A Reese Hart Story
May 13, 2011 - by
Back in the 1970s, the AP had a legislative reporter in Raleigh named Reese Hart. In those days, AP, UPI and all the major newspapers generated a flood of stories about daily legislative developments. The N&O, where I worked, had a couple of pages every day devoted to the minutiae of bill introductions, committee meetings and floor debates.
Amid all the competition, Reese was the acknowledged master of one running story throughout the session: What day the session would adjourn.
Not what month, mind you, but what day. The gavels would barely come down after the convening of the session before Reese would begin prowling around, cornering key legislators and pursuing his story.
He would produce almost a weekly prediction. “June 22,” one story would predict. The next week: “July 1.” Then maybe the Speaker would speculate that “June 2 is possible.”
I don’t know if Reese was running an adjournment-date pool or just eager to get out of Raleigh, but he came to mind the other day when I asked a veteran hallwalker of the General Assembly how long this session will last.
“All year,” he responded. Given the looming budget-veto fight and redistricting, the session conceivably could last that long.
This is good news for Democrats. First, the longer the legislature stays, the worse it will look. The more dumb bills will emerge, and the more dumb things will be said. And some member inevitably will do something scandalous like fondle a page or get caught driving drunk.
Second, the later redistricting passes, the easier it will be for Democrats to tie everything up in the U.S. Department of Justice for civil rights reasons. (A hearty thank-you to Congressman McHenry!) And the more likely it is that Democrats recapture one house in 2012 with a boost from President Obama and the Charlotte convention.
So, in honor of Reese Hart, let’s all say “December 16.”
A Reese Hart Story
May 13, 2011/
Back in the 1970s, the AP had a legislative reporter in Raleigh named Reese Hart. In those days, AP, UPI and all the major newspapers generated a flood of stories about daily legislative developments. The N&O, where I worked, had a couple of pages every day devoted to the minutiae of bill introductions, committee meetings and floor debates.
Amid all the competition, Reese was the acknowledged master of one running story throughout the session: What day the session would adjourn.
Not what month, mind you, but what day. The gavels would barely come down after the convening of the session before Reese would begin prowling around, cornering key legislators and pursuing his story.
He would produce almost a weekly prediction. “June 22,” one story would predict. The next week: “July 1.” Then maybe the Speaker would speculate that “June 2 is possible.”
I don’t know if Reese was running an adjournment-date pool or just eager to get out of Raleigh, but he came to mind the other day when I asked a veteran hallwalker of the General Assembly how long this session will last.
“All year,” he responded. Given the looming budget-veto fight and redistricting, the session conceivably could last that long.
This is good news for Democrats. First, the longer the legislature stays, the worse it will look. The more dumb bills will emerge, and the more dumb things will be said. And some member inevitably will do something scandalous like fondle a page or get caught driving drunk.
Second, the later redistricting passes, the easier it will be for Democrats to tie everything up in the U.S. Department of Justice for civil rights reasons. (A hearty thank-you to Congressman McHenry!) And the more likely it is that Democrats recapture one house in 2012 with a boost from President Obama and the Charlotte convention.
So, in honor of Reese Hart, let’s all say “December 16.”