Archive for September 2007
Arson?
What I want to know is which fool â walking around Dare County â torched Marc Basnightâs restaurant? That would be akin to burning down Don Corleoneâs olive oil business. At first when I read the News and Observer headline â âSBI Blames Arson for Fire at Basnightâs Caféâ â I thought (for one second)…
Read MoreThe Phony War Debate
America is adrift in Iraq – and losing the war. But the political debate is about Hillary’s health care plan, Edwards’ attacks on Hillary’s “corporate insiders,” Obama’s tax plan, Moveon.org attacking Gen. Petraeus, Rudy attacking Moveon for attacking Petraeus and Fred Thompson being lazy. General Petraeus made clear in his congressional testimony that we’re not…
Read MoreHillary Calls on Women
Several women in Raleigh reported getting taped phone calls from Hillary Clinton this week – with a message aimed right at women. I’m told Hillary says something like: When I’m President, women and their daughters will walk a little bit taller in America. The strategy is brilliant. It’s aimed at the most important voting group…
Read MorePark the Hypocrisy
Carter has written some hard-hitting pieces lately against the Goodyear-Bridgestone incentives. All the Republican candidates for Governor agree that incentives are bad. So do conservative groups like the John Locke Society. It looks like all good Republican conservatives are against subsidizing private companies. Or maybe not. The biggest subsidy boondoggle bubbling today is from North…
Read MoreVeto Shifts the Balance of Power
The media focused on how Governor Easley avoided suffering his first veto override on the tiremaker-incentive bill. But the real story is how fundamentally the veto has changed the balance of power in Raleigh. I blogged before that the veto, which Jim Hunt got passed in 1996, was Hunt’s gift to Easley. Both Jack Betts…
Read MoreThe New News Cycle
Another sign of the Net times: A long-time Raleigh lobbyist told me how much the brave new world of blogs has changed his world. “I used to be afraid to look at Under the Dome every morning,” he said. “Now I have to look at it every 15 minutes. It’s done nothing but raise my…
Read MoreMoore’s Health Care Offensive
One of our loyal blogger/readers passed along a link to Richard Moore’s website about George Bush denying health care to kids. He also noted that Moore ran a banner ad on the N&O’s webpage drawing visitors to the site. And he observes: “This is a hard-hitting site about denying healthcare to kids. Looks like Moore…
Read MoreUp Or Out in Iraq
Just like the military surge in Iraq, the Democrats’ political surge against the war is falling short. This week, Democrats in Congress found that it’s hard to argue with a man as obviously brave, patriotic and dedicated as General Petraeus. It’s a lot easier to argue with the cowardly bumbler who sent Petraeus to Iraq…
Read MoreRuss at Risk
The most vulnerable member of the Raleigh City Council this year may be Russ Stephenson. He’s facing a tough challenge in the at-large race. A lot of his old supporters are disaffected. And he carries a whiff of the elitism that is the Council’s biggest Achilles heel. Exhibit A: The debate in the Council last…
Read MoreForward, March on the City Council
One of the odder commentaries I’ve seen on the Raleigh City Council race came recently in the Independent Weekly. That’s not normally a pro-military rag, but the article seemed mighty impressed with the military records of the two candidates, one a Republican, running against Jessie Taliaferro. I suspect the attraction wasn’t the uniforms. In fact,…
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