The corporate-wing of the State Republican Party, led by Charlotte Senator Bob Rucho, has come out four-square for Governor Perdue taking $545 million from the federal government to build ‘high-speed’ railroad tracks from Raleigh and Charlotte. Governors in several other states turned down the federal money, but Senator Rucho explained that ‘snubbing the federal…
Read MoreAn advisor to President Obama used a term recently that may be the theme – stated or not – of both his budget proposal Wednesday and his 2012 campaign: “a balanced approach.” He will no doubt contrast that to Republican “extremism.” And Republicans fell right into the trap. Rep. Paul Ryan’s dream budget gives Democrats…
Read MoreOne more Civil War story: In 1865, just after Lee surrendered at Appomattox Lincoln went to bed and had a dream: He was alone in the White House, walking through empty rooms and heard voices wailing; he walked towards the sound and came to a wide room he didn’t recognize but in the middle of…
Read MoreI received the missive below from a veteran of the Legislative Building. I should note that the author is not a yellow-dog Democrat, but rather someone who is sympathetic to the new Republican majority and its (supposed) agenda. “Long-time legislative observers are scratching their heads trying to remember if they’ve ever seen a staff person…
Read MoreThe press – from CBS News to Human Events – has been singing House Speaker John Boehner’s praises as the conqueror of Barack Obama and Harry Reid – the Speaker they say ‘out-fought,’ ‘out-smarted’ and ‘out-negotiated’ the Democrats. (Whoever heard of out-negotiating a Democrat?) Meantime, oddly, not a word has been said about Speaker Boehner’s forgotten…
Read MoreThere are a lot of wonderful stories and legends about the Civil War and here’s one: In 1865 Lincoln climbed the gangplank to a warship and sailed down the Chesapeake Bay to City Point (near Petersburg) to visit General Grant and, by then, it was clear to anybody but a blind-man General Lee couldn’t hold…
Read MoreIt’s hard to understand a newspaper endorsing censorship. But that’s what the Greensboro News & Record did this weekend. An editorial Saturday endorsed a bill before the legislature that would block all political robocalls. The editorial thundered that, not only are the calls “annoying,” but – horror of horrors – “under constitutional free speech…
Read MoreProfessor Cary Nelson, who looks more like a woodsman with his fulsome beard than the head of the American Association of University Professors, made a speech at Duke the other day and gave a dire warning American universities are in decline and in need of saving. What exactly is the universities’ problem? Not…
Read MoreNothing’s given and nothing’s certain but it sure looks like the government is not going to close down at midnight – instead, it looks like President Obama and the Democrats have won their fight with John Boehner and company. Congress is staring a $1.5 trillion deficit (and a $3.5 trillion budget) in the eye.…
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