Archive for November 2005
Warner’s a Winner
My nominee for biggest winner of the week: Mark Warner of Virginia. No, he wasn’t running. But his lieutenant governor – an anti-death penalty Democrat – was. And he won. So Warner now moves to the top of the 2008 White House speculation list. He’s smart, articulate, rich and has a proven record in business…
Read MoreI’m Appalled.’
“I’m appalled,” Lottery Commission Chairman Charlie Sanders said, describing his reaction to the revelation Scientific Games, which wants to bid on a lottery contract, paid Kevin Geddings $24,500. How appalled? Not appalled enough to say that anyone – like Scientific Games – who paid a lottery commissioner $10,000 the day after he was appointed –…
Read MoreTake Fundraising Out of Lobbying
There is a simple – but drastic – step the legislature could take to prevent the kind of controversy swirling around North Carolina’s lottery: Ban fundraising (and even entertaining) by lobbyists. South Carolina already does that. North Carolina now bans lobbyists from making campaign contributions during legislative sessions, but not between sessions. North Carolina’s legislature…
Read MoreThe Lottery Scandal
We’ve got a good, old-fashioned scandal brewing about the lottery. Scientific Games is one of the mega-gaming companies that run lotteries. It wants to run the North Carolina lottery and 1) it got language inserted into the Lottery Bill (by an amenable legislator ) apparently, to give it a ‘leg up’ over competitors; 2) it…
Read MoreIt’s the Crime, Stupid
As Scootergate erupted in Washington, we heard a familiar mantra: “The coverup is worse than the crime.” I beg to differ. Prosecutors may find the coverup easier to prove. Politicians might find the coverup easier to use as a bludgeon on their opponents. But the crime is even worse than the coverup. The crime in…
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