Carter Wrenn
Gary Pearce
Vindication!
I have an apology from The New Yorker – and a correction (online, at least). The reporter, Jane Mayer, called me to apologize. She said she was “totally mortified” that her Art Pope story identified me as former executive director of the North Carolina Democratic Party. My biographical information apparently got mixed us with…
This Is It?
Jilted by Chris Christie, the Republican search for Ronald Reagan Redux goes on. You know things are bad when Herman Cain and Newt Gingrich are rising in the polls. Already, Michelle Bachman and Rick Perry have soared – and then plummeted. But they distinguished themselves by performing a feat no one thought possible:…
Stop Whining
The New Yorker article about Art Pope takes me back to the 1980s. Then, my fellow Democrats were whining about the money, power and evil influence of Jesse Helms’ Congressional Club. Now, they’re whining about the money, power and evil influence of Art Pope. Stop whining. Get to work. Find our Art Pope. …
Unfair Hit?
Did Governor Perdue get jobbed by the AP jobs story: “Plant deal may enrich N.C. political donors”? A TAPster who works in private-sector economic development – and is no admirer of the Governor – says yes: “The land was assembled for this purpose and is in a catalog of sites available to prospective…
Losing Faith
My faith in The New Yorker magazine is gone. I love The New Yorker – the articles as well as the cartoons. In fact, it’s the only magazine I get in the mail – thanks to a friend who gave me a gift subscription. I look forward to it arriving every week. So…
The N&O Misses One
Among my jobs at the N&O in the early 70s were copy editor and night city editor. I still read the paper with an editorâs eye. So I just about swallowed my eyeshade when I read todayâs N&O profile of Raleigh mayoral candidate Randall Williams. How do you write that story without mentioning…
In Praise of the Rays
Today this blog is Talking About Baseball. My son James and I are Tampa Bay Rays fans. We saw a lot of their players come up with the Durham Bulls. We’ve been to a couple of spring training games. So I forgive him for calling me after midnight the other night. (One day…
Suspending Sanity
The logical reaction to Governor Perdue’s statement about suspending elections is “what was she thinking?” Fair enough. But the really nutty statements came from what one reporter called “the black helicopter crowd.” Like: Fox News: “NC Governor Recommends Suspending Democracy to Focus on Jobs.” Think Progress: “North Carolina Governor Proposes Ignoring Constitution.”…
Perdue’s “Joke”
The hot topic in Raleigh today is Governor Perdue’s comment – or joke, or quip, or gaffe – about postponing congressional elections. The Drudge Report went to DefCon 5. Local and national reporters called: “Is this a real problem for her? Is this part of a pattern? Is this a big story?” Insuring, of course,…