If you do a search for #tcot on twitter, you get a firehose of right-wing extremism and snark. It's not that useful to search #tcot by itself because there is way too much to' [...]
While some national organizations have Larry Kissell listed as in the pocket of the insurance industry, when I contacted North Carolina Health Care of for American Now they said that they haven't given up on Rep. Kissell to do the right thing.
NC HCAN believes that Kissell may misunderstand the bill's [...]
Rep. Jim Cooper (D-TN) used to support a public option for a health care. But now he's become an advocate of the alternative put forward by health interests and his fellow Blue Dogs: non-profit health care cooperatives.
I've agreed to start helping Facing South and the Institute for Southern Studies with their online outreach efforts. As many BlueNC readers know, the Institute was started 40 years ago as the research arm of the civil rights movement, and continues in that capacity today by reporting on environmental' [...]
Below are some photos I took today of Republicans greeting President Obama as he came to Raleigh to talk about health care.
While there were plenty of health care supporters outside, and many more inside, I mostly took photos of the anti-healthcare peoples because they were more, well shall we say [...]
Today the United States Senate rejected an amendment to the Defense Authorization Bill which would have undermined public safety and the safety of our police. This amendment, known as the Thune Amendment, would allow the transport of concealed weapons across state lines, even by persons legally barred from possessing [...]
Glenn Beck had a caller on his show ask about healthcare. Apparently this woman feels that a lot of Republicans with private insurance packages are trying to shove the idea that public healthcare is bad down middle class America's throat.
Glenn Beck's response to this caller was decidedly not healthy, [...]
I have to admit Senator Burr's VW Thing is pretty rad.
While some might prefer that he drive an American car, or a car that gets better than 20 miles to the gallon, I won't be so petty as to criticize Burr's choice [...]
At my first job as a community organizer with Maryland ACORN I organized tenants in a number of apartment complexes all owned by the same slumlord.
It was a good organizing opportunity because just about everyone living there (over a thousand families) had the same problems: vermin, flooding on [...]
Two months ago we all came together to support financial reform and sound fiscal policy.
Now, with North Carolina in the most severe budget crisis in decades, some extremist politicians refuse to let the North Carolina attempt to stem the bleeding.
Legislators are proposing unprecedented cuts to critical services by [...]
Almost a month ago I published a Drupal powered website: GradeBurr.com. Since then nearly 300 people have submitted an online "report card" for Senator Richard Burr and had a chance to share their opinion.
As you can guess, I have little love for Senator Burr [...]
This morning Rep. Tricia Cotham (D - Mecklenburg) hosted a conference call on North Carolina's budget. The call included Charlotte area elected officials, teachers, advocates, clergy, and neighborhood leaders.
Three weeks ago our budget deficit was 3.3 billion dollars. It was 4.2 billion dollars as of last Monday, and it [...]
Last Monday progressives, civil rights leaders, unions, churches and business allies launched the Reform Immigration FOR America Campaign. Events were held in Raleigh and in Charlotte. And today was the first day of RI4A summit in Washington DC.
Our current immigration law creates a black market for [...]
I wanted to let you all know that May was my last month as a member of the North Carolina Democratic Party staff.
For over two years I have helped the NCDP to administer the voter file, develop online infrastructure, and engage citizens via new media. I got an [...]
Atlas has shrugged. The Masters of the Universe have screwed up so badly that even with their massively disproportionate power and influence they can't hide their failure. The Ponzi scheme is over and the financial industry is so badly busted that they can't even manage to take possession of [...]
This week, Congress is working to pass the President's budget. The President included $634 billion in the budget as a down payment on health care reform. This is an historic commitment and a vital first step toward achieving quality, affordable health care for all in 2009. [...]
Throughout March and April, MomsRising.org and the NC Justice Center will be traversing the state and hosting Town Hall meetings in communities across North Carolina. These meetings will be to build support for NC's Campaign for Paid Sick Days, to hear from folks about their experiences with or without' [...]
Today Rep. Rick Glazier, Rep. Tricia Cotham, and Senator Julia Boseman announced the introduction of the School Violence Prevention Act in the NC House and Senate this week. Also known as the anti-bullying bill, this legislation will help make all students, including those who are LGBT, safer at school.
Dennis Hayle, a senior from Hempsted N.Y. studying Political Science and Criminal Justice at NC A&T, was the victim of a shooting in Greensboro this past Sunday.
A highly involved member of the student body, Hayle is best remembered by some in the Greensboro community as an active volunteer for the [...]
I can fogive Wal-Mart for giving all their money to the GOP. The GOP is the party of the elite, the party of multi-national corporations like Wal-Mart. While prioritizing their own profit over of the needs of American families is unpatriotic, it's at least within the rights of global corporation [...]
Why should Liddy have all the fun? Want to be a DC high-roller living it up in the Watergate Hotel parlor? Pull the lever and roll the dice. Just keep in mind that it's North Carolina's future you're playing with (not that Liddy would). The game may take a second [...]
Remarks of Senator Barack Obama
(As prepared for delivery)
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Zanesville, Ohio
You know, faith based groups like East Side Community Ministry carry a particular meaning for me. Because in a way, they're what led me into public service. It was a Catholic group [...]
If you've ever seen Ricky Gervais' BBC series, The Office (the overseas predecessor to the hit US show), you've already met David Brent. The miscreant man-in-charge is a serial joke-maker, though his workplace rubes almost always tend toward the inappropriate and insensitive.
Yesterday I took my seat at the Civitas polling luncheon and began to chat with the other folks at the table. Turns out that the couple I sat down next to had come up from Wilmington specifically to attend the Take Back the State Rally, and that this was their [...]
I think the expression "kind of a big deal" is really funny. It comes from the movie Anchorman, where the gregarious newscaster introduces himself as "I'm kind of a big deal."
Folks on MySpace and Facebook use the expression as a way to say "I think this important, maybe you [...]
I want to try to give an overview of the NC progressive blogosphere for the past week. While these are just my arbitrary opinions of what I thought to be interesting posts, please let me know what I missed and should have included.
Liddy Dole's campaign is unable to meet the logistical challenges presented by Pat McCrory's fundraiser in Raleigh with President Bush. No doubt Elizabeth Dole is deeply disappointed that her veteran campaign staff were unable to provide her with the opportunity to greet our president in "her" [...]
With up to $23 Million in Big Oil Stock, Robin Hayes Profits from North Carolinians Paying Record Prices at the Pump
Hardworking North Carolinians may question why Congressman Robin Hayes sides with Big Oil and against them as they struggling to pay record-high gas prices.
***MEDIA ADVISORY***
Women Leaders To Hold Conference Call on McCain's Refusal To Cut Ties With Fundraiser Clayton Williams
Texas State Senator Leticia Van de Putte and former Chair of the Texas Democratic Party Molly Beth Malcolm will hold a conference call today, Tuesday, June 17th, at 4 pm EDT/3 pm CDT [...]
Dustin Ingalls did a great job of organizing the canvass. The turnout was high as the temperature: Cary councilman Irv Portman, Greer Beaty, Ed Ridpath, and David Price (among others) all showed up to [...]
Civitas has a luncheon every month or so to spin the results of their push polls. These meetings are primarily used to offer advice to Republican elected officials and GOP campaign workers on how to win elections. Given that Civitas claims a 501(c)3 tax free status, this ought to [...]
Sorry for the cut and paste job. This is about our Constructing Victory field plan. It's good to get the press, even better if we can get some more people to sign up. If you have feedback on the field plan, please comment.
McCainpedia is the latest in a series of powerful and groundbreaking online tools designed to further engage the American people in the political process this election by providing greater access to information and resources and making them easily accessible. McCainpedia is an electronic encyclopedia that provides [...]
Applied Rationality asks, why are Republicans taking a stand against Mother's Day?
What does Rep. Howard Coble have against mothers and Mother's Day. On Wednesday, the House considered H.Res. 1113, "celebrating the role of mothers in the United States and supporting the goals and ideals of Mother's Day?"
What is a tag, and why are they boosting Larry Kissell?
Tags are key words that are used to organize blog posts into collections based on subject. The tag "NAFTA" should link to stories about the North American Free Trade Agreement, and the tag "Larry Kissell" should link to stories [...]
Opposes Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to protect victims of discrimination
Elizabeth Dole today voted against the Ledbetter Fair Pay Act which would ensure that victims of pay discrimination can hold their employers accountable under existing anti-discrimination laws. Dole’s vote comes one day after Equal Pay Day, which [...]
Today Jerry Meek attempted to discretely decline a donation from Smithfield Foods.
Their reaction was typical of Smithfield: threats and intimidation.
It is sadly the truth that Smithfield has gotten away with intimidating their workers for over a decade. While Smithfield may be adept at denying the defenseless a voice, they [...]
There's a lot of attention being paid to the Democratic Presidential primary. And with good reason: We're about to nominate someone who will reverse the disastrous course that the Bush Republicans have set us on.
But there are candidates running in down-ballot races who need your help [...]
If you live within driving distance, you ought to show up for this historic event:
The 10th Congressional District Democratic Party will be holding a district wide rally and straw poll on April 12th at 11am until 2pm at the Newton Conover Civic and Performance Place in Newton, NC. Democrats from [...]
Demonstrating a commitment to unprecedented access for bloggers at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, the Democratic National Convention Committee (DNCC) today announced that bloggers credentialed as part of the DemConvention State Blogger Corps will be seated with their respective delegations in the Pepsi Center during the historic four-day event. The [...]
Web designers, bloggers, or anyone with a keyboard can use the code beneath any of these banners to help spread the word.
<a href="http://www.constructingvictory.com/"><img src="http://www.ncdponline.org/files/cvbanner/cvbanner_160x100.png" alt="sign up for constructing victory" /></a>
<a href="http://www.constructingvictory.com/"><img src="http://www.ncdponline.org/files/cvbanner/cvbanner_234x60.png" alt="sign up [...]
Barack Obama will return to North Carolina on Wednesday to host a town hall meeting in Greensboro.
Mayor Yvonne Johnson of Greensboro made the announcement at the Guilford County Democrats this morning, after declaring her endorsement of Senator Obama's campaign.
Once again, John McCain's campaign is showing a disturbing pattern of playing fast and loose with the facts. After their candidate got some of the most basic facts on the ground in Iraq completely wrong, the campaign today tried to spin their way out of it by claiming he "misspoke [...]
The Observer's recent interview with Republican N.C. Labor Secretary Cherie Berry sounded like a satire on how public officials work.
Staff writer Ames Alexander asked her whether she planned to do anything in response to the Observer's series describing workplace safety violations at [...]
Today, the U.S. House of Representatives General Counsel filed a civil lawsuit on behalf of the House Judiciary Committee to enforce subpoenas issued by the committee seeking information on the U.S. Attorney firings. The defendants in the case are former White House Counsel Harriet Miers and [...]
Cut and paste the code in the blockquotes to post the banners anywhere you care to. Here's to the 3rd term!
<a href="http://ncdp.org/taxonomy/term/110"><img src="http://www.ncdp.org/files/img/mccain/234x60_mccain_01.png" alt="McCain - The Third Bush Term" width="234" height="60" /></a>
Yesterday on the open thread there was a conversation about the merits of netroots activism vs street action. I believe the conversation was started with this comment:
Maybe if those who think they are doing their part by being keyboard commandos will leave their comfortable chairs and take to the [...]
John McCain cannot be trusted to balance the budget.
John McCain has tried to portray himself as someone who can be trusted to balance the budget. The truth is, during his time in Washington, McCain has repeatedly voted to protect President Bush's budget-busting tax cuts, which have [...]
Betsy posted this last week, but I wanted to bump it again:
Kissell Committed to Sound Energy Policy, Creation of Green-Collar Jobs
The League of Conservation Voters, which works to turn environmental values into public policy, announced the endorsement of Larry Kissell for election to North Carolina's 8th District seat in [...]
Civitas has a luncheon every month or so to spin the results of their push polls. These meetings are primarily used to offer advice to Republican elected officials and GOP campaign workers on how to win elections. Given that Civitas claims a 501(c)3 tax free status, this ought to be [...]
Republican Dan Mansell ran a congressional campaign two years ago touting "fair taxes".
By "fair", he meant contributing nearly $50,000 to well-heeled Republican political campaigns and committees while ignoring his responsibility to employees.
Mansell failed to pay more than $220,000 in payroll taxes to the federal government, according to tax [...]
Washington, D.C. – Amid a GOP walkout in the U.S. House of Representatives today, lawmakers approved contempt citations against White House officials which will implement a two-part strategy that allows Congress to pursue the matter in both criminal and civil court.
The North Carolina Democratic Party today filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Office of the Inspector General to obtain a detailed list of Chairman Kevin Martin’s recent travel.
The request comes in the wake of numerous news reports [...]
Democratic Party organizational meetings for ALL Mecklenburg County precincts will be held on Tuesday, February 19, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. Precinct meetings will be held at the precinct polling location, unless public notice of an alternate location is posted by 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, February 12th. You can apply to [...]
Glenn Gerding announced today he is running for District Court Judge for District 15B, which includes Orange and Chatham Counties. Gerding is in private practice in Chapel Hill and represents clients in both counties.
Gerding said he intends to enforce the law fairly, help improve the efficiency of District Court, and [...]
As Prepared for Delivery
The actions of the 110th Congress will affect the security and prosperity of our Nation long after this session has ended. In this election year, let us show our fellow Americans that we recognize our responsibilities and are determined to meet them. And let us show them [...]
Following a page from the national GOP playbook, nearly all of the Republican gubernatorial candidates refused to show up Saturday for the NAACP debate.
African-Americans make up more than 20 percent of North Carolina’s population.
Republicans would rather ignore 1.1 million African-American voters than address concerns [...]
State Auditor Les Merritt is on his way to becoming the next surfing legend.
The State Auditor???s Office has used state resources for political purposes. Merritt???s office has surfed to the North Carolina Democratic Party website 217 times in the past six months. [...]
Yall already knew the the Center for Responsible Lending was awesome. But you probably don't realize how awesome.
Let's just say there is a reason why North Carolina leads the nation in consumer protection against predatory lending. Based in Durham, CRL's efforts to defend blue collar folks from white collar [...]
The threatening radio transmission heard at the end of a video showing apparently harassing maneuvers by Iranian patrol boats in the Strait of Hormuz last weekend may have come not from the Iranian crews, but from a locally famous heckler known among [...]
Wal-Mart has saved millions of dollars over the past few years by essentially paying rent to itself and then writing off the taxes. Fortunately for North Carolina, Attorney General Roy Cooper and Judge Clarence Horton, Jr. [...]
On December 31, a hybrid United Nations-African Union command officially took control of the peacekeeping mission for Darfur.
But the mission is already in danger of failing. Few new peacekeepers have actually been deployed because of obstructions by the Sudanese regime, and [...]
AT&T executive James Cicconi, senior vice president of external & legal affairs must not read the news before opening their mouths. The New York Times Bits Blog is reporting this morning that representatives at CES have openly stated today “that they may start filtering Internet content.”
I want to start doing a better job of reading right-wing blogs. While a lot of the content is offensive, it's probably a good idea to get a sense of the world right-wing agitators are living in.
Here is a summary of some GOP blogs in the past two weeks. The [...]
If you got a glimpse of Elizabeth Dole this year, count yourself among the lucky few.
When it came to protecting North Carolina communities against an unwanted outlying landing field, providing health insurance for children, and taking a stand against Big Oil, Dole was missing in action.
Republican Bill Graham sure is an outsider. Even his staff operates outside of the law.
Campaign manager Marty Ryall resigned in 2003 as executive director of the Arkansas GOP amid federal investigations into the party’s finances. Four of the five other staffers were fired in the aftermath.