General
Have a Merry One
Our annual orgy of spending and consumption is nearly at an end. A day of peace and stillness beckons. Not that I’m going to get all holier-than-thou. An orgy of spending and consumption is exactly what our economy needs. But a question nags when you see cars lined up at the malls, shoppers…
Read MoreSubmarine Maneuvers
Twenty years ago SBI agent and blood-splatter expert Duane Deaver withheld evidence in a murder trial in Raleigh and an innocent man went to prison. Later, in a murder trial in Johnston County a federal judge ruled that Deaver had given “false and misleading testimony.” Then a few days ago Judge Orlando Hudson…
Read MoreSuper Irony
Democrats have fretted over the emergence of Super PACs, fearing that their big money and negative ads will help Republicans. But, so far, Republicans are the leading victims of Super PACs. Newt Gingrich has been savaged by them. Mitt Romney feigns innocence while his millionaire friends dump a truckload of negatives on Newt. One…
Read MoreA Christmas Gift
On behalf of all Democrats, I thank Speaker Boehner and House Republicans for their unexpected and unbelievably generous Christmas gift. Of course, their gift for the country as a whole is more like a lump of coal. They want to give 160 million Americans a tax increase, cut off unemployment benefits and nip the…
Read MoreNewt and the Judges
He’s fed up with elitist judges, Newt says, so as President he’s just going to ignore their rulings. And what’s more, he adds, as a historian he knows that Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln would agree with him. Of course, the press pounced, immediately, asking, So, if President Newt can ignore court rulings –…
Read MoreRepublican Waves
If you looked at a chart tracking the Republican presidential race, you would see a series of waves rising and falling. First you’d see the Michelle Bachman wave rise and fall. Then the Rick Perry wave – again, rise and fall. Same for Herman Cain. Now Newt Gingrich has been on the rise…
Read MoreFaison’s Face-off
Let me get this straight. According to Rob Christensen’s story today, Bill Faison ran for Democratic state party chair last year at the request of Governor Perdue. Two possibilities: One, Faison is an ingrate for publicly questioning whether Perdue will or should run for reelection – or, two, Perdue cannily spotted a potential…
Read MorePerdue’s Prospects
Governor Perdue had to hate reading the N&O this morning. First there’s a front-page story regurgitating her flight problems, with a boost from Democratic scold Joe Sinsheimer. Then Dome quotes a professor from his perch at UVA opining about her tough path to reelection. This is why Democrats are wringing their hands about…
Read MoreNewt vs. Newt
A Republican friend says there is only one person who can beat Newt Gingrich now: Newt Gingrich. And he’s perfectly capable of it. Tom Fetzer’s decision to lead Newt’s campaign in North Carolina shows how unhappy conservatives are with one-time frontrunner Mitt Romney. Mitt’s just too moderate. And for some Republicans, too Mormon.…
Read MoreI Stand Corrected
In response to a question recently, I blogged that Jim Hunt (1972 Lieutenant Governor’s race) was the last male candidate to defeat a woman in a Democratic primary. Wrong. It was Erskine Bowles, who defeated – among others – Elaine Marshall in 2002. This is courtesy of my friend John Hood with…
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