Posts by Gary Pearce
“Hitler,” Mr. Robinson?
Mark Robinson, who leads the Republican race for governor of North Carolina, said this about the criminal charges against Donald Trump: “Law and order has been destroyed, and we have a two-tiered justice system that has been weaponized against political enemies, much like it was during Hitler’s reign.” Have you read the indictment, Mr. Robinson?…
Read More“MAGA Fascists” vs Democracy
Adrian Fontes doesn’t mince words. He calls election-deniers “MAGA fascists.” Fontes, Arizona’s newly elected secretary of state, was the keynote speaker at the state Democratic Party’s Unity Dinner Saturday night. The big, burly ex-Marine with a booming voice and commanding presence delivered the most powerful and inspiring speech I’ve heard since Barack Obama in 2008.…
Read MoreEyes on Russia
While we were obsessing over billionaires at the bottom of the ocean, a civil war broke out in Russia. In 1917, civil war in Russia led to the fall of the Tsar and the rise of communism and the Soviet Union. In 1991, armed conflict in Moscow led to the breakup of the Soviet Union,…
Read MoreDining With Democrats
I’m doing something Saturday I haven’t done in years: go to a Democratic Party dinner. There, I’ll remember a man who is little known to Democrats, but meant a lot to me – and to North Carolina. The occasion is the state party Unity Dinner. I’ve done my time at these things. I’ve half-eaten too…
Read More“Deeply Sad” Abortion Ad?
A right-wing blog took a swing this week at Rachel Hunt’s abortion ad – and at her father, former Governor Jim Hunt. In a blog headlined “Rachel Hunt releases deeply sad campaign video,” Andrew Dunn wrote in Longleaf Politics: “State Sen. Rachel Hunt is making the abortion issue the centerpiece of her campaign for lieutenant…
Read MoreMandy Cohen, Covid and Masks
MAGA Republicans apparently like masks only when they’re worn by Proud Boys attacking the U.S. Capitol. North Carolina’s junior U.S. senator, “Popgun Ted” Budd, and 8th District Congressman, “Bathroom Dan” Bishop, last week claimed that, when Dr. Mandy Cohen was the state’s Secretary of Health and Human Services, she “spread misinformation about … Covid vaccinations…
Read MoreTillis’ Tap Dance
Do I have to start liking Thom Tillis now? The second-term U.S. Senator from North Carolina got censured by the state Republican convention for working with Democrats on guns, immigration and gay marriage. The resolution cited “blatant violations of our party platform.” The NC GOP doesn’t tolerate deviations from the party line. Then-Senator Richard Burr…
Read MoreRachel Hunt Sets the Stakes
Rachel Hunt’s first ad in the lieutenant governor’s race is a striking statement about the power of the abortion issue in 2024 – and the stakes for women in North Carolina. It begins, “When Roe v Wade came to rural America, women woke up to a different world, a world with a bit more time.…
Read MoreThe Trials Ahead
A reader emailed: “Doing nothing heroic, I served in naval intelligence. My service required a top-secret clearance. Each time I saw a top-secret document, I recall saying to myself: ‘No wonder this is top secret.’ Similar reaction when I saw documents classified ‘secret,’ also reflecting compelling reasons to protect their confidentiality. “Absorbing only what I…
Read MoreJust the Facts, Ma’am
Jack Smith looked a bit like Abe Lincoln and talked a lot like Sgt. Joe Friday. We saw and heard him Friday afternoon for the first time. In just under three minutes and just over 300 words – strong, striking, sledgehammer sentences – the special counsel laid out his case. “Good afternoon. Today, an indictment…
Read More