Several TAPsters took note that the New York Times obituary of Bill Friday focused mostly on the UNC desegregation battle in the 1970s. Martin Hunter of Charlotte wrote that he and his wife “thought that it was pretty slanted to make Friday look like a poorly-educated racist yahoo, who fought the Carter Justice Department…
Read MoreIn a bitter, polarized political age – and a lifetime of bitter, polarizing political battles – Bill Friday conquered all by heeding the Proverb: “A soft answer turneth away wrath, but a grievous word stirreth up anger.” Look at the battles he fought: The Smith-Graham Senate race in 1950, the basketball point-shaving scandal, cancelling…
Read MoreThe Associated Press reported a pair of odd facts the other day. In a headline the AP reported, “Obama using voter registration to stay close in NC” – then told how President Obama’s massive voter registration drive is helping him win North Carolina – by registering 250,000 new Obama voters. So far, that…
Read MoreCandidates run for office for all kinds of reasons: Foibles. Vanity. A desire to serve. But, whatever their reasons, after they announce they run head-on into an unpleasant fact: Running or office (even a local office like County Commissioner) costs a lot of money and raising money is plain old-fashioned hard work. It has…
Read MoreBill Clinton saved President Obama at the convention. Joe Biden saved him last night. Now it’s up to Obama to make his case. Biden was by far the dominant figure in the VP debate. At a minimum, he won by showing some fight and rallying panicky Democrats. Past that, your opinion of the debate…
Read MoreWhile Mitt Romney was morphing into a moderate last week, an aide to Pat McCrory sent out an email calling his candidate a “centrist Republican.” Two questions: How do conservative Republicans feel about that, and how will both men govern if elected? The email was from J. C. Blucher Ehringhaus, III of Charlotte, who…
Read MoreCould one debate turn the presidential race upside down and give Mitt Romney a comeback win over President Obama? Yes, and there are 67.2 million reasons why. Nielsen says that’s how many people watched last Wednesday’s debate. It was “the highest-rated first election-season debate since 1980.” Of the viewers, 12 million were age 18-34…
Read MoreGovernor Hunt, my old boss, is like a veteran rock band that still rocks. He may be 75, but he’s still on his game. Even Pat McCrory is cozying up to him. Hunt gave a well-received speech at the Democratic Convention. Unlike a lot of speakers, he didn’t promote himself. He’s beyond needing…
Read MoreJim Lehrer deserves a break. If he made a mistake moderating the presidential debate, it wasn’t that he should have done more to rein in Romney and Obama. He should have done less. The presidential debate, with its free-flowing format, was much more informative than the gubernatorial debate, which stuck to the stiff and…
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Once upon a time, there was a great and powerful newspaper: The News & Observer. Everybody…
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