Archive for April 2010
Burr’s Edge
Richard Burr has a much easier primary campaign than Kenneth Lewis or Elaine Marshall. But he has an ad on TV, and they don’t. That dramatizes the huge financial advantage Burr has this year. His ad is notable for two things: black faces and veterans. He’s softening any Tea Party-image with general-election voters.…
Read MoreBarking Yellow Dogs
When a Washington Post reporter asked me about Democratic congressmen from North Carolina voting against health-care reform, I told him: “You buy a dog, don’t be afraid when it barks.” When Nancy Pelosi, Rahm Emanuel and the DCCC recruited Health Shuler and Larry Kissell to run in 2008, they knew what they were getting.…
Read MoreThe Trust Deficit
It’s bad news for Democrats when only 22 percent of Americans say they trust government. That number comes from a Pew Research Center poll, which found “a perfect storm of conditions associated with distrust of government — a dismal economy, an unhappy public, bitter partisan-based backlash, and epic discontent with Congress and elected officials.” …
Read MoreState of the Arts
When it comes to art and music, I’m as uncultured as you can get. But even I can appreciate the new North Carolina Art Museum. It’s a stunning achievement for a state. And it’s mostly due to the persistence and political savvy of Larry Wheeler. I suppose the Tea Party types would say…
Read MoreTea Time Part II
The revealing New York Times/CBS poll on the Tea Party demographics turned up two golden nuggets. One explains their anger. The other exposes their hypocrisy. The anger: 63 percent of Tea Partiers say Fox is their main news source. Even among Republicans, only 46 percent depend mainly on Fox. A steady diet…
Read MoreA Case for Roy Cooper
A wise old legal eagle points out a recent article in the National Law Journal that shreds the 18 showboating state attorneys generals who want to challenge the health-care reform law. The article, written by a law professor at Washington & Lee, concludes: “This complaint not only represents shockingly shoddy lawyering but should…
Read MoreTea Time
The Tea Party movement may return the Republican Party to power – or ruin it. Whichever, the Tea Party controls the GOP’s future. If Mushmouth Mitch McConnell and Suntan John Boehner become majority leaders in the next Congress, they’ll have no choice but to walk the Tea Party line. That would pretty much…
Read MoreCal’s Air War
Cal Cunningham officially becomes the front-runner in the Democratic Senate primary by getting on TV first. But does a “war” message work in a Democratic primary? Opponents argue that his service record won’t impress anti-war Democrats – that it will make him look too conservative. I think it’s a strong ad. And…
Read MoreA Pretty Strange Chapter in Republican Politics …
The way Art Pope sees it his blasting Richard Morgan (because Richard blasted Governor Perdue) wasn’t defending Governor Perdue… … but how did Perdue see it? “Well, miracles do happen!” the Governor chortled, delighted to have Pope’s support. What’s ironic about all this is for years Art’s been hammering Richard, saying he’s too cozy…
Read MoreThe New Buzzword
What is it with “narrative”? We used to talk about “message” in campaigns. Now candidates have a “narrative.” Rob Christensen did a recent column about the different “narratives” of the Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate. “Message” implied issues. It implied addressing the concerns of voters. “Narrative” implies telling a compelling story…
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