North Carolina – Democrats
Can Democrats Go Country?
As North Carolina Democrats elect a state chair this weekend, three divides emerge: young/old, rural/Raleigh and grassroots/headquarters. Two contrasting candidates are 73-year-old incumbent chair Bobbie Richardson, who defends the party’s 2022 performance, and 25-year-old Anderson Clayton (pictured), who says the party should do more at the grassroots and in rural areas. One young Democrat texted…
Read MoreDavid Price Made Politics Work
If you want to know politics at its best, study David Price. He was showered with well-earned praise when he retired from Congress earlier this month. But too few people fully appreciate what a force for good Price has been for so long – for the Triangle, for North Carolina, for the Democratic Party and,…
Read MoreHistory Repeating Itself
Throwing his hat in the ring Josh Stein’s off and running for Governor; I got a surprise that day I met him years ago: Sitting on opposite sides of a table disagreeing, we argued – the surprise I got was his old-fashioned, soft-spoken, courtesy. I met Stein’s Republican opponent a decade later – Mark Robinson…
Read MoreBig Lawsuit
A year ago the Republicans in the state legislature drew all the Republican Congressional districts they could. Democrats sued. And the State Supreme Court – controlled by Democrats – threw out Republican districts, drew districts that elected more Democrats. Unhappy Republican legislators sued, asked the U.S. Supreme Court to rule only state legislators can draw…
Read MoreThe Coming Fight
For years, when Republicans fought in a primary, conservative candidates had an edge: Most primary voters were conservative. And, since Independent voters often agreed with conservatives on issues, conservative Republicans were able to go on and win General Elections. That’s changed. Today, for many Republican primary voters Trump’s a totem. Conservative, an idea, matters less.…
Read MoreBeth Wood’s Crash
State Auditor Beth Wood obviously made a mistake when she crashed her state car onto another car in downtown Raleigh the evening of Dec. 8. She made another mistake when she left the scene without reporting the crash to the owner or police. Another mistake when she didn’t fess up, in full, the next day.…
Read MoreA Lethal Tool that Backfired
Years ago when Jim Hunt was thrashing Jesse Helms in his Senate race, Arthur Finkelstein dropped a poll on the table, lifted both hands in the air in front of him, palms open. “There’re two kinds of elections.” He waved one palm: “There’re issue elections.” He waved the other open palm: “And character elections. This…
Read MoreJosh Stein’s Fighting Start
Josh Stein’s announcement signals a different kind of Democratic campaign for Governor: an aggressive fight over values. Values usually are Republican turf, but Stein seized that ground. From the get-go, he defines his likely opponent, Mark Robinson, as having the wrong values for North Carolina today. Stein’s start promises Democrats the kind of tough, inspiring…
Read MoreIt Wouldn’t Be the First Time…
Last fall on Sunday before election day political ads ran back-to-back on TV – one snarled, Cheri Beasley’s for rapists, another snapped, Ted Budd hates democracy, ads rolled on and on but with one odd twist: Full of razzmatazz, dark voices, snarls, growls, they all looked, sounded, alike. Like they’d been made by the same…
Read MoreJim Hunt, 50 Years On
Last Wednesday, former Governor Jim Hunt was on the floor of the state Senate, holding the Bible for the swearing-in of his daughter, Senator Rachel Hunt. Almost exactly 50 years before – on Wednesday January 10, 1973 – newly elected Lieutenant Governor Jim Hunt presided over the swearing-in of the Senate. Things were different then.…
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