I made my maiden appearance on Anderson Cooper’s CNN show last night (regrettably, I can’t find a link for your viewing pleasure; somebody help me). Therein lie two stories: one about how news happens today and the other about how President Obama still might get reelected. First, the news. I was on – looking,…
Read MoreA friend chastised me – and rightly so – for not taking note of the July 31 death of long-time (1973-2007) Rocky Mount Mayor Fred Turnage. It’s not just that Turnage was mayor for 34 years and not just that he was a progressive leader in difficult times. Rocky Mount has long been…
Read MoreIt’s terrible what they’re saying about President Obama. Not the Republicans; the Democrats. This week, there has been an explosion of criticism from the President’s own party and old supporters. You’ll find an example on almost every newspaper or political website. It runs the gamut: He’s too aloof, he caved on the debt…
Read MoreA TAPster follows up on the blog about many chiefs at the Department of Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Prevention: “Look up the salaries of the executives. Look at the total payroll of those at the top level. The Department laid off the direct staff of those who serve juveniles, but many and most of…
Read MoreThe Department of Cultural Resources put on a nice lovefest for the presentation of Governor Hunt’s fourth volume of papers Tuesday. Governor Perdue was in excellent form, and the Southeast Raleigh High School vocal ensemble was outstanding. (One bit of news was missing from Under the Dome’s account: Governor Hunt said he had talked…
Read MoreDemocrats fear they’re watching another failed Presidency. Like with Jimmy Carter, they see a faltering economy and a President who seems unable to turn the political tide. It was telling that, throughout Carter’s four years in office, editorial cartoons pictured him growing smaller and smaller. In the few cartoons left today, Obama gets skinnier…
Read MoreA TAPster takes on Republican gubernatorial candidate Pat McCrory over McCrory’s op-ed in the Charlotte Observer on voter ID: “I think there are some interesting facts that McCrory failed to share in his piece – and I’m surprised a paper like the Observer would publish without asking him some questions on his sources. Notably McCrory…
Read MoreLinda Hayes, the secretary of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, is this monthâs winner of the Thom Tillis Bonehead Budget Award. Speaker Tillis, you recall, put state government on a diet, then gave his staff fat raises. Hayes wins for complaining about budget cuts and then, according to a TAPster, âclosing a couple…
Read MoreA TAPster takes strong issue with the N&O’s reporting on the American Legislative Exchange Council, which is meeting this weekend in New Orleans. “The N&O’s Under the Dome blog reached a distressing new low in public affairs reporting with its story on the American Legislative Exchange Council. The blog reports on allegations by a liberal…
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