The New Democratic Faces

The contrast was stark when the new Congress convened this month. The Republican side was monochromatic: white men in dark suits. The Democratic side was diverse, varied and colorful – in clothing and complexion, age and gender, background and life experience. You’ll see the same contrast in the North Carolina General Assembly. You’ll see it…

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Stoned and Stonewalled

Friday wasn’t Trump’s best day. Before dawn, Roger Stone surrendered to the FBI. Mid-afternoon, Trump surrendered to Nancy Pelosi. Stoned and stonewalled in less than 12 hours. Trump looked corrupt, clueless and – worst of all for him – weak. Corrupt because, even if there wasn’t a criminal conspiracy with Russia, there was a coverup.…

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Play to win, Tar Heels

I’m a Wolfpack fan, but I’m pulling for Carolina to win this game. I just hope the Heels know what game they’re in. It’s hardball politics. Since the 2010 election, my UNC friends have griped and grumbled about how the Republican legislature treats their beloved school. Now there’s a crisis. Boss Berger & Co. are…

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Run, everybody, run

Run, Joe, run. Run, Elizabeth, run. Run, Beto, run. Run, Kamala, run. Run, Kirsten and Julian and Cory and Amy and Donner and Blitzen, Prancer and Dancer, Bluto and Pluto and Rudolph and all the Democratic 2020 hopefuls. If Democrats make a mistake this time, it’ll damn sure be a different mistake from last time.…

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Reporting from the basement

A long-time veteran of the Legislative Building (not with the media) sent these thoughts about reporters being banished to the basement: “The dawn of a new legislative session spawned a kerfuffle about relocating the office space of the legislative press corps to an undesirable hole in the ground. Everyone’s complaining about how mean the Republicans…

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Winning message wars

Two communications innovations propelled Trump to the Presidency: reality TV and Twitter. Now three Democrats – wildly different in age and style – are pioneering the next wave. • Nancy Pelosi, 78, is the star of the Shutdown Showdown. She’s tough, stylish and sharp. She’s turned the West Wing press scrum into performance art. She…

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Tear down this wall

Trump may never get his wall with Mexico, but he’s built a hell of a wall between Americans. It has bitterly divided Democrats and Republicans in Washington, it has shut down government, and it divides the American people. And it’s not even a real issue. It’s an imaginary solution to an imaginary problem. Even if…

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Winning the news war

Trump is both creature and creator of today’s hyper-speed, Twitter-hype news cycle. To win in 2020, Democrats need a candidate who beats him at the communications game. The New York Times reports: “By all accounts, Mr. Trump’s consumption of cable television has actually increased in recent months as his first scheduled meetings of the day…

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Rob Christensen Retires

With Rob Christensen’s retirement, we lose North Carolina’s most experienced, knowledgeable and insightful political reporter. There were, still are and always will be other great political reporters in North Carolina. But nobody stayed on the job for 45 years. Nobody had Rob’s wealth of history and sources. Nobody worked harder, worked sources harder, listened longer…

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Crime and Politics

My blogging partner Carter Wrenn hit the big time yesterday. He had the “Quote of the Day” in The New York Times: “I’m old fashioned, but anytime somebody may have broken the law, it’s appropriate for the state to look into it.” Carter was quoted (as “the dean of North Carolina’s Republican strategists”) in a…

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