Carter Wrenn
Gary Pearce
If Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker runs for reelection next year, he might face a challenge from a Democrat to his left. Like maybe Thomas Crowder. Meeker and other Council members aren’t happy with Crowder putting the issue of Marriott Hotel stucco on the front page. Not a team player, you know. And word is The…
Read MoreI’m sorry, but I just can’t let go of the Cheney shooting accident. And here’s why. When a person acts like they’re hiding something, they’re usually hiding something. And I think Cheney is hiding something: drinking. In his Fox interview Wednesday, “Shooter” (as opposed to his old aide Scooter) was asked if anybody in his…
Read MoreThe price of Mayor Meeker’s downtown Convention Center just soared again: to $215 million. The City Council just approved spending another $23 million on the Convention Center without a blink or hardly a nay vote. In fact, every County Commissioner and every City Councilman but one – Councilman Tommy Craven – voted for the increase.…
Read MoreHow easy is it to make fun of Dick Cheney shooting a fellow hunter? Here are just a few of the jokes and one-liners I’ve heard since his hunting mishap: • The White House says it wants to make up with Hillary Clinton. So they’re inviting her on a hunting trip with the Vice President.…
Read MoreThe News & Observer recently called my old boss, Jim Hunt, the closest thing North Carolina has to a “policy Pope.” (I assume they meant Benedict of Rome, not John and Art of Raleigh.) Unfortunately, I’m afraid Pope Jim has taken on a tough crusade with tax reform. The Institute for Emerging Issues that Governor…
Read MoreThe downtown hotel has hit a stumbling block – but not because City leaders decided it was a mistake to stick taxpayers with a $20 million bill to build a Marriott Hotel. Instead, the problem is stucco. That’s right, stucco. Councilman Thomas Crowder is raising all sorts of cain because the builders want to put…
Read MoreWhen I first heard about President Bush ‘wire taping’ calls (from U.S. citizens to overseas) I thought that sounded pretty bad – that the President shouldn’t just have the power to go out and wiretap calls made by American citizens anytime he wants to. Then I thought about the pictures on the Internet of hooded…
Read MoreEver wonder why the MBA presidency of George Bush seems so incompetent when it comes to managing government? I’ve got a theory. But first, let’s review the evidence: • “Heckuva job, Brownie” of FEMA and Katrina fame; • The lack of armor for American troops in Iraq; • The mess in the Medicare drug benefit…
Read MoreWednesday’s New York Times has a front-page story about the problem I’ve blogged about: national Democrats’ ineptitude at challenging governmentally inept but politically skilled Republicans. In the article, numerous Democrats concede the party has missed a golden opportunity while Bush & Co. fumbled and stumbled the past few months. And they blame the party’s current…
Read MoreMark Robinson should get an Emmy for Most Appearances in Other Campaigns’ TV Ads. For months,…
Read MoreRepublicans usually are better than Democrats at closing out elections, because they’re better at scaring voters.…
Read MoreEthel Kennedy’s death recalls a time when hope and idealism triumphed over hate and fear. Robert…
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