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The Singer or the Song

By Gary Pearce March 19, 2013

Senator Phil Berger says national Republicans have a messenger problem, not a message problem. Democrats might well hope he believes that.   After attending CPAC – the right-wing Woodstock – Berger told Travis Fain at the Greensboro News & Record: “It’s not just a communication problem. Sometimes it’s the individual messengers … (and) some folks…

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The Leaked Plan – Part I

By Carter Wrenn March 18, 2013

In his novel Intruder in the Dust, William Faulkner wrote if you have something outside the ordinary to do and it’s got to be done quickly, don’t waste time on the men – go get the women and children. Thirty-seven years ago, here in North Carolina, we built Ronald Reagan’s first Presidential campaign around women…

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Undo and Recycle

By Gary Pearce March 18, 2013

A TAPster and veteran of the Raleigh scene says “undoing” and “recycling” are the GOP trademarks thus far.   Last week, he noted: “The GOP focused on un-doing the deal on the Dix property, un-doing the state’s renewable energy policy and un-doing other done deals like the death penalty moratorium.   “In their zeal to…

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Got Tickets?

By Gary Pearce March 15, 2013

A long-time Raleigh lobbyist recalls the days when legislators helped themselves to ACC tournament tickets – courtesy of lobbyists and special interests.   Every year about this time, the demand was so strong that lobbyists felt like Ticketmaster or StubHub.   One mountain legislator – a Democrat, I should add – was especially insistent. He…

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Best in Blogs

By Gary Pearce March 14, 2013

Carter and I finally got elected to something ourselves – sort of. Talking About Politics was named one of the best North Carolina political blogs by The Fix at the Washington Post.   Best of all, we were nominated by readers. We thank you.   Also named from here: @NCCapitol; Progressive Pulse; Watauga Watch; The…

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Saturday Mail

By Carter Wrenn March 13, 2013

Washington may be about to give us an answer on one of the longest running philosophical debates since Eve bit the apple: Are humans rational creatures?   For months, just about every politician in Washington – Republican Congressmen, Democratic Senators, President Obama, Speaker John Boehner – has been talking about how much they want to…

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Fast and Mean

By Gary Pearce March 13, 2013

Two months in, two things are striking about the Republican regime in Raleigh: how fast they move and how mean they seem.   This is a recipe for a Democratic revival, if – and it’s a big if – Democrats get their act together.   Too many politicos – Democrats and Republicans – assume that…

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Watch What They Do, Not What They Say

By Carter Wrenn March 12, 2013

Congressman Walter Jones is an old-fashioned soft-spoken Southerner – so when I saw he’d put a statement on Twitter, I thought, What the heck? I clicked and landed on a statement (Walter had made) that explained just about everything anyone needs to know about the Sequester in one-page.   Last month up in Washington President…

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UNC PR

By Gary Pearce March 11, 2013

Why does a university with so many journalism and PR grads get such bad PR in media outlets where lots of UNC grads work?   After Dan Kane’s report in The News & Observer Sunday – not to mention this weekend’s games – those grads might ask: Why did they hire a Duke guy for…

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Two Pieces

By Carter Wrenn January 30, 2025

When the smoke cleared – after Jesse Helms’ second campaign – we’d raised more money than…

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Mish-Mash

By Carter Wrenn January 29, 2025

Tim Waltz posted a photo of himself standing outside in a snowstorm wearing a flannel shirt…

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Finding Out

By Gary Pearce January 28, 2025

Some Trump supporters are surprised to find out they’re Trump victims. Farmers at the American Farm…

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