Archive for October 2008
Denny Crane on Gun Control and The Fourth Witch
We’ve about reached the point in the campaign where humor is in short supply – so here’s a video of Boston Legal’s Denny Crane being mugged that floated in over the transom from out in cyberspace. Here’s a link. Email it to a friend. Former House Speaker Richard Morgan’s book, The Fourth Witch: A Memoir…
Read MoreClosing the Gap
One striking thing about the plethora of North Carolina polls has received little attention: There is little difference this year in the Democratic vote for President, Senator and Governor. In 2004, Mike Easley ran some 12 points ahead of John Kerry. Erskine Bowles, although he lost to Richard Burr, ran several points ahead. For years,…
Read MorePerdue, Fundraisers & Roads
For years it’s been a North Carolina tradition for governors to appoint big contributors and fundraisers to the State Board of Transportation and, as a result, over the years more than a few roads have been paved for what looks a lot like political reasons. But with corruption getting out of hand in Raleigh and…
Read MorePerdue & Drilling
When it comes to drilling off North Carolina’s coast, Bev Perdue is like the Scarlet Pimpernel: She’s here, she’s there, she’s everywhere, that damned elusive Pimpernel. She’s gone from being 100% against drilling off North Carolina’s coast to saying (at the WRAL debate) that she wanted oil companies to start drilling – on sixty-eight million…
Read MoreThe N&O’s Stunner
An email sent out internally by Pat McCrory’s campaign said it all: “It’s freezing in hell tonight!” The News & Observer endorsed a Republican for Governor. Maybe for the first time ever. Our old friend Mr. Conventional Wisdom says newspaper endorsements don’t matter. Do they matter when man bites dog? The McCrory endorsement is a…
Read More28 Percent
Buried deep within the story buried deep within the N&O today on early voting is the most important number in this election: 28 percent. That’s the African-American percentage of the turnout so far. That’s eight points above what most polls assume black turnout will be. That’s eight more points for Obama – and, potentially, the…
Read MoreJim Hunt’s Secret Plan Revealed
Now it can be told. People have noticed that Governor Emeritus Jim Hunt seems to be everywhere this campaign: speaking at James Taylor’s concert, raising money for Kay Hagan, sending emails for Bev Perdue, campaigning across the state and – in his spare time – organizing Wilson County for Obama. Here is why: This election…
Read MoreWho’s Going to Win?
With Obama apparently cruising into the White House, the question everybody asks is who will win North Carolina – for President, Senator and Governor. To be blunt, I don’t know. The only people who really know are the people inside a campaign watching internal polls. They never tell the truth, unless they have an overwhelming…
Read MoreNet Revolution
Colin Powell – pausing in his devastating dismissal of John McCain – hailed Barack Obama as a “transformational figure.” Obama has damned sure transformed campaign fundraising. Take a moment to absorb what it means that his campaign raised $150 million in September: John McCain got only $84 million in public financing for the entire campaign.…
Read MoreBehind the Curtain
Who knows how this election will turn out in the end? There are about 500 polls out there, but now I’ve just seen one that makes sense to me (Not one of these automated dialing wonders by a machine that can’t tell if it’s talking to a sixty-year old man or a six year old…
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