Carter Wrenn
Gary Pearce
Team of Rivals
Presidents fight two wars. One to get elected. And one that starts the morning after the election. Only they may not know about the second war. Naturally, Barack Obama may think his authority (in the legal sense) as president gives him power to run his own government. But authority is a long way from control.…
“Rove pins GOP hopes to Burr, others like him”
From the N&O’s Under the Dome: Karl Rove thinks U.S. Sen. Richard Burr could help save the GOP. In a proposed road map out of the political wilderness published last week in Newsweek, the former political strategist for President Bush said that Burr could be a fresh face for the Republican Party. He contended that…
The New Sheriff in Town
Governor-elect Bev Perdue has sought to separate herself from Governor Easley – sometimes indirectly and sometimes directly. During the campaign, she said she would be more open and transparent. She promised a more ethical administration. Election night, she said “there’s a new sheriff in town.” The media focus has been on her staff and Cabinet…
Perdue’s Helmsman
Mark Johnson of the Charlotte Observer is one of the best political reporters I know, but I don’t think his story about Zach Ambrose was quite fair about the campaign that Perdue’s transition chief ran. Johnson wrote: Ambrose comes into the job with some obvious challenges….(S)ome observers will be watching to see if he’s got…
The Great Skizzle
Once upon a time not so long ago Wachovia Bank, a hundred-year-old bank, was as solid as the rock of Gibraltar. What went wrong? It’s a tale of miscalculations and mistakes – by its own managers. As a result investors have seen their shares plummet and the bank put on the auction block not once,…
What’s Wrong with This Picture
The fight over the future of the Republican Party has spilled over into the state chairman’s race. Linda Daves has the job. Fred Smith, apparently, wants it. And there’s a third, lesser known, candidate. Daves’ critics say the last two elections prove she knows little about politics. Smith’s critics say he spent $2.5 million of…
The Roads Ahead
Barack Obama is being hailed as a combination of Lincoln and FDR. The economic crisis is likened to secession and Depression. There seems to be a consensus on what he should do – among Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives, Washington and Wall Street: Spend money! Spend billions of dollars! Trillions, even! Damn the deficit!…
Economics Simplified
When the heads of the Big Three went to Washington to ask Congress for $25 billion to save their companies, one congressman asked, What will you do, personally, to make a bailout a success? The president of Chrysler said he would work for a dollar a year. The congressman looked at the presidents of GM…
Welcome to the New World Order
Talk about Old White Guys (OWGs) – when I read Gary’s blog yesterday I had to look up what a Prius was, which I guess is emblematic of a problem for a lot of us OWGs – the rules have changed and we can’t learn the new language. Here’s an example: The other night driving…