Carter Wrenn
Gary Pearce
In Raleigh and Washington, Republican lawmakers are moving forward confident in the belief that – this time – the American people are really, really ready to really, really cut spending. They better hope so. Historically, we elect politicians who promise to cut taxes and cut spending. Then we revolt when we see the…
I received this email from Keith Weatherly re my blog on “The Tillis Retirement Home”: “You need better informed TAPsters. I work for Majority Leader Stam – not the Speaker. Past 2 years I worked for Minority Leader Stam. I had floor privileges as staff for minority (as does current Minority Leader’s staff). Majority Leader’s…
Cynics laugh and say no good deed ever goes unpunished and I’m beginning to think they have a point: Last year for the first time since Reconstruction voters elected a Republican legislature, which looked like a near fatal political blow to Governor Perdue but now, instead, it looks like voters may have thrown the Governor…
Whatever her talents as NCSU’s AD, Debbie Yow’s PR skills are lacking. As an alum, I hope she’s better at hiring than communicating. I’m a fan, not a fanatic. I like what I see about the new coach. But, once again, I’m stunned by the frenzy Wolfpack fans can work themselves into when everything…
Here’s an interesting tip from a TAPster: “Has anybody noticed that the cozy corner office of the NC Speaker of the House has become a retirement home for wayward ex-legislators? At last count, the Speaker has three of the lost souls on his staff. Charles Thomas and Bill Daughtridge were recently joined by Bruce…
Decades ago I attended a meeting on redistricting over at State Republican headquarters and a bright, sharp young man whipped out a stack of maps of Congressional Districts and happily announced he had figured out a way to create three minority districts in North Carolina. Then he whipped out more maps of State House…
State GOP Chair Robin Hayes says President Obama carried North Carolina in 2008 because of simple political mechanics. He told McClatchey reporters: “The president and his group did a much better job of organizing through the Internet, through social networking, through every possible means to identify and get their folks to the polls. They…
Duke Energy plans to build a new nuclear plant and to pay for it it’s sponsored a bill in the legislature to raise electric rates, which it says is reasonable because nuclear power plants are good things and a public benefit so why should it have to borrow money on Wall Street for its plant?…
Those six words may be the most brilliant I have ever read about political and media strategy. I found them in Jeff Greenfield’s new book, Then Everything Changed. The book is an interesting foray into “alternative history,” based on real events: What if JFK had been assassinated in December 1960, before taking office? What…
The political sniping began even as chaos still reigned at the White House Correspondents Dinner. My…
A new nationwide poll shows that, if they could run against each other in 2028, Barack…
Senator Phil Berger was out of touch with voters in his district – and suffered the…