Archive for June 2010
Mad Hatters
Rob Christensen’s column about the GOP’s 13th Congressional District primary was insightful about the inside-Beltline versus outside-Beltline dynamic at play – the same divide that plays out in the WakeCounty school board fight. There are two other interesting aspects to the battle: race and radicalism. There’d be no end to the irony of…
Read MoreCansler’s Deposition Part Two
Back at the end of February Secretary Lanier Cansler was deposed and the lawyer doing the deposing asked him under oath what clients he’d represented as a lobbyist (before he was Secretary), and if any of them, back then, had done business with DHHS. “Let’s see,” Cansler said, “clients I did was – Computer…
Read MoreFrom Scoop to Flack
A veteran PR pro here says that when she used to get a call from a reporter, she wondered what story they were working on. Now, she wonders who’s looking for a job. Mark Johnson of The Charlotte Observer/News & Observer is the latest to leave. I haven’t talked to Mark about his decision,…
Read MoreCansler’s Deposition
Last summer, for reasons that aren’t quite clear, Secretary Lanier Cansler and his Deputy Secretaries, Assistant Secretaries and aides trooped over to the General Assembly and told legislators they had a report that absolutely, conclusively, without a doubt proved 45% of the Medicaid patients who were receiving in home care were chiselers. Of course,…
Read MoreBlame the Republicans
The White House needs to go on offense on the Gulf oil spill. Democrats, all too often, are weenies when it comes to political combat. They want to be fair, see all sides and over-intellectualize. It’s time for a go-for-the-gut message: Blame the Republicans. Here’s how it goes: This all started…
Read MoreX Factors
X factors are the spice of politics – and the bane of political operatives. X factors are the unexpected events that disrupt the best-laid plans of campaign consultants and political consultants, who are the world’s greatest control freaks. The classic X factor was the economic collapse that decided the 2008 presidential election by…
Read MoreGrasping for Negatives
I had my hopes up. For a few minutes, I thought the Senate primary was going to get down, dirty and negative – just the way I like them. Wednesday morning, Cal Cunningham’s campaign sent out a breathless email denouncing a “negative letter the Marshall campaign just sent to many of our supporters, attacking…
Read MoreThe Lost Ark
I reckon there’s no doubt the folks showing up at Tea Party rallies have the politicians in Washington – both Republican and Democrat – all shook up but, at the same time, I’ve got a feeling the Tea Partiers may be facing a hard lesson of their own: That sometimes it’s the fellow sitting in…
Read MoreBroke
Oil still gushes into the Gulf of Mexico, courtesy of BP – “Broken Pipe.” So many dollars, debt and deficits gush out of Washington that the country looks broke. Even Al and Tipper broke up. This is a scary scenario for President and Obama and the Democrats (except for the Gore split). Nothing…
Read MoreCloud Cuckoo Land
Last week on his Facebook page, Raleigh Congressional candidate Bill Randall boldly challenged his readers: “Do not read the following if you are not willing to face this challenge head-on. Is there a remnant out there who aren’t willing to give up? This great Republic must be preserved.” Well, naturally, I clicked on the…
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