General
Trials for Terrorists
I had dinner last night with my old friend Will, the lawyer, and, right off, after the first beer he said, President Bush is as dumb as a post. Now, Will is an old Reagan man. He remembers seeing Reagan’s speech for Goldwater on TV in 1964 and he’s a purist. He still thinks of…
Read MorePerdue, McCrory Face Off
If one of my Reliable Sources is right, Bev Perdue’s partisans have much to worry about now that she has agreed to five debates with Pat McCrory. The Source reports that McCrory outshone Perdue at the N.C. Chamber’s Manufacturing Summit in Greensboro this week. The Source acknowledges that it was a Republican crowd. But added…
Read MoreRichard the Reluctant
The nomination is settled, the race is over, and the loser has conceded. Now the political world waits to see whether the loser will get fully behind the winner. Not Hillary Clinton. Richard Moore. For more than a month since the gubernatorial primary, Moore has avoided a full-bore endorsement of Bev Perdue. Interviewed after Obama’s…
Read MoreWhen the Shoe Is On the Other Foot
A tip of the hat to Joyce Fitzpatrick, who sent along this news item: “The News & Observer is preparing to lay off about 10 percent of its newsroom staff and will announce other cuts affecting its news operation, sources inside the N&O tell WRAL.com.” And the N&O responded exactly the same way that its…
Read MoreWhy Dole Is Winning
Word around Raleigh is that Kay Hagan wants to run – a la Bev Perdue – a “positive” campaign. If she does, Democrats can forget beating Liddy Dole. You don’t beat an incumbent by being positive. You have to offer voters a better alternative. If it makes you feel better, call it a “contrast” campaign…
Read MoreObama’s Head Fake
Barack Obama is supposed to be quite the pickup basketball player, and he’s putting quite the head fake on John McCain in North Carolina. It’s good strategy. Obama has the money and the grassroots organization to make the Republicans worry – at least for now – about how much time and money to spend here.…
Read MoreHow McCrory Can Win
Pat McCrory was always the Republicans’ best bet to win the Governor’s race in November. But how can he win in what may be a Democratic year? There is only one way: Use Obama’s strategy. Be the candidate of Change. Attack “a culture of corruption and mismanagement in Raleigh.” He doesn’t have to overstate things.…
Read More$250 Million
When it comes to brute cunning it’s hard to match the Wake County School Board – it’s budget time and they’ve met the County Commissioners in fiscal battle head-on. The Board says it can cut dropout rates and graduate ninety percent of its students by 2013 – but there’s a catch. It needs more money.…
Read MoreGeorge McGovern in the Age of the Internet?
Every time a fellow opens his mouth he tells you something about himself – though politicians try harder than most folks to fool you. Senator John McCain spoke for a solid hour on Fox News Primary Night – and it was tough sledding. He read his speech from a teleprompter – and it was not…
Read MoreWhy Obama Will Win
Because the choice between Obama and McCain will come down to Change versus Race. And Team Obama is smart enough to make McCain pay for a race-based campaign. Obama owns Change. It’s one big reason he beat Clinton, Edwards, et al. That one-word Change message gets ridiculed. It would be worthy of ridicule if change…
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