Posts by Gary Pearce
Bev’s Bump
Governor Perdue finally got some good poll news. Public Policy Polling says her approval rating climbed out of the 20s. She’s at 30 percent, with 49 percent disapproval. But why? One theory: It’s because of her fight to keep in prison the 27 inmates the (Republican majority) Supreme Court wants to set free.…
Read MorePayback Time for Nesbitt?
A wise reader – and veteran Raleigh observer – offers this perspective about Senator Martin Nesbitt: “As you’ll recall, Nesbitt was one of Liston Ramsey’s key lieutenants when Liston was overthrown by a coalition of impatient Dems and opportunistic Repubs. Nesbitt was really bitter about what happened, and it probably sidetracked his career for…
Read MoreWanted: Competence
Ideologues – left and right – see elections as referendums on philosophy. But voters – often as not – are looking for simple competence. Somebody to run government well: protect us from enemies foreign and domestic, encourage job growth, educate our kids, spend tax money wisely and sparingly, etc. Republicans lost in 2006 and…
Read MoreRogue Rage
Laura Leslie of WUNC-FM – who does a great political blog – told a panel during last year’s campaign that she was sick and tired of men who liked Sarah Palin because she is “hot.” Sorry, Laura, but how else can someone so clearly unprepared for national office be taken seriously as a candidate…
Read MoreA Painful Lesson
It sounded like The New Martin Nesbitt after Democrats picked him for majority leader: “I saw ’94 up close and personal. I saw how things can get out of control. There are very few things that I’m the most qualified for, but getting us through this election is one of them.” Anxious Democrats…
Read MorePopulism Run Amok
I’m all for having regular guys and gals in high office. But this is too much. The New York Times reported this anecdote in a story about Federal Research Chair Ben Bernanke lobbying against bills aimed at the Fed: “At one recent meeting, Senator Sherrod Brown challenged Mr. Bernanke’s bona fides as a…
Read MoreThe Clinton Prescription
The Big Dog’s got the scent. Democrats should pay attention. For all his faults, Bill Clinton has one of the best noses in politics. And this week he gave Senate Democrats exactly the right strategy for passing health-care reform: It’s the economy, stupid. That is, reform will help the economy by slowing…
Read MoreComeback Cal?
I was never sure Cal Cunningham was totally committed to running for the Senate. Now I’m not sure he’s committed to sit it out. A Machiavellian part of me suspects his withdrawal could be a ploy aimed at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. The DSCC has been waiting – it seems like forever…
Read MoreMods and Rockers
Life as a moderate Democrat in North Carolina isn’t for the weak of heart. Like England in the ‘60s, it’s the Mods versus the Rockers. But these Rockers come at the Mods from both sides: the Obama disciples on the left and the Rush-Beck wrecking crew on the right. Larry Kissell voted against…
Read MoreHow to Survive in 2010
My old friend and North Carolina native Harrison Hickman, a Washington pollster, has written “a 2010 survival guide for Democrats” He writes that, “Survival is possible even in the worst of climates, as many Democrats in 1984 and 1994, and many Republicans in 1986 and 2008 have shown.” Here’s his first prescription: …
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