North Carolina – Democrats
Riots and Campaigns
Yesterday two reporters asked me if the riots in Charlotte were going to have a ‘political impact.’ On the radio, while driving to work, I’d heard about the riots but hadn’t read any news reports and didn’t know the answer—then last night at home I turned on the television and the second night of riots…
Read MoreCorrecting Mistakes
One poll question asked, Should transgender men be allowed to use women’s bathrooms? and another question asked, Do you support HB2? and the answer to both questions was ‘No’ which sounds like a contradiction but isn’t: It’s a paradox – a case of voters saying to Republicans, We agree with what you set out to…
Read More50 days minus 1
Carter and I were interviewed by The Charlotte Observer Monday about the election outlook. So, instead of having to organize our thoughts and actually write something, we’ll just post the following story by the Observer’s editorial board, “50 days out, here’s what political experts think (and predict!) about N.C.’s biggest races”: We’re less than 50…
Read MoreYou’re news, you lose
Here’s the harsh reality of 2016 politics, as demonstrated by Hillary Clinton last week and Pat McCrory over the past many weeks: If you lead the news, you lose in the polls. You’re news, you lose. In an angry, negative political environment, more media attention translates directly into more negative feelings from voters. The ongoing…
Read MoreWTF, Pat?
Now HB2 has gone too far. It’s interfering with our state religion: NCAA basketball. It’s one thing to lose the NBA All-Star Game or PayPal. But March Madness? And Potty Pat McCrory wonders why we’re still talking about this. Maybe because he keeps talking about it. He’s lurching. Defending HB2 one day, dropping it the…
Read MoreHail Mark Ezzell
Every great saga has a hero. The hero of the Wake County early-voting saga is Mark Ezzell. With persistence and persuasiveness, Ezzell, the lone Democrat on the Wake County elections board, prevailed in his effort to expand early voting here. He persuaded the GOP-majority state board to vote 3-2 to expand the number of voting…
Read MoreFrozen
Sean is Irish and Catholic and decades ago his great-grandfather was an immigrant; after he (Sean) graduated from Fordham and married and worked a stint in White Plains, New York, he moved to Raleigh where he now lives and earns $175,000 a year. Sean doesn’t have one ideological bone in his body and partisan politics…
Read MoreRoy is ready
As I listened to Roy Cooper set a crowd of OBX Democrats to clapping and hollering Monday evening, a wise old political vet whispered what I was thinking: “He’s come a long way.” A year or so ago, Democrats had doubts about Cooper. “He should have run before now.” “Does he really have the fire…
Read MoreThe rise of Deborah Ross
Richard Burr has his hands full. For the first time since he went to Washington 22 years ago, he faces a double whammy: a strong opponent and a bad year for Republicans. You can see his problem in the first ad for Deborah Ross. It tags Burr, sans socks, as the worst kind of Washington…
Read MoreElection-rigging
Donald Trump was right. Somebody is trying to rig the election. It’s his party. In North Carolina. Dallas Woodhouse’s email is the smoking gun. He directed Republican election board members in all 100 counties to make “party line” changes that keep Democrats from voting and keep Republican politicians in power. This is exactly what Republicans…
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