Former House Co-Speaker Richard Morgan, a Republican from Moore County, is running for Superintendent of Public Instruction this fall. Like some candidates, he has also recently published a book about his time in politics,:The Fourth Witch: A Memoir of Politics and Sinning." In it he sheds light on how he came to share power in the N.C. House of Representatives with former Speaker and Co-Speaker Jim Black of Mecklenburg, now serving time in a federal prison for having accepted bribes.
He writes about a former aide to Black, Meredith Norris, who wielded great power and who benefitted from Black's helping her get clients as a lobbyist, and about former Rep. Mike Decker, a conservative Christian who accepted a bribe to switch his vote to help keep Black in power and who is also in federal prison.
Here's what Morgan had to say about Black: "It's hard to describe how I feel about what Jim did today. I served beside him two years as Speaker. I worked with him every day. He was my friend. How I don't feel is outraged. Or holier than thou. A day comes when unless you're blind you can't avoid seeing what every saint who ever drew breath figured out: Sin is bone deep. It's wider than any ocean. And none of us is safe. A thirty-year-old-girl was foolish enough to believe monitoring legislation wasn't lobbying. A history teacher from the Gospel Light Christian School, in an IHOP in Salisbury, took a $50,000 bribe. And a 72-year-old grandfather is serving five years in prison.
I guess how I feel about it is like the sinner's prayer, 'Have mercy, oh Lord, on me a sinner.'"
Later in the book, Morgan writes about his failure to confront Black in the House:
"My sin wasn't that I agreed to share power with Jim. It was in my not looking him in the eye, later, and saying, 'I can read a newspaper report. Is it true you bribed Mike Decker?'
"Instead, I didn't ask. Because Jim was my friend I closed my eyes -- and I'll warn you the easiest sin you'll ever commit is the one where you don't have to say a word or lift a finger -- where all you have to do is close your eyes."
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Bev not kissing off Charlotte, camp says
Lt. Gov. Bev Perdue's campaign says the Democratic candidate for governor is not kissing off Charlotte-Mecklenburg in this year's election while it stumps for votes in Eastern North Carolina, as This Old State wondered yesterday, based on an analysis by Public Policy Polling suggesting she was risking ticking off voters in the state's largest city. The campaign has an office there, she has campaigned dozens of times in Mecklenburg, Perdue's son Garrett is working the election circuit there and if elected governor, Perdue plans to open a governor's office in Charlotte. And campaign spokesman David Kochman notes the following letter of support published in the Durham Herald by Charlotte Mayor Pro Tem Susan Burgess:
As Charlotte's mayor pro tem, many people have asked me who I support for governor. My answer is clear -- Bev Perdue.
In fact, the majority of the Charlotte City Council supports Perdue for governor. I know both candidates personally. I served with Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory on the City Council for seven years, and I've seen first-hand Perdue's work as lt. governor. She is the leader we need during these difficult times.
Unlike McCrory, she understands that we must bring our entire state together, all 100 counties, rather than pitting regions or groups against each other.
The difference is clear here in Charlotte -- McCrory vetoed a budget that would have added 70 more police on the streets. He opposed a program to revitalize a troubled neighborhood and reduce crime.
Perdue, on the other hand, personally visited those communities to learn about their concerns. Charlotte's form of government, like other North Carolina cities, gives the mayor no power. McCrory has never written a budget nor does he vote on City Council actions except in limited cases.
He has absolutely no experience in human services such as education, health care or mental health. In these most challenging times, we cannot risk a governor who needs on-the-job training. As governor, Bev Perdue has the experience and temperament to give all North Carolinians a seat at the table. Only she can move our entire state forward.
SUSAN BURGESS
Charlotte
October 28, 2008
As Charlotte's mayor pro tem, many people have asked me who I support for governor. My answer is clear -- Bev Perdue.
In fact, the majority of the Charlotte City Council supports Perdue for governor. I know both candidates personally. I served with Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory on the City Council for seven years, and I've seen first-hand Perdue's work as lt. governor. She is the leader we need during these difficult times.
Unlike McCrory, she understands that we must bring our entire state together, all 100 counties, rather than pitting regions or groups against each other.
The difference is clear here in Charlotte -- McCrory vetoed a budget that would have added 70 more police on the streets. He opposed a program to revitalize a troubled neighborhood and reduce crime.
Perdue, on the other hand, personally visited those communities to learn about their concerns. Charlotte's form of government, like other North Carolina cities, gives the mayor no power. McCrory has never written a budget nor does he vote on City Council actions except in limited cases.
He has absolutely no experience in human services such as education, health care or mental health. In these most challenging times, we cannot risk a governor who needs on-the-job training. As governor, Bev Perdue has the experience and temperament to give all North Carolinians a seat at the table. Only she can move our entire state forward.
SUSAN BURGESS
Charlotte
October 28, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Bev to Charlotte: Drop dead?
Democrat Bev Perdue is maintaining a small lead over Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory in the governor's race with a week to go in the latest Public Policy Polling survey. Analyst Tom Jensen says the Perdue campaign has make a clear decision that it's willing to risk alienating voters in Charlotte-Mecklenburg -- hearkening up memories of a famous tabloid headline from 1975 when President Ford refused bailout money for an ailing New York City. The New York Daily News headline: "Ford to City: Drop dead."
Here's Jensen's analysis, in its entirety:
Bev Perdue 47
Pat McCrory 44
Michael Munger 5
Bev Perdue's campaign has made a clear calculus that they're willing to tick off Charlotte voters if it allows them to rack up the kind of margins they need to win in eastern North Carolina. Right now it seems to be working.
One of the biggest things that has kept Perdue from running away with this race is that Pat McCrory has consistently shown a huge lead in the polls in greater Charlotte, including major in roads with white Democrats, that Perdue has not been able to match in her home base of eastern North Carolina. Perdue has worked hard to shore up her support in Charlotte, but McCrory has consistently led the polls there by double digits.
So about two weeks ago it seems Perdue's campaign became heavily focused on the east. First she started running effective ads on Yankee trash, an issue that hits home much harder east of I-95 than it does anywhere else. Her newest set of ads attack McCrory for a Charlotte first mentality: if there was no inherent anti-Charlotte bias with voters outside the state of Mecklenburg, it seems, the Perdue campaign is trying to create one.
How's it all working? In the two polls before this new strategy Perdue led by an average of 48-42 in eastern North Carolina. In the two polls since her average lead is up to 54-38, including a new high of 56-36 in this week's poll. We project eastern North Carolinians to cast around 28-30% of the vote for Governor, so a ten point increase in her lead in that region gives her an extra three points statewide. That's huge in a tight race.
Of course folks in Charlotte aren't necessarily thrilled with Perdue's strategy. In the two polls before she started actively courting the east she trailed by an average of 52-41 there. In the last two she trails by an average of 53-39, with her 53-36 deficit this week the largest she's shown in Charlotte in a long time. So she's lost 3-4 points in a region of the state that will cast about 20% of the vote. That costs her a point statewide.
Forsaking a point in Charlotte to pick up three in the east? Could make the difference in a close race.
Here's Jensen's analysis, in its entirety:
Bev Perdue 47
Pat McCrory 44
Michael Munger 5
Bev Perdue's campaign has made a clear calculus that they're willing to tick off Charlotte voters if it allows them to rack up the kind of margins they need to win in eastern North Carolina. Right now it seems to be working.
One of the biggest things that has kept Perdue from running away with this race is that Pat McCrory has consistently shown a huge lead in the polls in greater Charlotte, including major in roads with white Democrats, that Perdue has not been able to match in her home base of eastern North Carolina. Perdue has worked hard to shore up her support in Charlotte, but McCrory has consistently led the polls there by double digits.
So about two weeks ago it seems Perdue's campaign became heavily focused on the east. First she started running effective ads on Yankee trash, an issue that hits home much harder east of I-95 than it does anywhere else. Her newest set of ads attack McCrory for a Charlotte first mentality: if there was no inherent anti-Charlotte bias with voters outside the state of Mecklenburg, it seems, the Perdue campaign is trying to create one.
How's it all working? In the two polls before this new strategy Perdue led by an average of 48-42 in eastern North Carolina. In the two polls since her average lead is up to 54-38, including a new high of 56-36 in this week's poll. We project eastern North Carolinians to cast around 28-30% of the vote for Governor, so a ten point increase in her lead in that region gives her an extra three points statewide. That's huge in a tight race.
Of course folks in Charlotte aren't necessarily thrilled with Perdue's strategy. In the two polls before she started actively courting the east she trailed by an average of 52-41 there. In the last two she trails by an average of 53-39, with her 53-36 deficit this week the largest she's shown in Charlotte in a long time. So she's lost 3-4 points in a region of the state that will cast about 20% of the vote. That costs her a point statewide.
Forsaking a point in Charlotte to pick up three in the east? Could make the difference in a close race.
Monday, October 27, 2008
The Old Reliable endorses McCrory
That agitated buzz you heard Sunday maybe have been from the steady conversation zipping across the political spectrum Sunday after The News & Observer, long the state's most important politicial newspaper, endorsed Republican Pat McCrory for governor.
The N&O was once known as The Old Reliable -- though not just for its steady support of Democrats dating to the days when its owners, the Daniels family of Raleigh, were involved nationally in Democratic Party politics. It had never previously endorsed a Republican for president, U.S. Senator or governor on its editorial pages -- at least as far as Editorial Page Editor Steve Ford knows. "I haven't carefully researched the matter, but I don't remember any such previous endorsement during my time with the paper (since 1981), and I doubt there was one before that," he said in an e-mail Monday.
Ferrel Guillory, a former reporter, editor, columnist and opinion writer with the News & Observer and now a professor of journalism and director of the program on public life at UNC Chapel Hill, thought the paper had always endorsed Democrats, even in 1928 when Al Smith, a Catholic, was abandoned by Democrats elsewhere across the South because they were alarmed by his faith. The McCrory endorsement, he said, "Is a clear break for the N&O from its past."
Like the Charlotte Observer, the N&O has also endorsed Barack Obama for president and Kay Hagan for Senate. They're both Democrats. And, of course, the N&O has also endorsed Republicans in other offices down the ballot, including in this election.
While the state's other large newspapers, including the Observer and the Greensboro News-Record had previously endorsed Republicans, the Old Reliable had not. John Hood of the Locke Foundation called the endorsement of McCrory over Democrat Bev Perdue "jaw-dropping," though I doubt it truly stunned anyone. Endorsements by newspapers have run steadily against Perdue, except in Eastern N.C. papers in Wilmington and Greenville and the Sandhills area paper in Southern Pines -- owned by several Daniels family members.
It's worth remembering that the News & Observer and the Charlotte Observer were ring leaders in the late 19th-century effort to undermine the Republican Party and overturn a Fusion government of Republicans and African Americans in Wilmington and replace them with Democrats. That episode is thought to be the only coup in the United States turning out a legally elected government.
The N&O was once known as The Old Reliable -- though not just for its steady support of Democrats dating to the days when its owners, the Daniels family of Raleigh, were involved nationally in Democratic Party politics. It had never previously endorsed a Republican for president, U.S. Senator or governor on its editorial pages -- at least as far as Editorial Page Editor Steve Ford knows. "I haven't carefully researched the matter, but I don't remember any such previous endorsement during my time with the paper (since 1981), and I doubt there was one before that," he said in an e-mail Monday.
Ferrel Guillory, a former reporter, editor, columnist and opinion writer with the News & Observer and now a professor of journalism and director of the program on public life at UNC Chapel Hill, thought the paper had always endorsed Democrats, even in 1928 when Al Smith, a Catholic, was abandoned by Democrats elsewhere across the South because they were alarmed by his faith. The McCrory endorsement, he said, "Is a clear break for the N&O from its past."
Like the Charlotte Observer, the N&O has also endorsed Barack Obama for president and Kay Hagan for Senate. They're both Democrats. And, of course, the N&O has also endorsed Republicans in other offices down the ballot, including in this election.
While the state's other large newspapers, including the Observer and the Greensboro News-Record had previously endorsed Republicans, the Old Reliable had not. John Hood of the Locke Foundation called the endorsement of McCrory over Democrat Bev Perdue "jaw-dropping," though I doubt it truly stunned anyone. Endorsements by newspapers have run steadily against Perdue, except in Eastern N.C. papers in Wilmington and Greenville and the Sandhills area paper in Southern Pines -- owned by several Daniels family members.
It's worth remembering that the News & Observer and the Charlotte Observer were ring leaders in the late 19th-century effort to undermine the Republican Party and overturn a Fusion government of Republicans and African Americans in Wilmington and replace them with Democrats. That episode is thought to be the only coup in the United States turning out a legally elected government.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Numbers for political junkies
For serious students of political science, you can't beat the meat-and-potatoes findings of the "North Carolina Data Net" at www.southnow.org, published by the Program on Public Life at UNC Chapel Hill.
In the institution's most recent Web site posting, observations include these dry but significance-laden statistics and observations:
*The big story in registration trends involves unaffiliated voters, who now represent more than one-fifth of the North Carolina electorate. While the actual numbers rose within the major parties, both Democratic and Republican affiliation decreased between late 2004 and October 2008 as a share of the total electorate.
Unaffiliated voters, meanwhile, now account for 22.1 percent of all registrants, up from 18.5 percent in 2004.
*This is an historic election in terms of gender and race, in the nation and in North Carolina. Among the candidates in the three major campaigns on the ballot, there are four women: Sarah Palin, the Republican candidate for vice president; Elizabeth Dole, the Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate; Kay Hagan, the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate; and Beverly Perdue, the Democratic candidate for governor. In the presidential election, Barack Obama, the first black candidate of a major political party, has targeted North Carolina and made the state highly competitive in his race against Republican John McCain.
*As was the case in 2000, metropolitan areas largely account for statewide election turnout. In 2004, 15 of 100 North Carolina counties accounted for 51.1 percent of votes in the presidential election. In 2000, Bush won 12 of the top 15 counties, while Gore took three. In 2004, however, Bush won just six of the top 15 counties, and Kerry won 9. The 2008 presidential election will reveal whether Democrats can continue to win in the state’s major metropolitan areas while attracting new voters in rural areas.
Here’s a link to the Web site.
In the institution's most recent Web site posting, observations include these dry but significance-laden statistics and observations:
*The big story in registration trends involves unaffiliated voters, who now represent more than one-fifth of the North Carolina electorate. While the actual numbers rose within the major parties, both Democratic and Republican affiliation decreased between late 2004 and October 2008 as a share of the total electorate.
Unaffiliated voters, meanwhile, now account for 22.1 percent of all registrants, up from 18.5 percent in 2004.
*This is an historic election in terms of gender and race, in the nation and in North Carolina. Among the candidates in the three major campaigns on the ballot, there are four women: Sarah Palin, the Republican candidate for vice president; Elizabeth Dole, the Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate; Kay Hagan, the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate; and Beverly Perdue, the Democratic candidate for governor. In the presidential election, Barack Obama, the first black candidate of a major political party, has targeted North Carolina and made the state highly competitive in his race against Republican John McCain.
*As was the case in 2000, metropolitan areas largely account for statewide election turnout. In 2004, 15 of 100 North Carolina counties accounted for 51.1 percent of votes in the presidential election. In 2000, Bush won 12 of the top 15 counties, while Gore took three. In 2004, however, Bush won just six of the top 15 counties, and Kerry won 9. The 2008 presidential election will reveal whether Democrats can continue to win in the state’s major metropolitan areas while attracting new voters in rural areas.
Here’s a link to the Web site.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Voters to go for youngest candidates?
John Davis, the former head of the pro-business group NCFREE, has come up with another set of N.C. political predictions, this time in the top three races in North Carolina -- and he says the younger candidates will win.
He projects that Barack Obama will become the first Democrat to win the presidential race since 1976 when Jimmy Carter won.
He predicts that Kay Hagan will become the first Democrat to win a U.S. Senate race in a presidential election year since 1968, when Sen. Sam Ervin won his last campaign.
And he also predicts that the same trend helping Hagan in her campaign against Sen. Elizabeth Dole, a Republican, will help Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, a Republican, in his race against Democratic Lt. Gov. Bev Perdue: an anti-establishment mood.
In each case, the winner would be the youngest candidate.
"The two primary political forces driving the coming Election Day upheaval are
the anti-establishment mood of the voters and an era of
generational change, each compounding the power of the other
by coming together at the same time in political history," he notes.
Here's a link to his analysis:
Among other things, Davis notes that younger voters are motivated not by politics or ideology, but youth and hope:
"Newcomers to our state are more inclined to vote for Obama, Hagan and McCrory because they are younger and because they are not incumbent leaders of the day. Young voters are not voting for Barack Obama for U.S. President because he is a Democrat or because he's liberal, they are voting for him because he's 46 and offers them hope for a new direction for the country … one that their generation can influence."
He projects that Barack Obama will become the first Democrat to win the presidential race since 1976 when Jimmy Carter won.
He predicts that Kay Hagan will become the first Democrat to win a U.S. Senate race in a presidential election year since 1968, when Sen. Sam Ervin won his last campaign.
And he also predicts that the same trend helping Hagan in her campaign against Sen. Elizabeth Dole, a Republican, will help Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, a Republican, in his race against Democratic Lt. Gov. Bev Perdue: an anti-establishment mood.
In each case, the winner would be the youngest candidate.
"The two primary political forces driving the coming Election Day upheaval are
the anti-establishment mood of the voters and an era of
generational change, each compounding the power of the other
by coming together at the same time in political history," he notes.
Here's a link to his analysis:
Among other things, Davis notes that younger voters are motivated not by politics or ideology, but youth and hope:
"Newcomers to our state are more inclined to vote for Obama, Hagan and McCrory because they are younger and because they are not incumbent leaders of the day. Young voters are not voting for Barack Obama for U.S. President because he is a Democrat or because he's liberal, they are voting for him because he's 46 and offers them hope for a new direction for the country … one that their generation can influence."
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Dems in D.C.: One reader's 'terrifying' thought
In a Sunday column about Sen. Elizabeth Dole's political plight, I mused about her missed opportunity to connect with citizens and gain a reputation for standing up for ordinary folks against a powerful government during the dispute over the proposed Outlying Landing Field near the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in northeastern North Carolina.
A retired military officer wrote back, taking me to task for going too easy on Dole -- "It's time for her to move on" -- and offering a few additional thoughts about the upcoming election. It was a thoughtful note -- including his worry about what would happen if Democrats win a landslide and wind up with big Congressional majorities. "An absolutely terrifying prospect," he thought.
Here's what he had to say:
"Mr. Betts,
"In your column today you were too kind by half in assessing the disservice Senator Dole has done to the State and her chances of reelection by her Janie Come Lately opposition to the OLF. From my perspective she has done little in the service of her North Carolina constituents -- the main reason for which she was elected.
"I am a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer. So, that makes me a member of a special interest group -- veterans/military. By virtue of my age and some other pursuits I'm a member some others too but, what the heck, every constituent is a member of at least one. Since my retirement I have maintained an active interest in national legislation that pertains to military and veterans issues. When the need arises I do not hesitate to communicate with my elected representatives to urge their support of or opposition to bills as they move through the sausage-making machinery. In response to my communications, usually by e-mail, I routinely receive letter responses from Senator Richard Burr and Representative Sue Myrick. Sure, most of their letters are boilerplate explaining their positions on the legislation in question; nevertheless they are acknowledgement of correspondence from a constituent. Not once in her tenure as a Senator have I heard so much as a peep from Ms. Dole in response to any of my messages. That could be the result of, (a) sloppy staff organization, (b) a "who cares" attitude on the part of the Senator and her staff, and/or (c) both of the above. The bottom line for me is that Senator Dole doesn't really give a rat's rump about her constituents.
"In my mind a vote for Senator can be justified only as a defensive note because I view the potential threat of Democrat Executive and Legislative branches with a filibuster-proof Senate an absolutely terrifying prospect for the Republic.
"You were too easy on the old girl. It's time for her to move on, but the result could be more damaging than anyone could imagine if Democrats have virtually unopposed control of the government. What a predicament in which to have to cast a ballot!"
Jay Brosnan
Mint Hill, NC
A retired military officer wrote back, taking me to task for going too easy on Dole -- "It's time for her to move on" -- and offering a few additional thoughts about the upcoming election. It was a thoughtful note -- including his worry about what would happen if Democrats win a landslide and wind up with big Congressional majorities. "An absolutely terrifying prospect," he thought.
Here's what he had to say:
"Mr. Betts,
"In your column today you were too kind by half in assessing the disservice Senator Dole has done to the State and her chances of reelection by her Janie Come Lately opposition to the OLF. From my perspective she has done little in the service of her North Carolina constituents -- the main reason for which she was elected.
"I am a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer. So, that makes me a member of a special interest group -- veterans/military. By virtue of my age and some other pursuits I'm a member some others too but, what the heck, every constituent is a member of at least one. Since my retirement I have maintained an active interest in national legislation that pertains to military and veterans issues. When the need arises I do not hesitate to communicate with my elected representatives to urge their support of or opposition to bills as they move through the sausage-making machinery. In response to my communications, usually by e-mail, I routinely receive letter responses from Senator Richard Burr and Representative Sue Myrick. Sure, most of their letters are boilerplate explaining their positions on the legislation in question; nevertheless they are acknowledgement of correspondence from a constituent. Not once in her tenure as a Senator have I heard so much as a peep from Ms. Dole in response to any of my messages. That could be the result of, (a) sloppy staff organization, (b) a "who cares" attitude on the part of the Senator and her staff, and/or (c) both of the above. The bottom line for me is that Senator Dole doesn't really give a rat's rump about her constituents.
"In my mind a vote for Senator can be justified only as a defensive note because I view the potential threat of Democrat Executive and Legislative branches with a filibuster-proof Senate an absolutely terrifying prospect for the Republic.
"You were too easy on the old girl. It's time for her to move on, but the result could be more damaging than anyone could imagine if Democrats have virtually unopposed control of the government. What a predicament in which to have to cast a ballot!"
Jay Brosnan
Mint Hill, NC
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