Without a Thought

The 24-hour-news-cycle has turned into a 20-minute-news-cycle which doesn’t leave much time to think. About all a reporter – who has a publisher demanding a new story so he can sell more Internet ads on his website – can do is grab the latest tweet by Donald Trump and let it rip. And no one…

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Unhinged?

Donald Trump’s been called every name in the book: Braggart, con-man, bully. But no one’s called him a flip-flopper. The Donald speaks his mind and sticks to his guns. Then an odd thing happened. First Trump refused to endorse Paul Ryan, John McCain and Kelly Ayotte – which promptly ignited a firestorm up in Washington.…

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Never Seen Before

One poll has Hillary leading by nine. Another by ten. Another fifteen. The last fifteen national polls on Real Clear Politics all show Hillary leading. So is it a Hillary bump? A Trump dip? Is the die cast? Will the dip pass? Or get worse? Most Democrats look on Trump’s demise as revealed truth, a…

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Ross vs Burr and Cooper vs McCrory

A reader chided me for not writing lately about the NC Senate and Governor’s races. My excuse was that all the oxygen is taken up with “Trump said what today?” Then the Marist/Wall Street Journal poll last week showed Clinton, Ross and Cooper all leading. So here we go. The stunner was Clinton leading Trump…

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Lesser Evils

Let Hillary pack the Supreme Court, Tom said, and the country’s kaput. And that’s the way he sees it: Voting for Hillary’s wrong. Voting for Trump’s wrong. But voting for Trump is less wrong. But does being less wrong make it right? Every evil, lesser evil or greater evil, Spencer said, comes with a price.…

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Flubs

A pundit on Fox News said, Trump flubbed during the primary and it didn’t matter. So why should it matter now? Sounds logical. But does the logic hold water? Back during the primary when I’d turn on the television I’d see a debate stage full of Washington Republican politicians – and Ted Cruz and Donald…

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Her damn e-mails

Hillary Clinton would be cruising to a landslide victory of historic proportions – if it wasn’t for her damn emails. She had a great convention. She got a great bounce in the polls. She wisely stayed silent while her opponent attacked a Gold Star family, fought with his own party and made people question his…

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Fruit from Vices

Six of us sat down for our weekly lunch and an ethical  perplexity landed on the table: Does a Republican have to defend Donald Trump, no matter what he says, because if he doesn’t he’s helping elect Hillary? Eric, an attorney, asked. No one liked Hillary but no one liked Trump either and then Eric…

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Crooks and Fools

Sitting in a century old steakhouse staring out at the Brooklyn Bridge thirty years ago Hank Greenburg (the pollster not the baseball player) explained an election that could only happen in the grubby circus of New York politics: Given a choice between a Crook and a Fool, he said, voters take the Crook. His theory…

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Send Michelle

Hillary Clinton has been to North Carolina. President Obama has been here. Bill Clinton is back here. Tim Kaine has been here. It’s time to send the Big Gun: Michelle Obama. She was the biggest hit of the Democratic Convention, excepting Khizr Khan. Of course, Donald Trump hasn’t attacked Michelle. Yet. Maybe Melania is planning…

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