Carter Wrenn
Gary Pearce
A painful lesson Carter taught me in the 1984 Hunt-Helms race was the power of using your opponents’ own words against him. I thought of that when – for the first time – I saw Bill Graham’s ad against the state gas tax increase. His last line – after saying the politicians want him to…
Read MoreI believe The News & Observer was dead wrong Thursday morning about Senator Elizabeth Dole, her husband Bob Dole and the Dubai ports fiasco. The N&O, like other news outlets, reported that Bob Dole “has been hired by Dubai Ports World to help shepherd the company through a $6.8 billion deal to control terminals at…
Read MorePresident Bush has not vetoed a single bill in five years in office. But, yesterday, it seemed at last he had found an issue so important it merited his first veto. What? The President wanted the United Arab Emirates (or, to be technically correct, a company owned by the government of the United Arab Emirates)…
Read MorePresident Bush’s decision to let Arab companies provide security for American ports confirms what I’ve always suspected: the one thing stronger than Bush & Co.’s fear of Arab terrorism is their greed for Arab money.
Read MoreJerry Meek, Chairman of the State Democratic Party, denounced the N.C. Republican Party for seeking church membership lists. Jerry said churches are “sacred” places that should be free of politics. As a Democrat, I know how heavily Democratic candidates have depended on African-American pastors and their churches at election time. Will Jerry now call on…
Read MoreThere is some – more – bad news about the lottery. Last year, just about every major Democratic politician promised loud, long and repeatedly that every penny of the $400 million in lottery money would go for new education spending. They even told voters they wrote that into the law: the lottery money would only…
Read MoreShould Western newspapers act “responsibly” – as the Bush Administration has suggested – in deciding whether to publish cartoons portraying Muhammad? My opinion: absolutely not. In fact, it downright angers me that so many Western political leaders are so intimidated by violent Muslim protests against the cartoons – and that some papers have fired editors…
Read MoreIt is one thing for President Bush to claim the executive power to spy on Americans without a court order or Congressional approval. It is another thing for him to claim that the American people – and their elected representatives – shouldn’t debate the issue. But that is what I understand him to say. According…
Read MoreThe News and Observer reports, “Raleigh-Durham Airport officials just approved a $257.6 million contract to replace the red-roofed Terminal C,” and the total cost of the project is “expected to reach $555 million.” So we have taxpayers funding: • $555 million for a terminal at the airport;• $215 million (and still rising) for the downtown…
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Mark Robinson should get an Emmy for Most Appearances in Other Campaigns’ TV Ads. For months,…
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Republicans usually are better than Democrats at closing out elections, because they’re better at scaring voters.…
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Ethel Kennedy’s death recalls a time when hope and idealism triumphed over hate and fear. Robert…
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