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The Hunt for the Republican Jim Hunt. Helms went to DC. Hunt stayed home; the NC GOP’s worst nightmare.
“Hunt criticized the Democratic controlled General Assembly for raising taxes in 1991 during the recession, saying the budgetary shortfall was ‘sheer government mismanagement.’”[i] Rob Christensen, News & Observer, The Paradox of Tar Heel Politics Twenty-five years ago, in Washington DC, U.S. Senator Jesse Helms, a North Carolina Republican, was beginning his third term in the…
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Is the NC Democratic Party the Toyota of State Politics? #1 – #4: Democrats have All of the Power and Get all of the Blame
Part I: Liabilities 1 – 4 NC Republicans do not have to raise the political bar closer to that of Democrats to seize power in 2010 if Democrats lower their political bar closer to that of Republicans. Toyota Motor Company has lost market share because of worldwide recalls of millions of its cars due to management mistakes…
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It is the Republicans to Lose, and they are Capable of Losing It: We have met the enemy, and he is us.
“In the time of Joseph McCarthyism, celebrated in the Pogo strip by a character named Simple J. Malarkey, I attempted to explain each individual is wholly involved in the democratic process, work at it or no. The results of the process fall on the head of the public and he who is recalcitrant or procrastinates in…
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The Battle for the Speaker’s Gavel in the North Carolina House: If GOP Momentum Wanes, How will they Match the Financial Might of the Democrats?
“There’s no real financial infrastructure under the [state] Republican Party, and I reckon building one will take a long time,” he said. And doing so will be “sort of like straightening out a train wreck.” — Carter Wrenn, NC Republican Consultant This is a very fragile time for North Carolina House Democrats and Republicans. They all…
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GOP Tripwires in NC’s 2010 Battle for the Senate Majority: Democratic Caucus faces an Uphill Battle after 114 Years of Uninterrupted Power
“Republican candidates who win independents will take the oath of office — period.”1 — Glen Bolger and Neil Newhouse, Public Opinion Strategies I am stunned. How is it possible that the fortunes of the Democratic Party could plummet so far so fast? One year ago they were enjoying the spoils of victory after riding the…
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A Wedding Gift for GOP State Chairman Tom Fetzer: A Transformative Political Lesson from a Reclusive Mississippi Banker
“On Thursdays he flew from Jackson to New York City in his private jet to take care of business interests like Amerada Hess Oil and the New York Jets. He always made it back in time to feed the cows.”1 Congratulations to Tom Fetzer, former three-term mayor of Raleigh and newly-elected Chairman of the North…
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Never Waste a Crisis (Unless you are a Republican)
The 2009/2010 election cycle is heating up. Challengers throughout the state are beginning to move about, stewing over their potential for picking off an incumbent in next year’s congressional and legislative races. They sense that the national and state budget crises give them an opportunity to pounce on vulnerable prey. In the absence of sustained…