Document Actions
Wed: Dog & Pony Show
posted at 2008-11-12 23:53 | Last modified 2008-11-13 15:07
Capitolbeat
The 2008 national Capitolbeat conference descends on the City of Oaks this weekend. Conference Chair Mark Binker (Greensboro) and I are running around like headless chickens, trying to tie up loose ends and make sure our 130-some guests from 26 states (!!) have a good time in Raleigh.
So be patient – I’ll be back here more often next week. And if you run into some tipsy inkstained wretches downtown this weekend, please be nice to them. I can’t afford to bail them out.
Want to come to the conference? The agenda's here, and yes, we offer onsite registration - just let me know.
A new First Pooch for NC?
Since I haven’t had much time for reporting this week, here's some great tape from the not-so-distant past that never made it to air.
There’s been a lot of talk about what kind of dog the First Family-elect should bring into the White House. But – little-known fact -- the Governor’s mansion is about to acquire a pack of its own.
Make no mistake about it, Perdue is a Dog Person. She has two Tibetan Terriers: Dosie, whom Perdue got in 2000, the year she was elected to the state's #2 office, and Dosie’s daughter Zipper, whose delivery caused Perdue to miss a crucial basketball game (but no regrets).
Two Tibetans officially qualify as a handful, but the Governor-elect is hoping to convince her husband Bob to let her add a third pup – a Labrador retriever. (Sounds like a great idea to me, but then I’m biased - see below). Here's what she had to say about it in our Sept. interview:
Listen Now!
And a new Tavern mascot, too
I’m delighted to introduce the Tavern’s newest mascot, a (formerly) homeless black lab pup named Boxcar Willie. He was found wandering around a Food Lion parking lot with a bum leg we’ll have to fix once he’s done growing. He loves everyone he meets, and everyone who meets him says he’s the Sweetest Guy Ever – especially when he takes a break from eating the furniture.
Adding a 7-month-old lab puppy to your house during campaign season is certifiably nuts – no argument there – but you know, it’s actually pretty good for your mental health. It’s kind of like having an adorable court jester who destroys stuff. If you can minimize the latter, the former is a great reminder of what really matters.
Elsewhere, news-wise
The N&O’s Lynn Bonner reports Gov-for-life Jim Hunt doesn’t want to go to DC to serve in Obama’s cabinet. (Palin, however, is open to the idea.)
Also at the N&O, Rob Christensen says former GOP Gov candidate State Senator Fred Smith is weighing a run at the state party chairmanship next year. No word yet on what incumbent Linda Daves thinks about that. She hasn’t said whether she’s interested in a second term.
The AP says Jim Black protégé Drew Saunders (D-Meck), who lost his May primary, resigned from the state House yesterday so he could go to work a month earlier as a lobbyist for Electricities. The 2006 Ethics reform bill required a year-long cooling off period between serving in the legislature and lobbying. But last session, it was shortened to six months. Guess who pushed for the change? Charlotte’s Mark Johnson has more.
And – my favorite story of the day – carjacker David Lee Fourney is on the run in western NC. We know his name because he left his dog Roxy at the crime scene, wearing tags with a name and phone number. You cannot make this stuff up.
Comments? Drop me a line.
& Newsletters
