gloating? Let's just wait to see what happens in another three weeks.”
[Click to read and post comments...]
Gary Pearce posted on May 03, 2012 13:33
Ever since what one observer called David Parker’s “televised suicide bombing,” I’ve been pondering his infamous press conference performance.
Especially: Who told him that would be a good idea?
The answer, apparently, is no one. I’m told that he talked to no one on the party staff, sought out no one’s advice.
That makes sense. No seasoned political professional would think it’s a good idea to spend 45 minutes grappling, groping and going into great detail over what does or doesn’t constitute sexual harassment.
In fact, I'm told that the entire HQ staff cleared out of the way of the TV cameras beforehand to escape the collateral damage. Parker apparently instigated the entire affair himself, calling the press, drafting his own "remarks" and operating completely without the party staff.
Even national political leaders recognized that Parker had gone rogue. This from Politico:
“David Parker is a man without a party,” said a senior national party official of the North Carolina chair. “He's operating out of a hotel in Raleigh outside of the party structure and without the support of staff, the national party or any significant party official or elected official. He's isolated and that isolation will only increase until he makes the decision that is not in his best interest but in the best interest of the party..."
The upshot is that the party is handcuffed at a time when the Tillis staff fiasco gave them a perfect attack line: “As soon as the Republicans took over, they jumped in bed with the lobbyists – literally.”
The question now is whether Parker will try to get himself reelected chair May 12. If he does, the party will get what it deserves in November.
[Click to read and post comments...]
Gary Pearce posted on May 03, 2012 11:01
Here is the kind of information you won’t get from what Sarah Palin calls the “lamestream media.” It’s only available in the lamebrain media, like this blog.
Specifically, you have to read our Forum section to discover that Pat McCrory’s new campaign manager “has ties to CHARLIE CRIST!”
The TAPster adds: “Crist is radioactive as far as conservatives are concerned, and a Crist ally serving as McCrory's campaign manager is a dreadful sign.”
Burn the heretic, I say.
[Click to read and post comments...]
Carter Wrenn posted on May 02, 2012 17:03
There’s an outbreak of fornication on Jones Street. In the State House. In Speaker Thom Tillis’ office. Between lobbyists and Tillis’ aides. Yesterday after all the shenanigans landed in the newspapers Speaker Tillis disposed of two aides then, after “reviewing” 130 pages of emails and other records, announced they hadn’t lifted a finger to give the lobbyists any untoward help with their bills.
Now it’s a sure bet that next the Democrats are going to call for an investigation: So after John Edwards’ trial passes we’ll be facing a whole new season of ‘political reality shows’ – just in case anyone missed the point that politics has gotten downright seedy.
[Click to read and post comments...]
Gary Pearce posted on May 02, 2012 13:56
I like the observations below because the TAPster who wrote them not only takes aim at everybody, but also dares to defend lobbyists:
“The irony – and hypocrisy -- of this sex scandal is these staffers work for Republican politicians who imposed their personal morals on the state’s citizens by ramming through the proposed constitutional amendment on gay marriage. Perhaps the amendment should’ve said marriage is between a man, a woman and a lobbyist.
“Speaker Tillis’ reputation as a savvy business consultant is tarnished by this mess. He’s handled it pretty badly and appears to have no clue what’s going on with his employees – especially when everybody at the legislature knew something was going on.
“Lobbyists apparently now can have sex only with other lobbyists. Considering the talent pool in the lobbyists’ ranks, most lobbyists will give up.
“The liberal do-gooders like the pin-heads at Democracy NC scored another victory in their war to turn lobbyists into second-class citizens. It’s bad enough that this scandal is destroying careers and marriages, but the sex is with lobbyists, for goodness sakes, and that apparently makes it even worse. One day, somebody will have the guts to tell know-it-alls like Bob Hall and Elaine Marshall that lobbyists work for citizens and taxpayers who have constitutional rights and pay bunches of taxes to run the state.”
[Click to read and post comments...]
Carter Wrenn posted on May 02, 2012 12:29
It’s hard to tell who’s crazier: Andrew Young or John Edwards.
Back in 1998 in Myrtle Beach Young hears Edwards make a speech and, as Young told it himself in court last week, fell in love. A few years later Rielle Hunter met Edwards in a New York bar and fell in love too. Then Rielle got pregnant. And John told Andrew, She’s a crazy slut, and got Andrew a big stack of cash (from two friendly millionaires) to keep Rielle out of sight while Edwards ran for President.
Young got one millionaire to give him $28,000 to buy Rielle a BMW then got the other millionaire to send him another $28,000 (to pay for the same car) to spend on himself.
Rielle started feeling ignored by John so she threatened to tell reporters about their affair – two National Enquirer reporters showed up in Chapel Hill, chasing Rielle, and Young talked his wife into letting him tell the press he was Rielle’s child’s father.
Rielle and Young went on the lamb over the next year and Young took $1.2 million from the two millionaires to hide Rielle and spent a cool million of it building himself a hilltop home in Chapel Hill.
After his Presidential campaign’s kaput John betrays Andrew and Rielle and the knives come out. Andrew finds a sex tape of John and Rielle. Makes a book deal. And a movie deal. And John ends up in federal court facing 30 years in prison with Andrew testifying against him and Rielle set to testify next.
And imagine this: Once upon a time, not too long ago, out of old-fashioned probity Democratic Governor Jim Hunt wouldn’t serve wine in the Governor’s Mansion.
[Click to read and post comments...]
Gary Pearce posted on May 02, 2012 09:54
“After Thomas’ resignation, Tillis said he returned to his office on Sunday afternoon and questioned five of his 10 remaining staff members, who had been the subject of rumors related to inappropriate behavior.”
There probably are some nervous people in the Legislative Building today.
[Click to read and post comments...]
|
|
|