Nobody ever accused Jesse Helms of being naïve but he made a pretty serious misjudgment when it came to running against Jim Hunt â Jesse didnât think running against Hunt would be a cakewalk but he had the idea he was as popular (or more popular) than the governor and on top of that he…
Read MoreLike Billy Flynn in a Chicago courtroom Obama’s speech to Congress was all razzle-dazzle. It takes a silver tongue to spend a trillion dollars then say you’re against big government and get away with it. I don’t know who else could have done it. Surely not Bobby Jindal. Politics is pretty discouraging these days –…
Read MoreOnce upon a time North Carolina was considered the most anti-union state in the country; back then, nobody ever heard of a Democrat like Jim Hunt or Bob Scott supporting legislation to create more unions – but that’s exactly what Senator Kay Hagan is doing. So, what changed? It’s simple: Today Democratic voters see corporations…
Read MoreIt’s time to round up the usual suspects. Because Washington is headed into the same old battle over raising taxes. But this time the stakes are bigger, the faces are different and the outcome may be surprising. Since Ronald Reagan, the Republican formula has been a simple one. As Mary Matalin put it on MSNBC…
Read MorePresident Obama made a crucial strategic, rhetorical and political pivot in his speech to Congress last night. He shifted from warnings of “catastrophe” to an assertion of confidence: “We will rebuild, we will recover.” More than with most politicians, Obama’s words are worth paying attention to. Because, as a writer, he pays attention to words.…
Read MoreHere is, perhaps, the ultimate irony: Former KGB head and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is warning the United States against socialism. Quote: The U.S. should take a lesson from Russian history and not put its faith in “excessive intervention in economic activity and blind faith in the state’s omnipotence because socialism doesn’t work.” “In…
Read MoreAs a nation turns its lonely eyes to President Obama tonight, I’m reminded of the plaintive question Casey Stengel asked about the sad-sack Mets: “Can’t anybody here play this game?” Does anybody in Washington know what they’re doing? Do they know how to stop the Great Recession – and prevent a “Lost Decade”? Surely, the…
Read MoreTony Rand rolled out a sure-fire crowd-pleaser last week: limit the number of days legislators can collect their expenses. Voters love it. Good-government types extol it. Legislators can hardly vote against it. But some people question – privately – the wisdom behind it. Are shorter legislative sessions by definition better? In whatever your line of…
Read MoreGene Conti’s pick of N&O veteran Ted Vaden as deputy DOT secretary for communications revealed three things: Conti (caveat: a good friend) will be a good secretary. He understands that DOT will benefit from some disinfectant and sunshine. The N&O, like many daily papers, looks like a sinking ship. The age-old media suspicion of “flacks”…
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