A stark choice
The fallout from House Bill 2 is starting to hit North Carolina hard. Last week, the NBA announce that it is moving the All-star game out of Charlotte. Other sporting events may follow suit and many more are taking a pass on the state for future events. Republicans,...
Trump’s never-ending primary campaign
For a brief moment last night, I thought I saw the brilliance of the Trump strategy. After destroying the Republican Party in dramatic fashion on Wednesday night, he was going to pivot left and start wooing disaffected Democrats—from the stage of the Republican...
Greatest show in politics
The GOP convention is nothing if not entertaining. It’s got twists and turns, a changing plot line, and a master of ceremonies who is also the guest of honor. It’s not really a convention, though; it’s a reality show. Last night the convention offered some of the...
RNC: Trump’s Greatest Show on Earth
Yesterday, former North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Bob Orr left the Republican convention, calling Donald Trump “a danger to the country.” In turn, NCGOP Executive Director Dallas Woodhouse said Orr “hasn’t been a good Republican for a long time.” Orr, though, is...
RIP Senator Robert Morgan
Former Senator Robert Morgan died this weekend. He was 90 years old and had been in failing health for several years. Twenty years ago, I got to know him and he helped shape my understanding of populist politics. Back in the early 1990s, a small group of political...
Inside those CNBC rankings
A few years ago, when Democrats controlled North Carolina, Republicans routinely dismissed rankings from places like Site Selection Magazine or CNBC. Back then, the state was always among the top of the nation for great places to do business. Now that the GOP is...
A finger on the scale
When Republicans in North Carolina started putting together their voter suppression laws, they claimed to be combatting non-existent voter fraud. According to the GOP, voters no longer trusted our electoral system. They might have a point, but voters lost trust in the...
What can you say?
There’s so much I want to write about today. So much is happening in politics. But, really, only one thing deserves attention right now--the horrible violence and division that is senselessly taking so many American lives. The shooting of twelve police officers, and...
Crying wolf
North Carolina had a big day with the President, the Democratic presidential nominee and the Republican presidential nominee all in the state. It was Barack Obama’s first joint appearance with Hillary Clinton since the primaries ended. It was Donald Trump’s...
Where credit’s due
I’m with my family in Minnesota for the week, visiting my in-laws and generally marveling at people who call 85 degrees in July a heat wave. It’s harder to keep up with North Carolina politics than it is at home but I’ll try to make a few comments. There’s certainly...
