Posts by Gary Pearce
Bev’s Money
Among the people maddest at Governor Perdue are those who gave money to her campaign – especially big money when she was putting on a big push recently. She hasn’t decided what to do with the million-plus she has. Give it back? Give it to charity? Here’s an idea: turn the money over…
Read MoreMcCrory’s Needle is Stuck
Pat McCrory’s announcement statement showed that he hasn’t figured out how this campaign has changed. McCrory has spent four years running against Bev Perdue. Now he’s like Wiley Coyote running over the cliff: his legs are still pumping but there’s nothing underneath him anymore. To switch metaphors, he’s signing the same old song.…
Read MoreTalking ’bout Two Generations
Last week I was literally at sea – on a cruise. For the last 48 hours, I’ve been immersed in the stormy seas of Democratic politics. The first thing that struck me is the generational divide. Many older Democrats (i.e. – older than me) see Perdue’s decision as a potential disaster and Erskine…
Read MoreDon’t Run, Erskine
Prediction: Erskine Bowles won’t run. Suggestion: He shouldn’t. Yesterday I gave Laura Leslie and Rob Christensen all the reasons Erskine would be a great governor. The problem is that he’s a terrible candidate. Even he has admitted: “I have empirical data that I was a terrible politician.” He has proven it twice. That…
Read MoreQuitting Time
In politics, you’re never beaten until you give up. Governor Perdue is now officially beaten. She proclaims she’ll keep fighting and she’s no lame duck. She apparently gave a rousing speech to the Sanford-Hunt-Frye dinner. Still, she’s laying down her sword and walking off the field of battle. No doubt she feels beat…
Read MoreBack in Port
I’m just back from a week-long cruise to the western Caribbean – Grand Cayman, Honduras and Mexico. Did I miss anything? I’ll be catching up and weighing in. Plenty of material from last week! Thanks to Luther Snyder, Nation Hahn and the anonymous bloggers for their great contributions last week. They set a…
Read MorePolitics South of the Border
It was reputedly Robert E. Lee who said, “the problem with South Carolina is that it’s too small to be its own nation, but too large to be an insane asylum.” General Lee should have lived to see this year’s Republican primary. Stephen Colbert’s candidacy officially makes the race the best comedy show on…
Read MoreMitticisms
Mitt Romney has a worse case of Rich Foot in Mouth disease than George H.W. Bush and John Kerry combined. A few favorites: “I like being able to fire people.” “I had to worry about a pink slip.” (Of his $374,000-plus in speaking fees): “It wasn’t very much money.” (Of the…
Read MoreHow Bev Wins
A supporter of Governor Perdue makes this strong and succinct case for her tax proposal: “It could work out for her. She won’t get it unless there’s a groundswell of the public against our per child expenditure being 49th in the nation. If that happens she wins in a walk. If the legislature shoots…
Read MoreBev Is Right
Give Governor Perdue credit: whether it’s good politics or not, she’s doing the right thing on the sales tax. Unless, of course, you believe it’s right for North Carolina to be 49th in the country in education spending. And some people clearly do. That’s the crowd that wants to further defund the schools, so…
Read More