Archive for 2011
Sarah Palin, the Movie
A New York Times story reporting that Sarah Palin is moving toward running for President has this intriguing paragraph: “The drumbeat intensified on Tuesday night when the conservative filmmaker Stephen K. Bannon was quoted on RealClearPolitics, a political news site, as saying that he was releasing a feature film he made with Ms. Palin’s acquiescence…
Read MorePlease Make a Deal
Please spare us. Put us out of our misery. Don’t make us go through a months-long courtroom regurgitation of all the tawdry details of John Edwards’ campaigns, marriage and affair. Especially those of us who had anything to do with Edwards getting to where he could do so much damage and bring so much…
Read MoreTilting
Last election President Barack Obama won huge majorities among ‘early voters’so, naturally, now Republicans want less ‘early voting.’ Of course, no self-respecting legislator is going to put it quite that bluntly. Representative Bert Jones is an example. He told the press he’s for limiting early voting because it will ‘shorten campaigns.’ Think…
Read MoreThe GOP’s Lousy Crop
If the Republican Party was a farmer and his crop was the current field of presidential candidates, he’d be losing the farm. How can that be? How can a party coming off a landslide election sweep, a party consumed by its hatred of President Obama, a party convinced it has the right ideas for…
Read MoreMcCrory vs Perdue: Polls
The North Carolina Free Enterprise Foundation has been studying the polls in the Governor’s race and after adding them all up and averaging them together it’s issued a report saying Pat McCrory leads Governor Perdue 50% to 38% – which is no surprise as the Governor’s been in hot water in one way or another…
Read MoreThe Education of Phil Berger
Contrary to what some people think, I believe the most powerful weapon in politics isnât a negative ad. Itâs a positive message. And Senator Phil Berger seems to have figured that out. He realized the Republicans were losing ground by having to defend their education cuts â including laying off teachers. So last week…
Read MoreA New York Ménage à tois
Itâs âdéjà vuâ all over again. A couple of years ago up in New York they had a Congressional Race where a liberal Democrat was running against a liberal Republican and then a CPA â whoâd never run for anything â jumped in the race as the candidate of the New York Conservative Party and…
Read MoreBest Commencement Line Ever
My daughter and her 87 classmates lucked out at their St. Mary’s School Commencement Sunday: Their speaker was Betty Ray McCain. Betty, a 1950 St. Mary’s Junior College grad, is not only a pioneering example for young women and one of the state’s most accomplished leaders, but also one of the funniest people in…
Read MoreEditorial Boards
The CIA has water-boarding. The N&O has editorial-boarding. I sat in on an N&O editorial board meeting Wednesday that starred Dr. Bill Atkinson from WakeMed (full disclosure: my client) and Dr. Bill Roper from UNC Health Care. I felt like I was back in a campaign debate. The N&O story stressed the…
Read MoreThree Egyptian Mobs
The first Egyptian mob chanting and demonstrating a month ago on CNN was out to get rid of Hosni Mubarak and President Obama, figuring the mob was a sign of a ‘fledgling new Democracy’ being born in front of his eyes, gave Mubarak a shove. The second Egyptian mob about a week ago wanted…
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