Tillis and McCrory: Role reversals and makeovers
Pat McCrory sure was a lot more fun before they put him in a box. We haven’t had any of those say-anything moments in awhile. We also haven’t had one of his freewheeling, unscripted interviews with reporters, either. Instead, we’re getting Pat McCrory 2.0. This...
The Lex Luthor theory of politics
In politics, to win an argument, your case needs to be believable just as much as it needs to be true. Right now, Republicans and Democrats are both pushing story lines that have little credibility. On the Republican side, it’s voter suppression laws. On the...
Tillis and Berger: A tale of two leaders
Humility and modesty may be a politician’s strongest attributes. Unfortunately, not many of them possess much of either. More often, we see strutting and self-aggrandizement that may carry political capital within the bubble of the political establishment but has the...
Voter suppression and laws of unintended consequences
Last week, a Republican group released a study that said African-Americans voted at higher rate in the May primary this year than they did in the May primary in 2010. Republicans hailed the news as proof that their voter suppression tactics weren’t targeted at Black...
What 2014 means for 2016 and beyond in North Carolina
North Carolina is getting used to national attention. The state moved to center stage when President Obama defeated John McCain in the state in 2008. That year, Kay Hagan defeated GOP superstar and incumbent Senator Elizabeth Dole. The next cycle, 2010, saw...
Government by amateurs
The News & Observer began a series this weekend outlining the Medicaid problems facing North Carolina. Two things are clear. The system has had problems for a very long time. And, two, Pat McCrory has made the problems worse, not better. In the big picture, the...
To wit, a twit
Attention, Tillis campaign. Please find something for your boss to do. And keep him off of twitter. He’s making a fool of himself again. At 10:45 this morning, July, 5, Thom Tillis is sending Kay Hagan messages that make no sense. I think it’s his lame attempt at...
The Carolina Disconnect
Karl Rove has a lot of faith in his Obamacare narrative. Yesterday, his latest Crossroads GPS ad accuses the Affordable Care Act of harming the economy and blaming Kay Hagan for supporting the program. And just like Kay Hagan accused Elizabeth Dole of voting with...
The enthusiasm gap, 2010, and an “Oh, shit” moment for Republicans
Yesterday, a tweet came across my feed that said, “Critics Who Claim Voter ID Laws Are Racist Won’t Like the Results of This Study.” The story on a right-wing web site called The Blaze said that, contrary to critics claims, Voter ID laws in North Carolina had not...
The Hobby Lobby ruling is as much as about money as it is about birth control
Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the craft store Hobby Lobby is not required to provide contraception to women because of religious objections. Thom Tillis promptly hailed the measure, saying, “The American people are the clear winners.” Unless, of course,...
