Seeing the Republicans’ gerrymandered redistricting scheme reminds me of the rueful comment made by a wise old Democrat right after the 2010 elections: “We picked a bad year to have a meltdown.” If this was a “normal” year – i.e., not a redistricting year – Democrats could be confident the Republicans blew their chance.…
Read MoreI continue to be amazed by the disgust and distrust of the State Highway Patrol that I hear. One TAPster had a cogent analysis – and some thoughtful ideas: “Here are a couple of policy suggestions for the governor and General Assembly as the putrid stench of testosterone and KY jelly wafts once again…
Read MoreSpeaker Thom Tillis was a successful management consultant, but he’s having less success at message management. When he met with the Asheville Citizen-Times editorial board recently, the Republican Speaker and his well-paid staff probably anticipated a headline something like “Tillis touts lean budget, efficient session.” Instead, they got this: “N.C. Speaker defends staff…
Read MoreSenate Chieftain Phil Berger reared up on his hind legs last week and, ripping into lawyers, said one way or the other he’s going to pass his bill to end ‘frivolous lawsuits.’ Only there’s one problem. The bill Senator Berger’s dead set on passing isn’t really about ending frivolous lawsuits. Instead, the Medical…
Read MoreEverybody assumes there will be a governor’s race next year between Bev Perdue and Pat McCrory. Hold the mayo. Some conservative Republicans (and I’m not talking about Carter; I haven’t asked him) aren’t excited about McCrory. They don’t see much difference between him and Perdue. They’re casting around for a real conservative…
Read MoreJohn Deere Company wanted the state to buy more of its tractors. So its lobbyist set to work and Republican House Leader ‘Skip’ Stam proposed a bill to change how the state bids tractor buying contracts. Stam’s bill sailed through the legislature, then the newspaper reported John Deere’s political committee gave seven of the…
Read MoreGovernor Perdue has another State Highway Patrol mess on her hands. This time, it looks like a trooper picked the wrong people to treat the wrong way. If you haven’t read Hoyt Tessener’s letter relating what he says happened to his wife Gina, do so. It is extremely disturbing. Fair or not, since…
Read MoreI asked a friend who works up in Washington for a Congressman, What’s going to happen on the debt ceiling? They’re all, he said, all the leaders, dying to raise it. The Republican leaders will agree to raise the ceiling $2 trillion in exchange for $2 trillion in spending cuts over ten years. …
Read MoreMaybe it’s congenital. Democrats love complexity – and loathe simplicity. So it is with state Democrats’ message about the Republican budget. Yes, Governor Perdue has pulled up her polling numbers by standing up to the legislature – and saying the Republican budget hurts education. But it’s hard to prove: that education was…
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