Carter is a Republican. Gary is a Democrat.

They met in 1984, during the epic U.S. Senate battle between Jesse Helms and Jim Hunt. Carter worked for Helms and Gary, for Hunt.

Years later, they became friends. They even worked together on some nonpolitical clients.

They enjoy talking about politics. So they started this blog in 2005.

They’re still talking. And they invite you to join the conversation.

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Carter Wrenn

Gary Pearce 2024

Gary Pearce

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Polling Report

By Carter Wrenn January 29, 2007

Some pollsters have a gift for reading hundreds of pages of statistics and finding a nugget of truth. Others have a different talent: Flexibility. They can poll one day and say with absolute conviction the public is, for instance, adamantly against President Bush’s plan to send more troops to Iraq. Then a month later, they…

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This Proves One Thing

By Carter Wrenn January 26, 2007

A week ago the Mayor was saying he was going to run for reelection because he could do more as Mayor than as a United States Senator. Now (see Gary’s post below) he says the Mayor doesn’t have enough power. This proves one thing: Mayor Meeker’s lost control of the City Council. His solution is…

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Meeker: Strengthen Mayor

By Gary Pearce January 26, 2007

We hear that Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker will propose changing city government to give mayors more authority. He wants Raleigh to abandon its long-time “strong city manager” government and replace it with a “strong mayor” system. Sounds great. Many Meeker supporters will like it. But beware the Law of Unintended Consequences. We might get Strong…

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Want to Win a Senate Seat?

By Gary Pearce January 25, 2007

With the exception of John Edwards in 1998, Democrats have lost every U.S. Senate race in North Carolina since 1986. That’s one win, five losses. Not very encouraging. But the climate may be changing. Especially if you pay attention to Public Policy Polling of Raleigh, which I do. You should pay them a visit: http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/.…

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The New Ethics Commission

By Carter Wrenn January 25, 2007

North Carolina has a new “Ethics Commission” to clean up the corruption in Raleigh. But guess who appointed its members? The same people who’ve been in charge all along. Governor Easley, who according to the press just enjoyed a $650,000 windfall by buying beach property from political appointees, picked four members of the Commission. Speaker…

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“Vietnamization”

By Carter Wrenn January 25, 2007

Years ago, when I was young enough to be drafted, I supported an idea called “Vietnamization” which is all but forgotten today. Vietnamization was President Nixon’s plan, at the end of the Vietnam War, to make the South Vietnamese responsible for defending their own country – so we could pull out. (And I wouldn’t get…

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Time for Plan B?

By Gary Pearce January 25, 2007

In politics as in football, speed kills – the other guy. Today we see a dramatic example of how fast modern presidential campaigns have to move. Word is that four BIG states – California, Florida, Illinois and New Jersey – may shift their presidential primaries to early next February. That means the race may not…

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Bush Clinton Fatigue

By Gary Pearce January 24, 2007

Pollster John McLaughlin – who’s a smart guy for a Republican – has an interesting theory about the 2008 presidential race. He calls it Bush-Clinton fatigue. After 20 years of Bush-Clinton-Bush; John thinks, Americans need a break. If true, that is Hillary Clinton’s biggest obstacle to the White House. And a boost for Edwards, Obama…

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State of the Lame Duck

By Gary Pearce January 24, 2007

Beaten in Iraq and beaten at the polls, President Bush looked beaten in his speech last night. His Iraq policy is such a disaster – eight Republican Senators, including Virginia’s John Warner, have cut and run – that he was forced to talk about domestic issues. And his tepid speech served up tepid ideas. I’m…

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Education Governor

By Gary Pearce March 13, 2025

With a better General Assembly, Josh Stein could join Jim Hunt and Terry Sanford on North…

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The N&O Story

By Gary Pearce March 12, 2025

Once upon a time, there was a great and powerful newspaper: The News & Observer. Everybody…

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How Democrats Win Again

By Gary Pearce March 10, 2025

The shouting, sign-waving and cane-wielding by congressional Democrats at the State of the Union isn’t a…

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