North Carolina – Republicans
Dog Whistles
The term is new to me, but dog whistles are the oldest thing in Southern politics. This election, like all of them, comes down to race. In 1950, it was “White People Wake Up…Do you want Negroes working beside you, your wife and daughters in your mills and factories?” In 1984, it was…
Read MoreElon Poll Rx
If you’re tired of ads, tired of contradictory punditry and tired of conflicting, confusing and cooked-up polls, here’s a prescription for sanity: Take a dose of the Elon University poll. A warning about side effects: It will calm Democrats and give Republicans heartburn. (Hagan is up 45-41.)That aside, it gives you as clear, comprehensive…
Read MoreFlip a Coin?
Thom Tillis said Kay Hagan voted for Obama’s Stimulus Bill then her husband’s company got $390,000 in Stimulus Funds as a pay-off. And Hagan fired back Tillis (as Speaker) put a toll road near Charlotte in exchange for $25,000 in campaign contributions and sold three seats on the UNC Board of Governors for $75,000 in…
Read MoreTillis Vs. Tillis
Thom Tillis faces a big obstacle as he tries to catch up in the final days: Thom Tillis. If you turn off the sound and just watch Tillis, you’ll see the problem he has swaying undecided voters, especially those Walmart (or Target) moms who haven’t made up their minds yet. Tillis can look…
Read MoreNot a Ticket Splitter
A pollster will usually ask voters: Would you say you 1) Always vote Democratic, 2) Usually vote Democratic, 3) Always vote Republican, 4) Usually vote Republican or 5) would you say you split your ticket and vote for about as many Republicans as Democrats? Down at the Editorial Board (not in the news room)…
Read MoreIrony or Hypocrisy?
An African-American minister proclaimed that a gay person should not be a judge. He also joined Rep. Skip Stam-and apparently 27 other House Republicans-in proclaiming that magistrates, who are officers of the court, should not have to carry out laws and court decisions they don’t like. Forty years ago, several magistrates in North Carolina…
Read MoreAsleep at the Switch
As bleak as Governor McCrory’s job approval numbers were in the WRAL poll, that wasn’t the worst news. Consider how Republicans, Democrats and Independents feel about the General Assembly. Republican Voters Approve 35% Disapprove 38% Conservative Voters Approve 33% Disapprove 37% Independent Voters Approve…
Read MoreVoter App
The Republican effort to suppress votes at Appalachian State University may have backfired. More than 700 people voted yesterday at the Student Union polling place that the State Board of Elections tried to shut down. Now we know why the board didn’t want it. An App student said, “It sends a clear message…
Read MoreDisapproving of Pat
36% Approve 46% Disapprove The WRAL Poll painted a bleak picture of a Governor caught between a rock and a hard place. As Mark Binker wrote, only a little over a third of the voters approve of the job Governor McCrory is doing. But worse news lurked beneath the surface. …
Read MoreBeneath the Headlines
Headline (two weeks ago): Thom Tillis on Life Support. Campaign Dying. Headline (this week): Tillis Makes Miraculous Recovery. Campaign Surging. Now, as a storyline, that’s just about unbeatable. It’s like Lazarus rising from the dead. The problem is two months ago, two weeks ago, and today (in WRAL’s latest poll), Thom Tillis…
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