President Obama’s speech last night showed he has a knack for coming back after a setback – and a knack for the comeback quip. Three things about the night: (1) How Obama framed the debate (2) the partisan debate over bipartisanship and (3) the split-screen social media experience of watching political events like what…
Read MoreThere’s good news and there’s bad news about the true state of the N.C. Democratic Party. The bad news is that the actual financial situation is worse than it looks. Much of the $42,700 that the party has on hand belongs to the House and Senate caucuses. That’s also the good news, because…
Read MoreIs there something in the water in Chapel Hill that keeps University big shots from giving straight answers? The same lockjaw that keeps the UNC-CH athletic-academic scandal on the front pages has now spread to the Board of Governors. The board’s non-speak/double-speak non-explanation of why Tom Ross was forced out leaves only one logical…
Read MoreThe mystery isn’t how he died; it’s the Department of Prisons’ silence. Michael Kerr was in and out of trouble with the law for a decade – he was a thief, assaulted a woman and tried to outrun a policeman in a patrol car – then two crimes committed against him left him on…
Read MoreOn their first day in session, legislative leaders sent a message to Governor McCrory: We’re back, and we’re in charge. McCrory has talked about three things in recent weeks: He wants more money for economic incentives, he may want to expand Medicaid and he wants a Dix deal with Raleigh (not Charlotte). In…
Read MoreTwo headlines this week tell why even President Obama’s fans despair sometimes. First, while Obama and his staff focused on rolling out his free-community college proposal, they neglected to send anybody to the biggest story in the world: the Paris rally against terror. Second, while the President was giving a speech on cybersecurity, our…
Read MoreHas Rep. Paul Tine found the promised land – or no man’s land? Tine, who was elected twice as a Democrat, says he can help his district by switching to unaffiliated and caucusing with House Republicans. But will it help him or hurt him in 2016? Voters clearly have no love for…
Read MoreObama stands on a stage in Tennessee and promises nine million people he’ll give them $3,800 a year each (on average) and the press coos he’s made a “dramatic announcement” then a skeptic asks how Obama’ll come up with the money and Obama has the White House staff tell him, ‘That’s beside the point.’ …
Read MoreHere’s an idea for Democratic legislators, one that could be good politics and good for North Carolina: Help Governor McCrory pass his plan for Medicaid expansion. After meeting with President Obama at the White House last week, McCrory said he argued for flexibility to develop a “North Carolina plan.” But, as Carter noted during…
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