North Carolina – Republicans
It’s a Little Late, Pat
Every day I say: Today I won’t pick on Governor McCrory. Then he does something so boneheaded I can’t resist. Like his parting shots at the legislature. He looked like the 98-pound weakling sticking out his tongue long after the bully who kicked sand in his face walked down the beach. The legislature…
Read MoreA Heart Attack?
The Governor climbed into the ring with the State House Monday morning and thirty minutes later he was lying sprawled flat on his back on the canvas then, the next morning, he climbed back into the ring – this time with the State Senate – and the same thing happened again. Pat McCrory’s…
Read MoreCEO Pans Pat
A local CEO was shocked by Governor McCrory’s comments in Rob Christensen’s Sunday N&O story (“During session and beyond, McCrory has rough start”). Here’s the message he left on voice mail: “I can’t tell you a CEO in any organization who could get away with saying I have no agenda, I have no…
Read MoreWhat Pat Paid Them
What did Governor McCrory pay the DHHS Gold Dust Twins when he was spending his money, not the taxpayers’? A curious TAPster decided to find out. The answer: You (the taxpayer) are paying the two 24-year-olds a lot more than Pat did. Maybe twice as much. The TAPster looked at McCrory’s campaign reports…
Read MoreSitting Pretty
An Old Wise Lobbyist (OWL) gives me a Labor Day break by sharing this: “Contributors to Rep Edgar Starnes’ campaign should be disgusted and dismayed that he used their contributions to beautify his Raleigh legislative office. “The Republican House leader used $7,000 of campaign money for furniture and other niceties at the legislative…
Read MoreOne-Termer
There is growing talk in Raleigh – by Republicans and Democrats – that Governor McCrory will be one and done. And he’s not going to the NBA. The consensus, which could always turn out wrong, is that he’s over his head. Some people even say he won’t run again. The job isn’t what he…
Read MoreIf You Hated This Session….
A long-time Raleigh veteran warns that next year’s short legislative session could bring a “hopeless muddle” in the office of speaker Thom Tillis. I quote: “Tillis is forsaking the best political job in the state to run for the US Senate. If he remains speaker for the short session, the possibilities are endless for conflicts…
Read MoreRooting for Failure
Do Republicans want America – and North Carolina – to fail? That’s the only explanation that makes sense. If they starve public schools, they can say public schools don’t work – and abandon them. If they derail Obamacare, they can say it’s a train wreck. If they kneecap cities, they can say cities aren’t…
Read MoreA Sea Change
Republicans have been riding high since the 2010 elections but, now, there’s a bushel basket full of polls – by both Democrats and Republicans – floating around Raleigh that tell a sad tale. At their zenith, last fall, Governor McCrory was the most popular political leader in the state. Better still for Republicans, the…
Read MoreA Real Leader
Governor McCrory should have hung around to hear Colin Powell. He would have seen a real leader. He might have learned something. Presumably, McCrory had “boring stuff” to do that was more pressing than hearing Powell address the CEO Forum. He introduced Powell, then fled. But the 400-plus suits in the audience saw…
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