Newt McHenry

North Carolina Congressman Patrick McHenry is the early favorite for this Congress’ Newt Gingrich Hysterical Hypocrisy Award. “Waving his hands and stomping his feet,” according to news reports, McHenry decried House Democrats’ plans to quickly act on their key priorities. Such as ethics reform, stem cell research and raising the minimum wage. Railed McHenry: “If,…

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Legal Ethics Revisited

Last fall, defense attorney Tommy Manning did what appeared to be a clever thing. He got a case against his client, a Durham policeman accused of assaulting a short-order cook in the parking lot of Blinko’s Restaurant, dismissed on a technicality. But it turns out Manning wasn’t so clever after all. He told Judge Debra…

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John Edwards Finally Takes a Stand

John Edwards finally took a controversial stand on Sunday on George Stephanopoulos’ TV program and it was a doozie. Edwards didn’t put it quite this bluntly, but when Stephanopoulos asked if he supported ‘gay marriage,’ Edwards shook his head and said, ‘Well, I’m just not there yet.’ That was a first for Edwards. For years,…

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A Hanging Offense

Saddam Hussein got what he deserved. But did America? The hanging scene was disturbing on many levels. The masked hangmen looked like the guys who chop off heads in hostage videos. The shouted curses hardly lent an atmosphere of justice being carried out. And what was the big rush? I’m not bothered by a brutal…

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Edwards

John Edwards’ presidential announcement last week demonstrated why it’s better to be lucky than smart in politics. The Edwards team had a good strategy: a two-day made-for-TV announcement in New Orleans. And what seemed like good timing: the news-dead week between Christmas and New Year’s. Then Gerald Ford died. And Sadaam Hussein was hanged. And…

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“Why Not? That Money Was Given to Me.”

State Representative George Holmes took $79,000 out of his campaign committee and put it in his pocket. Then, when the Winston-Salem Journal asked why, Holmes dug the hole a little deeper. He said, “Why not? It’s legal. That money was given to me.” Let’s examine his logic. Campaign contributions are not bribes because the money…

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