PinkandBlack mentioned not paying attention to local elections yet, and I think thats true for a lot of people with the high profile presidential elections going on. So I'm making this thread for some discussion of other elections north carolinians will be voting on.

As far as the Lt Gov race goes, I've heard the most about Hampton Dellinger and kind of like the guy, but the more I read about this Dan Besse guy, the more I like what I hear. But I don't know enough about either to make a committed decision yet.

Quote :

"I'm Dan Besse, and I'm running for Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina because I have the experience to meet the challenges of our changing state, a demonstrated record of working for solid Democratic ideals of economic and educational opportunity for all, and a passionate commitment to combining growth and opportunity for our people with the stewardship necessary to keep our air, land, and water clean and productive."

I like that he's strong on education, especially public education and on the environment.

Quote :

"I'm running for Lieutenant Governor because I am unwilling to give up on the idea that government can be an ethical, capable, efficient, and positive force, and I refuse to concede that our state and national experiment in representative democracy is destined to disappoint and fail."

He covers several issues I care about along with many others. Covering a sea of issues is good b/c its a complex job, but so long as you don't drown out having any priorities. But I like that he doesn't talk about government like its a bad thing. Government can cause red tape, but an aim for bang for your buck instead of going cheap on something as important as government is a good thing.

Quote :

"Democrat enters race for challenge to Dole October 5th, 2007 — Filed under Neal In The News Corporate financial adviser Jim Neal is in first run for office by The Associated Press Winston-Salem Journal RALEIGH Someone has finally gotten into the race to challenge U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole next year, as a Chapel Hill corporate financial adviser announced yesterday that he would run for the Democratic nomination. The adviser, Jim Neal, a fundraiser for 2004 presidential candidates who has never run for public office, said he has formed an exploratory committee and has been out raising money. He filed his statement of candidacy with the U.S. Senate yesterday afternoon, a spokeswoman said. “North Carolina deserves a hell of a lot better than a senator who serves nothing more than a rubber stamp for President Bush,” Neal said in an interview. “Like a lot of other people, I’m fed up with it.”"

http://jimnealforsenate.com/issues/
Reading all the issues is best, but atleast read this "Leadership Strategy for Entrepreneurship in North Carolina" which is towards the bottom.

Local elections will have greater local effects on NC, but I still think its amazing that the presidential campaign as made it this far. The democratic primary campaign offices are registering tons of new voters in this state.

I was volunteering at an Obama campaign office the other day and met a psychiatrist who hadn't been involved in politics in over 20 years who was coming out to get involved. While the presidential campaign can drown out the messages of these smaller campaigns at first, I think they will also get more people involved in politics, and alot of these people will vote on positions other than just the presidency. All in all its an interesting time to be a North Carolinian.

4/5/2008 8:23:46 PM

Enough with the Jim Neal bullshit.

He's an incredibly dishonest person and cannot run a decent campaign for the life of him. Even if he did get past the primary (which I highly doubt) do you honestly think that he'd stand a chance in hell of beating Liddy Dole?

Oh and his rhetoric of Kay Hagan being on the inside of the Democratic Machine.... well what about the fact that he was an investment banker for Bear Stearns, the investment firm that just went belly up and was in so much trouble. I guess that's the kind of financial and economical leadership that he wants to bring to the Senate, huh?

[Edited on April 5, 2008 at 9:13 PM. Reason : .]

4/5/2008 9:11:10 PM

I’ve met Jim and I’ve met Kay. I’ve asked them questions. One answered and one said “let me respond the way I feel comfortable” and gave me non-answers/standard political answers. I respect Kay’s service to the party and the state and don’t want to turn this into a fight for who is the worst candidate, but instead about who is the best candidate. Jim’s worked around business in addition to politics and I don’t think that’s bad experience to have. And when choosing who I think will best serve NC & the US I do so based on their campaign platforms and their answers to my questions, and not who random people from thewolfweb like best unless they get into details of who they like and why.

"do you honestly think that he'd stand a chance in hell of beating Liddy Dole?"
Liddy was under %50 support, which is a traditional sign of weakness in an incumbent, she sticks really close to Bush who isn't the most popular guy in the world right now, and she has smart people like Jim & Kay as well as the several other people in the race hammering away at her shortcomings. So yeah, I think theres a chance she goes down against the Neal candidacy. And he's run a fairly honest and grassroots campaign so far. He got into the senate race first and he and his campaign have traveled across more of the state meeting more people than the other guys in their campaigns.

In no thread have I been able to talk about any candidate I support this election cycle (be it for gov, lt gov, pres, senate) without it being called bullshit or someone calling me a fag or just derailments in general and this is the last post I'll make in this thread responding to a post that contains either of those words or others of the sort.

I’ve laid out a little bit about who I like and why in regards to several races going on right now and am open to hearing about who other people like and why since I haven’t made final voting decisions in some of the races.

4/5/2008 9:40:17 PM

who called you a fag?

What candidate running for the Senate from North Carolina has a meet and greet at Legends?

Neal's entire campaign strategy focuses too much on the fact that he is gay. Sure, it gets the progressive guilt machine working, but it is bad strategy.

[Edited on April 5, 2008 at 9:50 PM. Reason : .]

4/5/2008 9:46:07 PM

Quote :

"who called you a fag?"

I sure has hell didn't. I hate that word, ask JCASHFAN. I do think that supporting Neal largely because he is an openly gay candidate is incorrect. HRC refuses to endorse him from what I hear as well.

I've met them both as well. Neal does not come off as a person who can hold their own in a debate against Dole. I agree that she's incredibly vulnerable. Being under 50% is a clear sign of her vulnerability. Getting the best candidate up against her, who knows what they're doing is the best shot that Dems have to win her seat.

I also think that "honest" is incorrect. He's claimed to have endorsements that he doesn't have, to make his campaign look more legitimate. He says that he raises a million dollars for John Kerry. I've asked the people that were on that campaign, and he barely raised $100k.

Also, a grassroots campaign is important, but there are so many other things that come into play when running for a national office (yes, US Senate races are becoming national at this point).

It's just very hard for me to see Jim Neal as being a formidable opponent to Elizabeth Dole in the general.

And to be honest, I just pulled up both their websites. Look at their where they stand on the issues. Jim Neal complains about Dole and all the crap that she's done and gives incredibly broad ideas on what needs to happen in Washington. Then look at Kay's. She says exactly what she's already done in NC and what she'll fight for in Washington. Just an observation.

[Edited on April 5, 2008 at 10:07 PM. Reason : added]

4/5/2008 10:00:06 PM

Quote :

"And you fags thought…. This faggot is a… your a fag so of course you support him "

Just a couple random clips from different threads, I don't have time to search or remember the specifics enough to find them all. And I was referring more to a hostile opposition to discussion more than using that specific word.

Legends isn't a dumb move, it makes sense both in terms of getting volunteers and raising money. It would be a dumb move if he was focusing on it to the exclusion of other events. But this guy is pulling incredibly long days, doing a ton of traveling every day, and shaking as many hands, talking to as many people, and campaign in as many places as possible.

This is what the afternoon was like for the campaign today based off the website. And I know there was a lot more going on than that, I would of been out canvassing with them at like 12 or 1 if not for work, and a memorial service, and a car serving and half a dozen other things that I had to do all at the same time.

Quote :

"2:00pm Dare County Democratic Party Rally WhenSat, Apr 5, 2pm – 6pm WhereHatteras Village Civic Center, Hatteras, NC DescriptionJim will attend the Dare County Democratic Party rally. Contact: Kathy McCullough-Testa 252.489.8843 kathy@kmtconsultants.com more details» Add to Calendar 7:00pm Chowan County Town Hall Meeting on the OLF WhenSat, Apr 5, 7pm – 9pm WhereBarker House, 505 S. Broad St., Edenton, NC, 27392 DescriptionContact: Martha Badger 252-482-3044 jlmbbadger@mchsi.com 505 S. Broad St. Edenton, NC 27932 more details» Add to Calendar 9:30pm FINAL FOUR with JIM NEAL WhenSat, Apr 5, 9:30pm – 11:00pm WhereBuffalo Wild Wings, Greenville Sq. Shopping Center, 426 E Arlington Blvd, Greenville, NC DescriptionContact:Ameena Mohyuddin ameenamohyuddin@gmail.com 2038866052 more details» Add to Calendar"

And I don't think his campaign is overly focused on the fact that he's gay. I think media coverage might make it look that way to some degree, but some people are even asking things like why isn't he introducing him self as a gay man more often?

And I think the answer is b/c on the one hands its sort of silly in the same way a black candidate wouldn't go up to someone and say hi, i'm black and running for office, its already general public knowledge. But I'm fairly confident he's already said something to the effect of you shouldn't vote for him just b/c he's gay. He's also made the point that most of the people who wouldn't vote for him just because he's gay wouldn't be voting for him because of his progressive politics in the first place.

But again, I don't want this thread to be overly focused on whats bad about certain candidates, or focusing on just one race, and definitely not turn inwards on me and who has called me what and when, I want it to be more about hearing what positive things people have to share about candidates they like or have insight into.

Nutsmackr, who do you like for Lt. Gov?

[Edited on April 5, 2008 at 10:13 PM. Reason : .]

4/5/2008 10:08:14 PM

I don't have an Lt. Gov. candidate. At this point, I'm leaning toward Pat Smathers.

4/5/2008 10:12:51 PM

I've not heard anything about him, other than reading his name a few times in a list of people running, what has you leaning for him? Does he have a campaign website (i'm having trouble finding it).

4/5/2008 10:15:50 PM

http://www.patsmathers2008.com/

first link on Google for Pat Smathers.

Pat has been one of the more active candidates on the trail. I typically support mountain folk for office

4/5/2008 10:18:34 PM

Being from Mt. Airy, I have a certain lingering fondness for mountain folk myself, as long as they still have a complete grasp of the whole state. I'll check out that sight now. Thanks.

....

I just saw this quote on his website "As a lifelong resident of a mill town..."

Back when I was volunteering for the Edwards campaign, anytime the word "mill" was mention people either loved or hated it. But they were always passionate. Very few people had centrist positions on being around mills.

He's very pro-family and pro-community and works it into almost every issue and paragraph it seems. Which is a good thing in some respects. But some part of government can be good, and some parts of being government can't be delegated to families.

I'd take it a step further and go into talking about individual responsibility if I was him rather than just small social units (family/community groups) if I were him.

I did like these sections from his campaign website:

Quote :

"Building a safer North Carolina Every North Carolinian deserves to feel safe at home, work and school. We need to take a hard look at the root causes of the issues that are threatening our societal security. By addressing affordable housing, joblessness and health care, including mental health, we can create a better state. Creating a culture of education One of government's most important responsibilities is the education of our children. But even the best teachers can't succeed when their students don't have their parents' support. We must make education a top priority for every North Carolina household by expanding and sustaining our post-secondary school system and working to make lifelong learning opportunities affordable. A cleaner, greener state "

[Edited on April 5, 2008 at 10:29 PM. Reason : .]

4/5/2008 10:21:07 PM

The Lt. Gov making policy statements don't really mean much, since the office of Lt. Gov. has been severely neutered.

4/5/2008 10:33:48 PM

Policy statements may be difficult to turn into reality due to all the limitations and opposition and constraints any public servant faces, but they still help inform the voters of the values and character of who they are voting for.

You can’t always predict and make an informed decision on what challenges a person will face and what kind of legislation or reforms or initiatives will succeed. But you can try to make an informed decision on the character of the person you’re voting for, in the hopes that those values and that character will shine through in any novel situation.

Thats why I spend time reading policy statements even if I'm unsure how much impact those statements will actually have, and why I try to meet anyone before voting for them. I met many of my town council men before voting for them, I met Edwards before volunteering at his national HQ, I met Jim before becoming an intern with his campaign... I think Obama is the only guy I've volunteered for without meeting him first although I do hope to meet him. I've had work that last few times he was in NC. In general judging character is an important aspect for me, but with the Obama campaign I'm just excited NC gets to matter in a presidential election and I want to take part in that while the opportunity exists.

4/5/2008 10:50:32 PM

In the Senete race I'm leaning for Kay Hagan, but I do like Neal's grassroots movement, he should have tried for something further down the totem pole like a state senate or congressional seat.

Lt. Governor: I really can't stand Dellinger, he comes across as pompous and a jerk, plus if I hear his campaign slogan "for a good nights sleep put Hampton in" one more time I'm going to vomit. Besse is a nice guy with good views, but he would get destroyed in the GE. I'd go for either Smathers or Dalton, probably the former.

Governor: at least on the dem side, this has turned into an UGLY and BITTER race between Moore and Purdue, I lean Moore, but these two need to learn a little civility!

4/6/2008 3:35:21 PM

Quote :

"I hate that word, ask JCASHFAN."

Tis true, I got in trouble a lot, especially since her boss is a fag, fairy, queer, homosexual person of non-breeding orientation.

4/6/2008 3:42:42 PM

^but what about cloning?

4/6/2008 3:52:34 PM

I said non-breeding, not non-replicating.

duh.

psh.

4/6/2008 4:04:55 PM

Smathers did a great job during the mountain floods a few years back and I support him wholeheartedly. We need to put more resources into the hands of towns and counties.

I support Hagan because 1) She's not Dole and 2) She's not intent on running a campaign which is apparently most focused on winning Chapel Hill and the DailyKos vote, which might win you a congressional seat in NoCal but it's not going to fly here. When it comes to gay rights, it's better to focus on promoting state officials that will uphold them, because that's who it's going to come down to: state reps.

4/6/2008 6:14:52 PM

"1) She's not Dole"

Neither is Jim.

"most focused on winning Chapel Hill"

Neither is this campaign. Lots of campaigns have swells of support in their hometowns. And his campaign HQ isn't in Chapel Hill either. It's in Durham, I think its closer to Raleigh than it is to Chapel Hill. He was the first in the race so he's had more time to campaign before others had jumped in, when some were saying they wouldn't run at all until they were pressured into it. He's been to NCSU a few times, including within the past week. He's traveled more of the state than any other campaign in this race, met more people, shook more hands, and visited more colleges than the rest. I don't think an accusation of having a narrowly focused campaign is fair in this case.

But so far those are all negative reasons, all reasons for not supporting other people, not a lot of reasons for supporting her and with this thread I was looking more for "what positive things people have to share about candidates they like or have insight into" rather than focusing on the negative and turning this into a fight about the lesser of two or three or four evils.

Quote :

"Dan Besse Daniel Vaughn (Dan) Besse (born December 28, 1954) is a graduate of UNC Chapel Hill School of Law (1980), an attorney, and a second-term City Councilman in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He is one of four Democratic candidates in 2008 for the seat of North Carolina Lieutenant Governor being vacated by Beverly Perdue. Besse has received the endorsement of the Progressive Democrats of North Carolina. [1], and the Conservation Council of North Carolina.[2] Besse has served on the board of directors of the Piedmont Triad Partnership, a leading regional development organization, which brought $15 million in federal grant money to the Piedmont Triad region for workforce development.[3]. He was appointed to the N.C. Environmental Management Commission (1993-2005) by Governor Jim Hunt and he also served on the N.C. Coastal Resources Commission (1985-1993, Chair 1985-1990), the N.C. Sedimentation Control Commission (1994-2002), and the N.C. Emergency Response Commission (1987-1992). Besse is Chair of the Stakeholders Committee of the Piedmont Triad Early Action Compact, a regional clean air coalition.[4], and a member of the N.C. Climate Action Plan Advisory Group since 2006. As a member of the National League of Cities, he has taken leadership roles on energy, environment, and transportation. Besse has also served as adjunct or visiting faculty at North Carolina State University, Winston-Salem State University, and Duke University, as well as Guilford College, and Forsyth Technical Community College."

-wiki

Anyone ever had this guy as professor and have any special insights about him?

4/6/2008 8:26:30 PM

What I meant by "winning Chapel Hill" was moreso a statement on his platform and values. Do you seriously think that a platform with these values can win the state?

4/6/2008 9:40:33 PM

Socially progressive, fiscally moderate to conservative... yeah I think that has a shot in an atmosphere thats tired of Bush and tired of Dole.

This news article is covering the debate. Neal’s been pushing for more, but had trouble getting others to agree I believe. He even used a good portion time limited closing remarks to call for more debates. He was the only one to get applause at the end.

Quote :

"Leading NC candidates for U.S. Senate differ on Iraq [Winston-Salem Journal] March 28th, 2008 — Filed under Neal In The News By MIKE BAKER Associated Press Writer NEW BERN, N.C. - All five Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate, meeting in a debate for the first time Friday, agreed to end the war in Iraq, but the front-runners disagreed on how quickly troops should be pulled from the country. State Sen. Kay Hagan said the war should not end immediately. “I don’t think we can pull out just on Day 1,” the Greensboro Democrat said in the forum hosted by Public Radio East and the North Carolina League of Women Voters. “I think we need to have a diplomatic surge. This needs a political solution.” Hagan’s chief rival, Chapel Hill corporate financial adviser Jim Neal, disagreed, saying saying he would even vote in Congress to withhold war funding in an effort to end the conflict. “The time to talk about a diplomatic surge is way over,” Neal said. “It’s time to get out of Iraq.”"

I think looking for an end to war will be well received by many instead of a Dole position of pro-war, or a Hagan position of continued war while starting a new process of increased diplomacy.

One of the best things Hagan has going for her is her political experience. And while that card works against her opponents in the primary, it'll be trumped by Dole's political experience card... Dole won’t be beat on that playing field. I think a combination of business experience, some political experience, with a progressive campaign, and extreme grassroots politicking has a chance.



I think this following platform/these values will be west received in NC. (i tried to cut it down some so its not just "words")

Quote :

"Leadership Strategy for Entrepreneurship in North Carolina I have spent my career in the private sector creating, financing and growing business and employment. I believe in the nobility of an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay. Of creating not just jobs, but careers. Not just jobs, but jobs that pay good wages. Not just jobs, but jobs that add value. In short, quality, sustainable jobs that are grounded in entrepreneurship. But it’s not only urban entrepreneurs and urban growth that North Carolina can celebrate. We lead the nation in rural entrepreneurship as well. About 85% of our state is rural and though businesses operating in rural areas aren’t as large or well-known as SAS, Quintiles, Red Hat or Cree, their innovation and growth are every bit as important to our economic diversity and resilience. That’s important, for it will frame a simple concept as legislation which will have broad appeal to my Democrat, Republican, and Independent colleagues alike. I believe in a Federal Government that is a focused partner in establishing a fertile environment for entrepreneurial growth, and then gets behind local entrepreneurial thinking and decision-making. After all, small business entrepreneurs are the economic engine driving our nation’s growth and that reality is only going to be magnified in the 21st century. So, just how might that translate into policy? I’ll offer a few thoughts. Raising the Education Bar We can’t begin any dialogue about building smart businesses without acknowledging the necessity of a workforce trained for the white collar economy of the 21st century. Entrepreneurial opportunities in North Carolina are suffering at a time when less than 1/3rd of the four-year universities in the UNC General System have five-year graduation rates above 50% and our state’s high schools have the 6th worst dropout rate in the nation. Clearly, strengthening our public universities through expansion of such programs as Pell grants and targeted federal research grants will be key agenda items. Likewise, our public high schools are being undercut by federal mandates such as No Child Left Behind-a failed initiative which I would work to scrap and replace with a mandate to foster old-fashioned American innovation, creative thinking, and improved outcomes instead of test-taking skills. Building Infrastructure to Raise Competitiveness The Appalachian Regional Commission has played a pivotal role in the development of the basic infrastructure in western North Carolina- I’ll support legislation providing the same for the eastern part of our state through the creation of the Southeast Crescent Authority as currently before the Congress. We have made persistent and determined improvements in our information infrastructure across North Carolina. Global competitiveness begins with world-class telecommunication access. I will propose legislation further strengthening the digital backbone available to North Carolina and then providing competitive grants to build out the “middle mile” and “last mile” of connectivity. Again, this is the sort of legislation which can draw support across the ideological spectrum because the model can work for all states. Provide Seed Capital This is a challenge in which North Carolina is not unlike other states: a need to provide entrepreneurs with ready access to seed capital. I’ve worked extensively with the Small Business Administration in Washington, and have come to admire its Micro-Loan program. It’s a fairly new initiative which has been quite successful-more so than other SBA lending and finance programs. The SBA Micro-Loan program’s budget and loan caps must be expanded and its regional targets should be directed by public/private economic development authorities at the local level. If an expanded Micro-Loan program proves to be a success, it would serve as a model for a host of federal agencies to manage the myriad of development programs. Entrepreneurial Spirit in Washington Successful entrepreneurs don’t take wild risks; we take very calculated risks, learn fast and move forward. As your next US Senator, I will embrace the development of innovative ideas, track performance honestly and transparently-without pride or prejudice- in order to learn from real experience and then either scale up investment or accept loss and throw it out."

I know this was a really long response to a question that was basically, do you think he’s a viable candidate? I think yes. Because he was first into the race, because at some points he has been top in the polls, because of the incredible grassroots campaign they have going on, and I wouldn’t be volunteering there 10 to 20 hours a week on top of having a full time job and other responsibilities if I didn’t think this campaign is viable. (disclaimer: while I am a volunteer intern there, i in no way represent the official message, i'm just sharing what i think)

I'm not saying cast your vote for him b/c I tell you to. But I'm just saying don't rule this campaign out just yet.

4/6/2008 10:41:27 PM

okay, so you've got your candidate. crystal clear.

4/6/2008 11:23:22 PM

For senate yeah, but I spent alot of time thinking and researching about that one before making a decision, and have met the main contenders. For several other elections I'm still wide open to changing my mind and some I'm undecided altogether.

[Edited on April 7, 2008 at 6:36 AM. Reason : .]

4/7/2008 6:33:48 AM

will you vote for Kay Hagan in October?

4/7/2008 10:16:54 AM

I don't care what your fiscal policy is, hosting a fundraiser or rally or whatever at Legends is liable to get you shot in most of North Carolina still, and this is coming from someone who grew up in rural NC and has been to Legends (no homo).

Is anyone of note challenging in the Congressional races? I see lots of candidates listed, but none really seem like they have any sort of notoriety or experience. Someone call Vernon Robinson and ask him to run again, we need more illegal alien and child pornography ads.

[Edited on April 7, 2008 at 10:43 AM. Reason : .]

4/7/2008 10:41:20 AM