Archive for July 2010
The Three Reverends
The Right Honorable (and Colorful) Reverend William Barber (head of the local NAACP) has laid the political birch-wood to the Italians on the School Board again; the Reverend Barber, who’s been holding demonstrations and protests lampooning the Italians, climbed up on his soap-box at his latest protest and announced the Italians are taking Raleigh back…
Read MoreFinding Hope in Numbers
Ever since Governor Perdue’s brief honeymoon ended, public polls have brought her nothing but bad news. So her advisers not surprisingly found a silver lining in Public Policy Polling’s numbers on her and the Highway Patrol. But don’t get carried away. Last week’s poll found that 67 percent of North Carolinians have a…
Read MoreMissing Rand?
Democrats are worried about losing the State Senate this year – especially without Tony Rand to run their caucus campaigns. After Democrats came within one seat of losing the Senate in 1994, Rand and Marc Basnight build a high-performance operation. They hired good people, did good polling and spent money based on cold-eyed calculations…
Read MoreOily Burr
According to a recent N&O headline, “Burr says oil ads won’t ruffle feathers.” Senator Burr has to say that. I doubt he believes it. Two years ago, Elizabeth Dole’s campaign didn’t worry about independent ads attacking her. That’s why she’s former Senator Dole today. The latest ad attacking Burr – showing an…
Read MoreRepublican Hunt
John Davis, late of NCFREE has an interesting take (one I like, obviously) on Jim Hunt in his recent report. Davis says the Republican Party in North Carolina has failed to produce a political leader as skilled as Hunt. He identifies Hunt’s key strengths as pragmatism and persuasiveness. Davis recounts his meeting with…
Read MoreRules of the Road
Governor Perdue’s Highway Patrol news conference was better than it read. You can watch the whole thing here. But she better hope her tough talk solves the Patrol’s problems. Because it obviously didn’t solve her media – and political – problems. It’s never good when the Page 1 photos are of you, hands…
Read MoreWhen Reporters Are the News
It’s Reporter Versus Reporter. UNC-TV versus UNC Radio. And the best drama of the legislative session. Senator Fletcher Hartsell’s inspired idea to subpoena UNC-TV’s unaired Alcoa story stirred up great mischief. It: Put Alcoa in an unwelcome spotlight Put UNC-TV in an unwelcome spotlight Put a UNC radio reporter at odds with a UNC-TV.…
Read MoreCalling UNC-TV to the Stand
I heard that Jim Goodmon of WRAL was so incensed by the legislative subpoena of WUNC-TV that he called Erskine Bowles – and urged him to fight it. Of course, given the just-completed state budget, UNC was in no position to defy the legislature. Both UNC-TV and the First Amendment probably will survive.…
Read MoreOrange Water
Unless you happen to subscribe to the Asheville Citizen Times, you probably missed this article by columnist John Boyle about North Carolina Democratic Party Chairman David Young: Citizens Times.com May 27, 2010 Time for David Young to do the right thing John Boyle COLUMNIST Really, David? I can’t believe how…
Read MoreSinking the Megaport
The proposed international port at Southport is headed for Davy Jones Locker. The money was cut from the budget, and Congressman Mike McIntyre came out in opposition. A wise reader – and veteran Raleigh hand – believes there a lesson here: how to royally screw up a public-policy initiative. His take: …
Read More