Whose Money Talks Loudest?
It will be Art Pope’s millions against the Basnight/Black “machines” this fall.
That is, unless Speaker Jim Black’s train derails because of bad publicity and threatening investigations.
The legislative races will be a contest between two different ways of raising the big chunks of cash it takes to win a majority in the State Senate and House.
The News & Observer published a three-part series this weekend about how Democratic leaders Black and Senator Marc Basnight pay the freight. Essentially, anybody with an issue before the legislature pays. Lobbyists do double duty: they pay and collect.
Pope has a different model. First, find a path through the maze of campaign-finance laws. Then pump through enough corporate dollars to win elections.
My colleague Carter believes that what Pope is doing is legal. My old friend Michael Weisel believes otherwise. Weisel is attorney for Rep. Richard Morgan, who filed a complaint with the State Board of Elections challenging Pope’s ploy.
The money explains why House Democrats are standing by Jim Black, so far. They don’t see anybody else in their caucus who can raise the money to fight Pope. And they know that – nearly all the time – the richest campaign wins.
Democrats fear that if Pope’s Republicans get a majority this year, they’ll stay in the majority for years to come. Once in, they’ll just adopt the Black/Basnight fundraising strategy.
Republicans had a majority from 1994-1998. But they lost it because of their own infighting, an aggressive campaign led by Black and then-Governor Jim Hunt, and a political climate so favorable to Democrats it pushed John Edwards to an upset over Lauch Faircloth.
Whose Money Talks Loudest?
It will be Art Pope’s millions against the Basnight/Black “machines” this fall.
That is, unless Speaker Jim Black’s train derails because of bad publicity and threatening investigations.
The legislative races will be a contest between two different ways of raising the big chunks of cash it takes to win a majority in the State Senate and House.
The News & Observer published a three-part series this weekend about how Democratic leaders Black and Senator Marc Basnight pay the freight. Essentially, anybody with an issue before the legislature pays. Lobbyists do double duty: they pay and collect.
Pope has a different model. First, find a path through the maze of campaign-finance laws. Then pump through enough corporate dollars to win elections.
My colleague Carter believes that what Pope is doing is legal. My old friend Michael Weisel believes otherwise. Weisel is attorney for Rep. Richard Morgan, who filed a complaint with the State Board of Elections challenging Pope’s ploy.
The money explains why House Democrats are standing by Jim Black, so far. They don’t see anybody else in their caucus who can raise the money to fight Pope. And they know that – nearly all the time – the richest campaign wins.
Democrats fear that if Pope’s Republicans get a majority this year, they’ll stay in the majority for years to come. Once in, they’ll just adopt the Black/Basnight fundraising strategy.
Republicans had a majority from 1994-1998. But they lost it because of their own infighting, an aggressive campaign led by Black and then-Governor Jim Hunt, and a political climate so favorable to Democrats it pushed John Edwards to an upset over Lauch Faircloth.