Carter Wrenn
Gary Pearce
Wake County Republicans may not walk the walk, but they’ve learned to talk the talk when it comes to top issues: Schools, jobs and health care. This week I’ve seen ads by Paul Coble, running for county commissioner, and Nelson Dollar, running for N.C. House. And their issues are right out of the Jim Hunt…
One way to think of the world of politics is as a small, unique universe with rules of its own. One of the rules – in this strange world – is it is legal to say almost anything in a political debate. Under the rules, politicians may paint their virtues a little bigger than they…
How will the ‘pay to play’ scandals impact Democratic candidates this election? In most years, the answer would be a lot. But this year, there are several trends that may change that. First, we Republicans have our own foibles to explain. Second, if the polls are correct, nationally, the war in Iraq is the dominant…
Wake County school bond supporters say the bonds are “the best way to pay.” But is that message enough to win? Bond supporters were smart to hire Democrat Brad Crone and Republican Ballard Everett to run their campaign. Brad ran a smart campaign against school bonds some years ago. His slogan was: “There’s a better…
I’m looking forward to this year’s election not just because there will be a Democratic sweep, but also because it will destroy the myth of Karl Rove’s 72-hour voter-turnout machine. While most Republicans expect to lose the House and hold the Senate by only one seat, The Washington Post reports that Bush and Rove are…
The Wake County school bonds are winning the elites but losing the voters. Supporters have organized an impressive list of business backers. But that has not impressed voters. No poll has shown more than 45 percent of Wake voters supporting the bonds. And the bonds will not pick up undecided voters. That means 45 percent…
Opponents of the school bond have run the first ad. Instead of supporting the billion dollar bond the Chairman of the County Commissioners, Tony Gurley, and Mayor Charles Meeker support, they endorse a smaller $650 million bond, which would not require a tax increase. They also support using the county’s hotel/motel tax to help schools.…
Last week Congressman David Price told us the Bush administration’s anti-terrorism strategy has “made matters worse” and “has simply failed to meet the standard of an intelligent anti-terrorism strategy” (News and Observer; 9-29-06). Now, will Congressman Price also tell us his strategy to win the war on terrorism? If he – and his fellow Democrats…
A Republican pollster told me last week that this year’s elections are looking extremely bad for his side and good for mine. Four weeks from today, the world will look very different: Democrats will control both the House and Senate in Washington; They will keep their majorities in both houses of the North Carolina legislature,…
Senator Phil Berger was out of touch with voters in his district – and suffered the…
A reassuring lesson from our trip to Germany and Czechia is that dictators, despots and tyrants…
Gwyn and I just returned from a 12-day journey through 1,000 years of history in Germany…