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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Morgan vs. Pope

By Gary Pearce October 26, 2006

Excerpted from attached Morgan letter: “If left unchallenged, Art Pope with his corporate millions, is a danger to the values North Carolinians hold dear. If successful, Pope will destroy the integrity of the North Carolina House of Representatives. “ “So I want you to be among the first to know that I have formally set…

Pope versus Morgan

By Gary Pearce October 25, 2006

Excerpted from attached Morgan letter: “If left unchallenged, Art Pope with his corporate millions, is a danger to the values North Carolinians hold dear. If successful, Pope will destroy the integrity of the North Carolina House of Representatives. “ “So I want you to be among the first to know that I have formally set…

Polls Apart

By Gary Pearce October 25, 2006

The News & Observer says its poll with WRAL shows that voters are “leaning against” the Wake school bond issue. It looks more like a tsunami to me. Only 35 percent of the voters said they’ll vote for the bond issue. The result could be nearly 2-to-1 against. School bond supporters sound like George Bush…

New Scandal on Easley’s Doorstep?

By Carter Wrenn October 25, 2006

Two years ago, when Governor Easley was campaigning hard for reelection the state paid $21.5 million for 5,600 acres of land in Caldwell County. Three weeks later, the Governor’s campaign received $40,000 from ten people with ties to the land owner. Later, three more donors gave $16,000. Two of the donors were nineteen and twenty…

School Bond Crossfire

By Carter Wrenn October 25, 2006

The School Bond Referendum is caught in a crossfire. The opponents of the billion-dollar bond referendum seem to agree on one thing: Defeating it is the best way to send the School Board a message that it is headed in the wrong direction. But they differ on the right direction. (News and Observer; 10-22-06). Americans…

Foley Questions: Who Knew What When?

By Carter Wrenn October 25, 2006

The question in the Foley scandal is not what former Congressman Tom Foley did but when House Speaker Dennis Hastert and other Republican leaders knew about it. Foley’s former aide, Kirk Fordham, says he told the Speaker’s Chief of Staff “about Foley’s approaches to male pages” three years ago. (News and Observer; 10-13-06). Hastert and…

Dick Morris Suggests An Ad…

By Carter Wrenn October 24, 2006

Last week, in his newsletter, Dick Morris described the tidal wave impact the Foley scandal has had on Republican base voters. This week he proposes an imaginary ad for Republican to run before the elections. He describes the ad this way: “We see and hear a wiretapped conversation, with a terrorist revealing his worst plans…

Black’s Legal Defense Fund

By Carter Wrenn October 24, 2006

No one outside of House Speaker Jim Black’s inner circle knows how much money corporations have given to the Speaker’s Legal Defense Fund. But the Charlotte Observer (10-16-06) has reported the name of one donor: The Teamster’s Union. According to the Federal Elections Commission, the Teamster’s PAC gave $5,000 to Black. The union didn’t offer…

Scandals and Gay Marriages

By Carter Wrenn October 24, 2006

Last session, State House and Senate Democrats passed legislation to prohibit lobbyists giving money to candidates; then, in a political flim-flam, they proclaimed they’d cleaned up the ‘pay to play’ scandal. The Democrats eliminated the, say, 5% of the money lobbyists, personally, give them. But left in place the 95% lobbyists raise for them (mostly…

“Conservative Successes”?

By Gary Pearce April 23, 2026

Senator Phil Berger was out of touch with voters in his district – and suffered the…

Rise and Fall

By Gary Pearce April 21, 2026

A reassuring lesson from our trip to Germany and Czechia is that dictators, despots and tyrants…

Rolling Down the Elbe

By Gary Pearce April 19, 2026

Gwyn and I just returned from a 12-day journey through 1,000 years of history in Germany…