Shortchanging opportunity
Republicans in North Carolina are forever falling all over themselves to claim they didn’t make cuts to public education. Their argument is all semantics. Yes, in raw dollars there may have been more money in the budget, but the funding didn’t keep up with the...
Kay Hagan should pick a fight with Obama
Kay Hagan needs to pick a fight with President Obama. At a time when she’s touting her moderate credentials, she can prove her independence and show that she’s not just toeing the party line. And right now, there’s an issue that's tailor-made for such a debate. In...
The political environment in North Carolina
With the legislature finally gone home, the US Senate race is going to take center stage in North Carolina. Democrats will continue trying to link Tillis to the legislature and Republicans will amp up their efforts to make Hagan a surrogate for Obama. This election is...
So long, Mr. Pope. Welcome to the fray, Mr. Roberts.
Well, Art Pope has left the governor’s office. With him, goes Pat McCrory’s most seasoned political advisor. While it’s really no surprise that he’s gone, it has to be a blow to the politically struggling McCrory. When Pope was appointed, howls came from the left. The...
More free advice for the GOP
In the wake of their contentious legislative session, I want to offer Republicans some free advice. First, stop blaming the Democrats. On issues from teacher salaries to coal ash GOP defenders repeatedly say, “The Democrats did it.” Preschool should have taught you...
Hubris
This year, the legislative session was all about softening the GOP tone in preparation for the 2014 Midterms. The centerpiece of legislation was a teacher pay raise that was supposed to mollify voters’ anger over the 2013 assault on public education. By that measure,...
Minnesota nice
I’m on my summer sojourn to Minnesota to see my in-laws and escape the heat. It’s my little experiment and experience living under opposites. You see, Minnesota did the opposite of North Carolina when the recession hit. They threw out the Republicans and elected...
Another red state experiment
The budget that the Senate passed last night and that the House is likely to pass soon exposes more problems than it solves. The centerpiece of the document is a pay raise for teachers, viewed by legislators as a political necessity. But the cuts used to pay for the...
A good ad, but a missed opportunity
As a consultant, I know how frustrating armchair quarterbacks can be. As a blogger, I love to armchair quarterback. And Kay Hagan has a new ad out, so here goes. Hagan’s new spot highlights her credentials as the most moderate Senator. The ad has Hagan to the camera...
Time to move on
The battle for marriage equality is over. The social conservatives lost and humanity won. Most people in this country have come to accept that two people loving and committing to each other is a good thing, not a bad one--or at least they acknowledge that it’s really...
