Election2008

Wed late: Dem Dems

lleslie — 2008-08-28T04:22:33Z

Feel the love

The most anticipated (or dreaded) speech of the night was that of former Prez. Bill Clinton. He rang all the necessary bells, technically speaking, but he clearly hasn’t lost his gift for parsing language. His much-anticipated “endorsement” of his wife’s opponent was ever-so-carefully qualified.

“With Joe Biden’s experience and wisdom supporting Barack Obama’s proven understanding, instincts, and insight, America will have the national security leadership we need.”

Michelle Obama, lips pressed tight, looked peeved, while Hillary and Chelsea were shown giggling together at something probably unrelated.

Still though, Bill Clinton had some excellent lines tonight, and the audience ate them up. Like this one.

“People abroad have always been more impressed by the power of our example than by the example of our power.”

I suppose it’s foolish to expect the guy to praise his wife’s opponent over his wife. He didn’t. (Frankly, he sounded more comfortable saying nice things about John McCain than Barack Obama.) But Clinton did at least succeed in painting Obama as the lesser of two evils, even if only slightly lesser.

Playlist Editorial

Looks like the Democrats’ DJ enjoyed a little joke at the former President’s expense: Bill Clinton left the stage tonight to the unmistakable strains of Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love.” Excellent!

NextGen?

On the other end of the credibility spectrum, there was Beau Biden. One word: Wow. He was absolutely magnetic. If Obama’s sister Maya and Jesse Jackson Jr didn’t convince you there’s a genetic factor in political talent, this guy should’ve sealed the deal in ink. Here’s hoping he makes it back safe from Iraq.

Veep material

Biden gets big ups for a job well done tonight - a big improvement over his teleprompter issues at VP introduction Saturday in Springfield.

My very favorite moment of the night was watching Biden’s elderly mother in her navy-blue and pearls, listening to her son talk about all the things she taught him growing up. I’m pretty sure elderly mothers don’t get much more endearing than that – though I haven’t seen John McCain’s mom yet, so I may have to take that back next week.

Comments? Drop me a line.

Mon: Obama phones it in

lleslie — 2008-07-07T20:05:38Z

His plane didn't cooperate, but that didn't stop Obama from speaking to supporters in Charlotte today. The Dem Presidential hopeful made a phone "appearance" instead.

Here it is, all nine minutes' worth:

Listen Now!

Download

(And thanks to my friends down at WFAE for sharing the tape!)

Comments? Drop me a line.

Mon: McCrory favors offshore wells

lleslie — 2008-06-30T17:04:10Z

Republican gubernatorial candidate Pat McCrory announced this morning he's in favor of "deep sea" drilling off NC's coast, and would sign an executive order opening the coast. From his release:

“The Manteo Project is 45 miles off our coast on the Continental Shelf. Exploration of this area indicates there are nearly 1.5 billion barrels of oil or equivalent gas in the Manteo Project. It has further been projected that it is most likely to generate natural gas, and could contain as much as 5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas which is equivalent to 833 billion barrels of oil.

“Drilling in the deep sea at the Manteo Project would be far beyond the ability to see from shore. If natural gas is discovered, it is free from the spills the alarmists predict. The product would be piped away from the coastal counties to more inland eastern counties for processing. Tourism will not be affected and jobs would be in areas where they are most needed. "

The full release is here. Can't wait to hear what Senate Pro Tem Marc "the man from Manteo" Basnight has to say about this.

If the "Manteo Project" rings a bell, think back to 1989, when Peter Applebome wrote this story about it for the New York Times. The more things change...

Update: NCDENR has a quick backgrounder here, plus a 2005 presentation on offshore drilling from the Div. of Coastal Management.

Update 2: Forgot to mention that Dem candidate Bev Perdue is "100% opposed" to the idea.

I'll ask McCrory this afternoon where he's getting his figures. Anything else I should ask him? Let me know.

Mon: At Obama

lleslie — 2008-06-09T17:11:44Z

So we're waiting...a crowd of about 1000 invitees, lots of dignitaries (the Edwardses are expected, though I haven't seen them yet) plus legislative leaders, superdelegates, and a handful of other governors in town for Hunt's education meeting.

He's taking the stage in a minute.

Gov Easley's introducing him right now. Yes, you read that right. (Easley had endorsed Hillary Clinton.)

"I want to start by saying, I know I'm late, but I am on the train! (Wild applause)

"I'd rather be a bum in a boxcar on the Obama train than in the front of the bus with John McCain."

You can watch it at WRAL.

The transcript of Obama's speech is here.

UPDATE: Dome says Edwards is in the house.

More later...

Sunday Update: Sebelius in NC

lleslie — 2008-06-09T03:50:57Z

Obama won't be the only campaign celebrity in town tomorrow. Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius will appear at noon at a private fundraiser in Chapel Hill. Sebelius's name regularly appears on lists of Obama's top potential VP picks.

Coincidence? Not exactly. Sebelius and more than a dozen other governors are in town for a meeting arranged by former Gov Jim Hunt. The fundraiser's apparently been planned for quite some time. But what are the odds that Obama and one of his most-talked-about potential VPs end up in the Triangle on the same day? You tell me.

Also - forgot to mention in my earlier roundup that Charlotte's David Ingram and I joined Kim Gennardo on NBC-17's At Issue today. Char O's Mark Johnson and I also did some extended bloviating with Ezster Vaida over at UNC-TV's Leg Week.

Tues update: Obama on the big screen

lleslie — 2008-05-07T01:28:38Z

So Obama's already giving his speech, which means my night just got shorter. I'm watching it here at Perdue party HQ, where the audience is straining to hear and cheering here and there.

Perdue hasn't spoken yet - they haven't called her race. But signs are coming in, and so are a whole lot more people, so I'm guessing it'll be soon.

Tues: Notes from the Trail

lleslie — 2008-05-06T23:49:02Z

Note in the men's bathroom at Perdue's Raleigh Hilton party: "Thanks, Perdudes." (No, I did not independently verify that. But it's from a good source.)

Obama stops for a beer at the Raleigh Times. Maybe he was celebrating picking up another NC superdelegate, Jeannette Council.

That's 7 for Obama, 2 for Clinton.

Obama: Come on down

lleslie — 2008-05-06T03:46:36Z

The latest from Obama-land on their Election Night rally at NC State's Reynolds Coliseum:

The event is free and open to the public. However, tickets are required.
A limited number of tickets are available. Members of the public can RSVP at nc.barackobama.com to receive a free ticket via email. Space is limited and is available on a first-come, first-served basis.

***For security reasons, do not bring bags. Please limit personal belongings. No signs or banners allowed.***

(I told you they'd have to give away some of those tickets. It's a 12,400 seat venue, for cryin' out loud.)

Monday update: Party Time

lleslie — 2008-05-06T02:58:52Z

Party Time

Word’s out tonight that Barack and Michelle Obama will be holding their rally/victory celebration in Raleigh tomorrow night.

The event’s at NC State’s Reynolds Coliseum. Note: It’s an invitation-only event, so don’t jump into your car and expect to get in. But with 12,000+ seats to work with, it seems likely someone’s going to release some tickets, somewhere.

No word yet from the Clinton camp, aside from one last GOTV swing by Bill tomorrow. It’s a safe bet they’ll be partying where the polls tell them they’ll have something to celebrate – IN.

McCain was in the state today, but there’s no word of any partying whatsoever.

Govs

Dem Bev Perdue’s party will be at the North Raleigh Hilton, starting when the polls close. That one IS open to the public.

Dem Richard Moore isn’t throwing a party. His deputy campaign manager Julie White advised last week that Moore would have a press availability 30 minutes after the race is called. Sounds festive. Today’s polls can’t have made the Moore camp feel much better. Survey USA has him down by 19, and PPP by 18.

On the GOP side, it’s likely to be a tense night. Those same polls show Pat McCrory (partying in Charlotte) is just a few points ahead of Fred Smith (throwing a barbecue - of course - near Raleigh), and no one’s breaking 40 yet.

Yes, I know PPP’s Tom Jensen is pooh-poohing the idea of a runoff, but…what if Bill Graham’s late ad campaign picked up some undecideds? That could make for an interesting next month or so. Either way, this one’s the (state) race to watch.

Obama at Cree

Barack Obama showed up at Cree Semiconductor today for a “town hall meeting” with a polite crowd that barely outnumbered the press contingent.

Obama took several questions on his energy and environmental policies, earned applause for yet another slam of Clinton’s proposed gas tax holiday, talked a little foreign policy, and made a last-minute pitch to a questioner who said she was still undecided. That’s here.

Listen Now!

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Wall Street Journal blogger Nick Timiraos says it worked – the questioner, Cree attorney Diana Allen, said she’d “have to vote for him.”

But two other Cree folks at the gathering weren’t persuaded. Before the speech, Kathy Doverspike and Gary Barbari said they were undecided. When I checked in afterward, that hadn’t changed.

Barbari said he still hasn’t heard how either candidate will make the US competitive again in the global marketplace. Doverspike is more concerned about who can win in November. She thinks the drawn-out primary battle is tearing the party apart, and she thinks Obama’s overly optimistic that they’ll all come back together to back the nominee.

Listen Now!

Download

(BTW, Doverspike says she IS voting Tuesday - for someone, anyway.)

Clinton in Greenville

Over at Dome, Ryan Teague Beckwith has video of Clinton’s campaign stop in Greenville today, where she promoted her gas tax holiday proposal with a little help from her friend, Gov Mike Easley, who apparently took a swipe or two at Obama, too. I don’t have tape of Clinton, but Ryan has video of the whole thing here.

Comments? Drop me a line.

Sunday Roundup

lleslie — 2008-05-05T02:11:46Z

It's all about Tuesday

The Char-O endorses Obama. So does the Wilmington Star-News.

McClatchy's Barbara Barrett and Martha Quillan say race might (still) matter in NC.

W-SJ's Bertrand Gutierrez and Sean Mussenden look at what Obama and Clinton are doing to woo the other’s supporters.

Lines were long at one-stop sites around the state yesterday. Dome reports 8% of eligible voters have already cast ballots. And – loved this story - the N&O's Stanley Chambers talked to a woman who voted for the first time yesterday – on her 97th birthday.

But Greensboro’s Mark Binker says heavy presidential turnout may not amount to much help for the folks down-ticket. For those who DO want to fill in all the bubbles, Winston Salem’s Paul O’Connor offers a little homework help.

On the gov trail

The AP’s Gary Robertson was digging Ham & Yams yesterday with GOP hopefuls Pat McCrory and Fred Smith.
The N&O's Lynn Bonner checks out the gubernatorial candidates’ management credentials.
Fay-O's editorial page editor Tim White says Moore’s ad campaigns have driven him into Perdue's camp.

In case you missed it…

Between the election and the fund drive, last week was pretty much nuts. Here’s the recap.

I talked to Obama Wednesday afternoon. Here’s the on-air version, and I posted the rough cut here.

Friday afternoon, I talked to Clinton. The edited version aired that afternoon; the rough cut is here.

Listen Now!

Download

In between, there were six gubernatorial profiles: McCrory, Graham, Moore, Smith, Perdue, Orr.

I talked to Liane Hansen for today's Weekend Edition Sunday. That interview's here.

And I'll also be on the new public radio morning show "The Takeaway" early Monday morning. Really early...as in 6am. I have a lot of respect for anyone who’s coherent at that hour. I just hope I can fake it.

And last but certainly not least

A huge thank you to all of you who made our fund drive so successful. Because of your help, we met our 800K goal and exceeded it by another 50K. Thanks so much for keeping public radio going strong!

Comments? Drop me a line.

Thurs: Hillary Help and Obama Tape

lleslie — 2008-05-02T01:25:26Z

Hello, HRC

Good news, part 2 - I've got ten minutes with Hillary Clinton tomorrow afternoon. We're planning to get the interview onto the air tomorrow (Friday) afternoon during All Things Considered.

So, once again - what questions would YOU want to ask her? Let me know.

Same ground rules as for Obama:

No political spammers need apply. If I'm suspicious, I'll be googling you.
PG rated language, tops, please.
Since we apparently don't rate an actual debate, I'd appreciate any state-specific questions you have.

Thanks in advance for sending 'em in...

Obama tape - finally...

Sorry this took so long - I ran into some technical issues when I tried to post it earlier. Anyway, here's my pretty much unedited interview with Obama yesterday.

Listen Now!

Download

The official edited version that ran this morning is available here.

"Guberama" update

My six-part gubernatorial profile series finally (!) wraps up tomorrow with Dem Bev Perdue in the morning, and Republican Bob Orr in the afternoon. I'll post links here once they've aired. Meantime, Dem Richard Moore and GOP-ers Pat McCrory, Bill Graham, and Fred Smith are already posted for your listening pleasure.

Dinner date

Clinton, Obama, Perdue, and Moore will headline a cast of thousands (well, dozens at least, probably) on stage tomorrow night at the NC Dems' Jefferson-Jackson dinner. They're holding it at Dorton Arena to accommodate the gigantic crowd that bought tickets. I'm planning to go, pretty much just for fun, but I'll post here if any news is committed.

Comments? Drop me a line.

Wednesday Wrap-up

lleslie — 2008-05-02T02:42:57Z

Yes, I talked to Obama today. Yes, I used some of your questions. I got a lot of good ones – thanks very much! – and I wish I’d had time to ask him more, but five minutes isn't really much time at all.

You can hear the radio edit of the interview Thursday on Morning Edition. After it airs, I’ll post the full “rough cut” (the basic audio minus the bloopers) here.

Meantime, here’s a bonus-round question on "change" that didn’t make it into the on-air version. (Update: It's fixed now!)

Listen Now!

Download

(Oh, BTW, Obama’s not committing himself on the all-important question of barbecue affiliation. Smart. Listen tomorrow morning for the details.)

Meantime, I’m doing my level best to talk the Clinton camp into an interview, too. I’ve been asking unsuccessfully for weeks (hey, it’s not like we’re TV), but I’m hoping they’ll reconsider now.

Just in case, please send me questions for Clinton if you’ve got some. Same ground rules apply.

Gov’s race

I’m doing profiles of all six major D and R gubernatorial candidates. Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory (R) aired yesterday (that’s here), and Bill Graham (R) ran this afternoon.

Thursday morning, we’ll have Dem Richard Moore’s profile. Thursday afternoon, it's Republican Fred Smith. I’ll post links here when I get ‘em.

Fundraising

In my copious spare time, I’m asking for your money. Seriously -- that’s how we keep the lights on around here. So if you can, please drop by the tip jar, and don’t forget to tell ‘em who sent you.

Elsewhere:

Facing South knows who Lamont Williams is. The 64K question: Does Hillary? AG Cooper’s launching an investigation.
Dome notes that dead folks can’t vote, even if they’re Democrats.
Moore’s campaign rolls out a new anti-Perdue ad even GOP bloggers say is over the top. Dome’s Ben Niolet has a copy of the ad here, plus a response from Perdue’s spokesman.

Dogged

The N&O’s Dan Kane says the State Highway Patrol has decided to take its canine officers off duty after a hearing at which several troopers testified to abusive tactics used to train the dogs. From Kane's article:

"They said dogs had been shocked with stun guns, kicked, suspended from their leashes until they were nearly unconscious and hit with plastic bottles filled with stones. Troopers talked about twirling dogs on their leashes in a method known as helicoptering; in some cases the dogs were released while they spun in the air."

Sgt. Charles Jones was fired for hanging his police dog, Ricoh, from a railing and kicking the dog repeatedly - an act caught on another officer's cell phone. He’s pushing to get his job back, arguing that his firing was improper, and that his actions don’t amount to mistreatment. (Would he say that if the situation were reversed? I'm thinking no.)

As a dog person, sorry, but I can’t be particularly objective on this one. Sure, some dogs are tough cases, and I know some “correction” methods are rough, but this case goes way beyond the pale. It’s flat-out brutal. If you want to watch, the video’s here.

Comments? Drop me a line.

Tues. update: Help me out here...

lleslie — 2008-04-30T00:01:23Z

Okay, so I've got five minutes on the phone with Obama tomorrow afternoon. I can come up with plenty of questions, but I'm worried they're all too insider-ish - I've been on this story for so long, I'm afraid I won't ask what you really want to know.

So... what DO YOU want to know about Senator Barack Obama? Let me know.

Ground rules:

No political spammers need apply. If I'm suspicious, I'll be googling you.
PG rated language, tops, please.
Since we apparently don't rate an actual debate, I'd appreciate any state-specific questions you have.

Thanks in advance for sending 'em in...

Tues: "Hillary Clinton gets it."

lleslie — 2008-04-29T14:22:14Z

“Hillary Clinton gets it. She gets it.”

Live on CNN, Governor Mike Easley touted Hillary Clinton's strong support for education.

"She knows and understands that there is a connection between education and economic development that’s never existed before…. That if we want to dominate, we have to innovate."
"There’s a lot of "yes, we can" and "yes we should" going around. Hillary Clinton is ready to deliver. That’s the difference. She’s ready to deliver today. Immediately.
"...And I’ll tell you this: I’ve been accused of being persistent and downright aggravatin’. ….but this lady right here makes Rocky Balboa look like a pansy. "

(Yes, he really said that. On CNN.)

"I’m proud to support and endorse Hillary Clinton, the next President of the United States of America.

From Clinton's statement:

"I think that NC has made all the right bets and all the right investments. As Mary [Easley] said, we know we’ve got challenges, but there isn’t anything we can’t do if we start acting like Americans again."

Clinton spent a lot of time praising Easley's leadership and educational programs, and said she'd be turning to him and Mary "for advice."

"I'm going to be looking to NC to be the guide for where we need to go in public education."

(Um, hey, about that cabinet position...)

Also noted:

State Rep Alice Bordsen got a Clinton shout-out, as did Wake Commissioner Lindy Brown and the NC State faculty and students on hand.

Comments? Drop me a line.

Tues.: Watch the endorsement

lleslie — 2008-04-29T13:01:45Z

If you want to watch Easley endorse Clinton, WRAL.com has it live here. It should start any minute.

Update: The N&O has it, too.

Update 2: Make that "any minute, Clinton Standard Time." It's 9:00am, and they haven't taken the stage yet...