Good ol’ Harry Reid gave the Republican Party hell last week for creating its Trump Frankenstein monster. Reid just didn’t go far enough. In a Washington speech, “Give ‘em hell” Harry said GOP leaders who now denounce Trump are to blame for Trump: “The Republican establishment acts bewildered. But they should not be bewildered. As much…
Read MoreLast Monday, the day before the Presidential Primary, Congresswoman Renee Ellmers spent the day campaigning and tweeting and posting photographs of herself (speaking at events) on Facebook then returned home to Dunn for the night. Up in Washington, the same night, the House voted on a resolution condemning ISIS for committing genocide against Christians –…
Read MorePresident Obama’s Supreme Court move was brilliant. He put Senate Republicans in a box the very day they faced up to the prospect of a Trump electoral disaster in November. The Republicans can either confirm Merrick Garland, a mild and moderate choice by most accounts, or they can take their chances on the next President’s…
Read MoreBarack Obama’s 2008 election was about hope. This one will be about hate. Two savvy political veterans, a Republican and a Democrat, agreed this week on one thing: a Trump-Clinton race will bring us historic levels of negativity, bitterness and, yes, hate. The Democrat added, “Hate is a greater motivator than love. It could be…
Read MoreBernie Sanders and Donald Trump are wildly different, but weirdly alike. Sanders was a wild-haired radical who became a white-haired “Democratic socialist” and is roiling the Democratic establishment. Trump was a weird-haired excess symbol who became a reality TV star and is running roughshod over the Republican establishment. Both are buoyed by blue-collar voters who feel screwed…
Read MoreWhen George Holding first ran for Congress, I wrote a series of reports about how campaigns are built day to day. Now, four years later, George has a primary with Congresswoman Renee Ellmers and I’m going to do the same thing again. I should point out, at the beginning, I’m not unbiased. I worked with…
Read MoreHillary Clinton may have a nearly 20-point lead in the latest PPP North Carolina poll, but she and Bernie Sanders are both fighting hard here – and coming here on the last day. Why? Because our delegates divvy up this way: 70 allocated by congressional district, 23 to the statewide winner and 28 “PLEOs” (party…
Read MoreHere’s an idea for the North Carolina Leadership Forum that Rob Christensen wrote about this week. The Forum is a group of prominent leaders from both sides of the political aisle. Rob described its mission this way: “Why not get North Carolinians of all political stripes together to have conversations, to better understand one another’s…
Read MoreWe’re told Donald Trump’s appeal is “strength.” But twice this week unforgiving cameras showed what really lies beneath: weakness or even, shall we say, impotence. In Fayetteville, a white Trump supporter punched a black protestor. The attacker said, “The next time we see him, we might have to kill him.” Protest must be punished. Dissenters…
Read More