General
Salute, Carter
That old warhorse Carter pulled off another one. He’s had a history of guiding Republican Senate – and now congressional – candidates to unexpected victories: John East, Jesse Helms, Lauch Faircloth and, now, Renee Ellmers. He’ll be the first to tell you that it was, first and foremost, the national tide. But…
Read MoreAll Politics Is National
As Carter said on a radio interview we did a couple of weeks ago, Tip O’Neill’s axiom – “all politics is local” – is dead. Democrats vote Democratic – up and down the line. Republicans vote Republican. And Independents rarely split their tickets any more. The dramatic turnover in the North Carolina legislature…
Read MoreMemo to Democrats
Face it: We got whacked. The natural reactions are denial and rationalization: “We didn’t communicate well.” Or, “The voters just don’t get it.” Or, “Evil Big Money drowned us out.” Wrong, wrong and wrong. The American voters just didn’t like the dishes Democrats served up the last two years. The signal…
Read MoreElection Eve
Perhaps the essential truth about election days is their ambiguity. Today, of course, we Republicans are asking each other if the 2nd Coming, politically, is at hand. But even on Election Day the imponderables offer no answers. Realizing how we humans hate ambiguity the cable TV networks have fed us a steady diet of…
Read MorePoll Spin
Lo and behold, Art Pope’s Civitas Institute did a poll that found that North Carolina voters agree with – wait for it, yes, Art Pope! – on who is to blame for the recession: government, not business, by 64-22. But curb your enthusiasm. Look deeper. Last week, the New York Times did a…
Read MoreA Small Problem
About a year ago, Governor Perdue’s Secretary of Health and Human Services, Lanier Cansler, a former lobbyist, did a strange thing: He gave an exclusive $30 million no-bid contract to a company that had only been in existence for two months – Prodigy Diabetes Care. Naturally, the press, suspicious, started digging and soon found…
Read MoreA Thumpin’
At this point, North Carolina Democrats are reduced to asking: How bad will it be? Will Republicans have only a slim margin in the state House and Senate – an invitation for coalition mischief? Or will they win upwards of 25 Senate seats and 65 House seats? Will Marc Basnight land on his…
Read MoreCaesar’s Wife and Voting Machines
During my childhood my grandmother used to tell me ‘appearances matter. Julius Caesar, I learned later, felt the same way. One night his wife, Pompeia, found herself in a awkward encounter with a Roman gentleman bent on seducing her. By most accounts Pompeia was innocent but nonetheless her encounter with young Publius Clodius led to…
Read MoreOver in Kabul
There’s more bad news from Afghanistan. The “backbone of President Obama’s plan to start withdrawing troops” has hit a wall. Literally. Right now, over in Afghanistan we’re spending millions to build police stations so the Afghan Army and National Police can take over from our Marines next July. But, the newspaper reports, the Police…
Read MoreAmericans are United…on One Thing
WRAL released a new poll the other day. Senator Richard Burr leads Elaine Marshall by fifteen points but Marshall shouldn’t take it personally as the reason Burr leads has little to do with her. 54% of the voters are Unfavorable to President Obama – and it’s no coincidence Senator Burr is getting 53% of…
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