Posts by Gary Pearce
GOP Lite or Real Dems?
It’s an argument I’ve heard for 40 years: “Southern Democrats, meet your future: No more Republican lite.” That’s the headline on a recent article by Bob Moser, Senior Editor at the National Journal. He wrote, “Candidates like (Kay) Hagan are stuck between the past, when Southern Democrats’ recipe for victory involved courting white moderates…
Read MoreIs the Bear Bored?
President Obama has taken to slipping the surly bonds of office, going out to Starbucks for a coffee, asking friends to set up late dinners with interesting, intellectually stimulating people (as opposed to the people he deals with in Washington, presumably). When he escapes, he jokes that “The bear is loose.” Surely, Presidents deserve…
Read MoreWhat Do You Read?
Here’s another example of how two different journals this week reported on the same political story: “Goodbye to the GOP wave?” The New York Times. “Odds of a GOP Wave Are Increasing” The National Journal.
Read MoreState for Sale. Cheap!
Art Pope’s critics often accuse him of “buying the State of North Carolina.” If he did, he got it cheap. The Washington Post this weekend published its obligatory profile about the mild-mannered retail magnate who became the Superman ruling over North Carolina’s budget, politics and university system. Two numbers catch your eye. …
Read MoreMore Coffee
At breakfast, two of the guys were bemoaning the challenges of life. Tom, a generous contributor to political candidates, sighed, “Having a politician for a friend is worse than having a child in college.” A while later, Phil looked up from his paper. “You need new glasses when you’re drawn to a headline…
Read More64 and 48
They’re not highway numbers, or ages. They are the two big numbers driving North Carolina’s education debate this year. When you take an eight-miles-high view of the legislature, setting aside the partisan debates and vitriol, the most striking thing is that Republicans are arguing this year over whether to raise teacher pay 5-6 per…
Read MoreWe Report, You Decide
New Yorker magazine, as I recall, once had a department called: “Which newspaper do you read?” It juxtaposed totally opposite headlines about the same story. To wit this week: “Clay Aiken outpaces GOP candidate in 2nd quarter fundraising” (Sandhills Tribune). “Rep. Ellmers ahead of Aiken in fundraising in 2nd Congressional District” (Fayetteville Observer).…
Read MorePat Versus Phil – and Dan?
A discerning reader adds a twist to my theory (see “Pat Versus Phil” blog below) that Senator Berger might back a primary opponent against Governor McCrory: It could be Lt. Governor Dan Forest: “Can’t help but notice Senate budget included Forest’s pet project for more education revenue but they didn’t include any of Gov’s pet…
Read MorePhil Cantor Jr.?
Republican primaries are the best entertainment you can find this summer. First Eric Cantor loses in a monumental upset. Then black Democrats save Thad Cochrane’s hide. Then two former Democrats running for Wake County DA fight over who’s the best Republican. And now Phil Berger Jr. loses big despite outspending his opponent big, plus…
Read MorePat Versus Phil
This increasingly looks like a political death match – with one survivor in the end. I’m betting on Phil Berger. Yesterday Governor McCrory compared Senator Berger & Co. to Marc Basnight, Tony Rand and – yes – Harry Reid. Ouch. Them’s fighting words. Imagine Jim Hunt comparing a Democratic House Speaker in the…
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