Pat McCrory comments on Sarah Palin

Pat McCrory apparently likes my pick for VP as well. He made the following statement today in regards to McCain's smart choice of Sarah Palin:

“I think Gov. Sarah Palin, a former mayor with a background of cleaning up state government, is a great choice for vice president. She is someone with a real record of changing the status quo and challenging corruption in state government. Gov. Palin stopped the infamous ‘bridge to nowhere’ and used her veto to actually cut spending. People are hungry for change in Washington just as they are hungry for change in state government in North Carolina. The contrast between the reformer and outsider--Palin and the consummate insider who has been a U.S. Senator for over 20 years-- Joe Biden, is just as stark as the contrast in this campaign for Governor of North Carolina. I am the candidate running to change state government, running against a lieutenant governor who has been part of the failed status quo for over 20 years. Sarah Palin proves that sometimes it takes a mayor to clean up state government.”

Can't say I didn't see a little bit of Pat McCrory's future in Sarah Palin's biography ;)

Sarah Palin -- John McCain's VP choice

I'm glad we finally have a Republican politician that listens to my advice.

Palin is a great choice. And I am a great political psychic.

Brad and Britt: McCrory for VP?

On my way to work this morning, I heard radio personalities Brad Krantz and Britt Whitmire on 101.1 WZTK endorse Pat McCrory as a smart pick for John McCain's running mate.

That's right. The morning talk duo was tossing around the idea of Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin as McCain's VP, and on her lack of experience, Krantz said, "He'd be better off with someone like Pat McCrory -- a 6 or 7 term mayor."

Whitmire then countered that a Governor Pawlenty pick would be just as good, to which Krantz stated, "Well, Pawlenty is just Pat McCrory on steroids."

Well, if McCain doesn't pick McCrory for his VP, there's a great new slogan for the McCrory campaign: "Pat McCrory: It's like Governor Pawlenty, without the steroids." Nothing better than an anti-drug campaign.

On a completely separate and serious note, I am going to freak out if Palin really is the VP pick, because I called her like five months ago. I will officially change my business cards to read "Melissa Westmoreland: Political Psychic".

Pat McCrory speaks to the Greater Greensboro Republican Women's Club

This Sunday, Pat McCrory addressed the Greater Greensboro Republican Women's Club -- and your favorite blogger was right there, front and center, to record the speech for your viewing pleasure! Yes, I am a few days late with this post, but I had a few minor technical difficulties with my new video camera. Thanks to some help from Guilford Young Republican President Kyle Suggs (who makes a cameo at the end of the last video clip).

I've split these clips up into 2-3 minute increments, for those of you that don't feel like wading through a 13 minute speech, but I assure you, Mayor McCrory is a superb speaker, and I recommend watching all of these clips!

The first clip is Pat McCrory's introduction, and he tells a story that he often recounts when in the Greensboro/Jamestown area. It is a cute little anecdote that he tells very well, even if you have heard it five times like I have ;)



Mayor McCrory then addressed the attack ads that are currently being run by the Bev Perdue campaigns and their cronies (which I have discussed at length on this blog), and countered that perhaps it is Lt. Governor Perdue that is the real threat to North Carolina.



McCrory went on to outline his plan for public schools, which unlike any of Bev Perdue's stances, has not changed since this primaries:



And he even addressed the fact that our transportation system is broken, with all of the money for road projects going to the areas with the most powerful politicians:



Pat McCrory concluded his speech by urging everyone to not only remember to vote, but to help motivate others to vote. He reminded us that in order to win this election, we can't only rely on the Republicans, but also Independents and even Democrats. He contends that most North Carolina Democrats do not relate to the leftest agenda of Beverly Perdue, Barack Obama, and other liberal Democrats.



He's got my vote, but I guess you all probably know that by now...

"Positive Bev" hits the web

Pat McCrory is officially a threat to the Bev Perdue campaign.

How do I know? I don't have to look at polls or watch the debates, although either of those outlets would show anyone that this race is not the Democratic landslide this state is used to. No, I learned that Perdue is starting to really worry about McCrory because of a small text-only ad along the side of my Gmail account inviting me to learn "The Real McStory".

Now, I'm not going to link to this pathetic attempt at a new-age attack ad, because I don't want to give them anymore free press than I have to, but you're really not missing too much. It's little more than a bare-bones Blogspot blog masquerading as an actual website with fantastic stories about how McCrory is going to single-handedly destroy North Carolina's public school system and how -- get this -- McCrory is flip-flopping on issues like off-shore drilling!

Excuse me? Pat McCrory is a flip-flopper? This from the woman that stated she was against off-shore drilling on several occasions before then putting out a television ad saying she has been consistently FOR off-shore drilling, while failing to mention that she's only for it if it's being done in the Gulf of Mexico. But I digress.

A small square of text in the bottom right hand side of the blog tells us that everything is paid for by the North Carolina Democratic Party. Well, of course -- we can't let "Positive Bev" put her name on something that dirty.

Don't let Beverly Perdue fool you, folks. This website might not have been her idea, but she has a hand in it. She knows about it. And if she were really interested in running a clean race, she would demand that it be taken down. This is just another one of her ways of getting her slimy attacks out without actually having her name on them.

It's interesting to note that there is absolutely nothing on this site about Perdue's record. Isn't it a given that the NC Democratic Party, who posted this site and bought Google ads to spread the love, support Beverly Perdue? So why pass up an opportunity to show how great Perdue's platform is while bashing her opponents?

Could it be because her own record is less than stellar, so they have nothing else to do but attack Pat McCrory in as many media outlets as possible?

Hmmm....

Bev Perdue on Brad and Britt show this morning

Bev Perdue was a guest this morning on the Brad and Britt show on FM Talk 101.1 WZTK, and it was a very eye opening event. For starters, early on in the interview, she expressed a desire to distance herself from current Democratic NC Governor Mike Easley. She said that her administration would not be a continuation of the Easley administration, just as the Easley administration was not a continuation of the Hunt administration (it wasn’t?).

She then said that if she could model herself after any governor in NC’s history, it would be Governor Hunt. Yes, Jim Hunt, the man that single-handedly wasted every red cent in the state budge – and then some – right before handing the office over to his successor, Easley, who retaliated by hiking taxes, thus earning the nickname “Tax-Hike Mike”. But yes, Jim Hunt is Bev Perdue’s role model. Surprised?

Perdue was then asked how she felt about the 527’s that are running ads against both sides in the governor’s race. Now, I have to interject here because I was unaware that there is a 527 running ads against Perdue, so anyone that can direct them to my attention is greatly appreciated. Regardless, Perdue told Brad and Britt that she just hates this negative campaigning, and she would like for BOTH SIDES to remove all negative ads.

Now, I’m not going to rant too much on this, because I’ve already done a great deal of blogging on how Pat McCrory did nothing more than respond and defend himself from the negative ads that have been run against them, but if Perdue really does want the ads removed, WHY HAS SHE NOT CALLED FOR THEIR REMOVAL? Allowing some mystery group to run negative ads against your opponent does NOT equal positive campaigning! I know she likes to pretend that she has no ties to this outside group, but if they really do support her (which they do, they are funded by the Democratic Governors Association), then they will respect her request to remove the ads.

Bev knows that if she does that, they might actually remove the ads and she might be forced to run on HER record – not against Pat McCrory’s. Of course, she’d probably just continue to change all of her positions to match his…



Bev Perdue, a governor is a leader, not a follower. Get your own talking points, pull your cowardly attack ads, and for once in your life, attempt to run a clean race. THANKS.

An overview of the debate

Wow, it's already over -- time flies when you're watching Bev Perdue get smeared by Pat McCrory! McCrory won that debate hands down. It was so obvious that Perdue was reciting memorized talking points. Even her laughs seemed choreographed.

One watcher commented to me that she smiles at such inappropriate times. Like I mentioned in one of the posts, she was grinning wildly while talking about gangs in NC. The only thing I can figure is that she smiles when she knows she is touching on a point that she has studied very well (and not having to ad-lib too much), but it's a bit creepy. At least Pat exhibits human emotions while answering questions!

I got a few text messages during that debate on how poorly Perdue was doing -- and they weren't all from McCrory supporters. Hopefully, the rest of North Carolina will realize how clueless she is!

McCrory and Perdue on death penalty and taxes

McCrory thinks we need to lift the moratorium on the death penalty. He wants to know WHY we even have a moratorium. He doesn't think people who have lost loved ones should have to wait this long for justice to be served (and I agree!).

Perdue is distancing herself from the moratorium, and saying that she wants the death penalty reinstated... but also that she thinks the courts of North Carolina that put the moratorium in place should be trusted. WTF. Someone wants it both ways.

They just asked what the candidates would do about the gas tax! Perdue is trying to say that she "fussed" against the state legislature this year about the high gas tax. Yes, that's right, "fussed". Andy Griffith, who is supporting this silly little lady, would be proud. Aaaaand she failed to give an actual answer.

McCrory states if he had a chance to remove a tax, he would remove the income tax which punishes working people! God, the Libertarian in me is so in love right now. McCrory is very worried about how gas prices are going to affect North Carolinians, especially this winter.

McCrory and Perdue on crime

Moderator: Governor Easley just signed a measure to crack down on gangs, but what role would you play as governor?

Perdue: She's grinning from ear to ear! She thinks we should be tough on gangs (though she doesn't tell us HOW), and she thinks we should "remind" kids that organized crime participants go to jail "for a long time". She also wants after school programs so apparently they won't have time for gangs.

My summary of the Perdue gang legislation: Gangs are bad, mmmkay?

McCrory: He's reminding everyone that he has made several trips to Raleigh asking the governor and legislature to do SOMETHING about gangs, and the current administration is refusing to address the issues, and the meetings are being canceled. He stated a while back that there are gangs even in Kinston and Chapel Hill, and no one believed him until Eve Carson's tragic murder. Gangs are a priority to McCrory.

McCrory and Perdue on education

I would just like to take this moment to say that Perdue looks HAGGARD. I know she's only ten years older than Pat (I think) but HD television does not look good on her, as my fellow blogger Katy has pointed out. She's right here next to me, live blogging as well.

Perdue was just asked what should be done on the early-dropout rate in high schools. She thinks we need to focus on Smart Start, as well as raise the salaries for teachers (regardless of how they're doing, I suspect), and of course, offer free "higher education". Basically, if they graduate from high school, they get free college. We're going to turn the community college system into high school part 2.

Pat McCrory thinks calling it "free" is misleading, because someone has to pay for it. "We don't need anther new governor's program that rhymes." The room LOVED that one! "we need to help these kids as opposed to creating more government programs."

Perdue just interrupted to tell us that if we want to see her whole plan we can go to her website (again, she doesn't have it quite memorized). One watcher just yelled, "She's worse than Hillary Clinton!" And Pat is trying not to laugh, LOL.

McCrory and Perdue on illegal immigration and mental health

McCrory is talking about his 287G program which catches illegal immigrants who are committing other crimes and gets them out of here. He says one of his first duties as governor will be to get an illegal immigrant detention center in NC -- the closest one now is in Atlanta, and it's a joke to try to get illegals in NC over there.

Perdue states "The immigration system is broken." REALLY, Bev? Ya think? She thinks the feds need to fix it, "like, yesterday". She also states that she's going to focus her power in NC on getting undocumented workers out of here. And now she's repeating herself over and over. Zzzzzzz....

Now they have a question on the mental health care system in NC. She's talking about how all aspects of the mental health system need work -- which, as McCrory pointed out earlier, is thanks to her administration's incompetence. And she wants to model the mental health care system after Medicaid, because THAT works to well.

McCrory is rightly pointing out that the current administration is who has ruined the mental health system. He thinks we need to encourage the school to graduate more mental health care workers. The few resources that we have are not well-staffed.

McCrory and Perdue on offshore drilling

Bev Perdue supports off-shore drilling IMMEDIATELY now! Wow, this woman is all over the place. She thinks all coasts in America should be open to drilling IF CONGRESS DEEMS IT SO (key words there) and she thinks each state should have the OPTION to drill off their own coast.

Pat McCrory says he STILL doesn't know where she stands on the off-shore drilling issue. He has never changed his position on the issue, he is still a strong advocate FOR off-shore drilling, and he feels it will also improve out national security. We shouldn't be dependent on the Middle East. He just pointed out that Perdue only wants to drill in Gulf of Mexico (which she has alluded to) and she CACKLED at him. It was very classy. Perdue has said she is 100% opposed to offshore drilling, and that is probably still her position, but we really can't be sure.

McCrory, (who has worked for Duke Power), just told the audience that you ALWAYS have someone make sure a building project is safe before going through with it, and this will be true with offshore drilling. However, it has been successful along Gulf of Mexico, and it can be successful here.

Perdue is AGAIN saying she supports offshore drilling -- however, she doesn't think it's safe to drill until a team of engineers tells her it's okay to do so.

Isn't that what Pat just said?

McCrory and Perdue on health care

A viewer question just came in on how people are expected to pay for healthcare and prescriptions. McCrory thinks that we have a lot of mandates in NC regarding health care, and therefore younger people are not signing up for health care. There's also the fear of lawsuits from trial attorneys which is raising the COST of health care. McCrory thinks it would help to give tax breaks to small businesses so they can help pay for health care for workers.

Perdue apparently thinks she has solved the prescription drug problem, we're supposed to go to her website to check it out (apparently she doesn't remember it right now). She just accused McCrory of not wanting children to be insured. She wants to insure health care for children. It's the "bottom line" to having a working economy in NC. The moderator just asked what the differences are in their health care policies. Perdue says that her no-smoking and anti-obesity campaigns in NC are a huge step forward, and she again is accusing McCrory of not wanting health care for children. This woman is like a one-act pony.

McCrory gets a rebuttal, and he just informed everyone that Perdue took his quote out of context, AS USUAL. He just pointed out, and rightly so, that Perdue comes from the administration that has destroyed NC's health care system. People are waiting 70 hours to get a mental health care bed, Dorthea Dix is going to have to close, the Easley administration is not taking responsibility for the mistakes they've made in healthcare

McCrory on Energy

Well, thanks to the technical geniuses at Lounge 101, I've already missed the opening statements. Not that we really missed too much on Bev Perdue.

We've had some trouble with the TV signal, but the debate is back on and McCrory is talking about creating jobs. Surprise, surprise, he wants us to get into the energy business and do some off-shore drilling... and the whole room just burst into applause! That's what I'm talking about :)

Debate blogging

Alright guys, here's the deal -- unless you live in the Raleigh/Durham area, you're probably not seeing the NC gubernatorial debate tonight. That's why I'm here.

I'm blogging live from Lounge 101 in downtown Raleigh, and I'm here to tell you all you need to know about the debate. Go Pat!

Hillary cries, Bev whines -- how the modern female runs for office

Let me you what ticks me off about Bev Perdue.

Oh, I'm sorry, my lunch break is only an hour long. I'll have to limit myself to one topic.

During the primaries, Perdue started an all out war against Richard Moore. That's right -- SHE started it. I watch the local news every morning while getting ready for work, and although I'm usually too tired to speak for at least 3 hours, seeing that first Perdue attack ad made me whistle in disbelief. It was harsh, and I remember wondering why a Democrat would do that to another Democrat during an election year.

Richard Moore came back with an ad defending himself, and pointing out Bev's inadequacies. This back and forth went on for some time (not being a registered Democrat, I didn't really have a dog in the fight, so I can't tell you exact figures), and Perdue and Moore remained fairly equal in local polls.

Then Bev announced that she was done with the bickering. She wanted to run a "positive campaign". She made it look like Moore had forced her to defend herself, which is the only reason she was running the ads, even thought she started it all. And almost overnight, her numbers skyrocketed. I was shocked and appalled that North Carolinians could be so naive.

A week prior to the primaries, an extremely conservative friend expressed disappointment at the fact that he could not vote in the Democratic primaries so he could vote AGAINST Moore. When I asked why on earth he would want to do such a thing, especially since Moore is a moderate Democrat (and Perdue is a socialist), he informed me that Moore attacked Perdue, and "a gentleman does not do that". I asked if he was aware that Perdue had started the fight, and he told me that he was not aware, but it did not matter to him.

So, basically, North Carolinians voted for Bev Perdue because Richard Moore treated her like a opponent rather than a housewife. You know, as a woman, I don't think I'd like to win on those grounds. I would rather be seen as an equal.

Not Perdue, and she's already playing the poor pitiful woman against Pat McCrory. As you all know, the Alliance for North Carolina has been running an attack ad against Pat McCrory for the past couple weeks. While Perdue is claiming she has nothing to do with them, she has also failed to insure a "positive" race by asking that the Alliance for NC have the ads removed. So this week, the McCrory campaign released an ad defending himself from the current attack ads, and also pointing out that Perdue is against offshore drilling in North Carolina, while he expects it to happpen "under [his] watch" as governor.

The same day the McCrory ad was released, Perdue sent an email out to her supporters with the subject line "McCrory Launches Desperate Negative Ads". The email began:

McCrory’s First Ad: Negative and Untrue

Pat McCrory launched a desperate negative attack today in his first TV commercial of the general election – an ad that is simply untrue.

The email then went on to tell us how much Bev Perdue WANTS to allow offshore drilling! Really, Bev? That is so interesting. Then why is it that on June 18, 2008, you told WRAL that you were "100% opposed" to offshore drilling? And then, on July 19th, you told the Charlotte Observer: "On my watch, we'll never solve the gas problem by drilling off the coast of North Carolina."

NOW, according to her email, Bev has "consistently said she supports offshore drilling."

Ignoring her major flipflop on the issue, isn't it interesting how McCrory is being "desperate" and "negative"? She knows what she's doing. She knows that the old Southern gentlemen who are likely to vote Republican this year would not approve of a male candidate "attacking" his opponent when she just so happens to belong to the weaker sex.

"Oh please help me, ya'll, this mean man is pointing out my inconsistencies. I just can't be expected to be held accountable for what I say!"

Please.

Bev, if you want to see a "negative", "desperate", and "untrue" "attack ad", check out the one that's being run by the Alliance for North Carolina -- an ad that you'll never ask to have removed because it does your dirty work for you. You'll never run a "positive campaign" until you start to take some responsibility.

Alliance for NC's spokesman has shady past

News broke today that Scott Falmlen, spokesman for the Alliance for North Carolina and previous Executive Director of the Florida Democrat Party and North Carolina Democrat Party has a history of being less than truthful when it comes to getting his message across.

You remember the Alliance for North Carolina -- you know, the political group that's running that ridiculous attack ad against Pat McCrory? It seems that while they and their tactics may not be well known in NC, their spokesman is getting a bit of a reputation for engaging in dirty politics.

Apparently, Scott Falmlen got himself into a little mess back in 1994 while desperately trying to get Democrat Lawton Chiles re-elected as governor of Florida. The campaign has been accused of phoning elderly citizens and scaring them into believing that Jeb Bush (the Republican nominee) was going to get rid of Medicare and Social Security.

According to The Ledger, a Florida newspaper, Falmlen "admitted making 'purposeful misstatements.'" (Dec. 9, 1995) And the vice chair of the state party at the time, Jon Ausman, was quoted as saying "Scott Falmlen should resign. He should have resigned a long time ago. He's no longer a credible spokesman for our party."

So basically, what we have here is a guy that got run out of Florida for engaging in shady politics, and has come up here to do some more of the same. The game's changed -- he's gone from sending misleading phone calls to running misleading advertisements against Pat McCrory -- but it's still the same old crap.

This is why so many people are fed up with politics in general. When people like Scott Falmlen get involved in a race, it's nothing but dirty campaigning all the way. I'm so glad Pat McCrory hasn't stooped to their level. I think it will be refreshing to a lot of North Carolinians to see a politician that doesn't feel the need to fire back with untruthful comments about his opponent.

Bev Perdue would be wise to tell the group to back off. I know she's claiming innocence with the whole thing, but it she really wanted to stay "Positive Bev", she would call for the removal of the attack ads. Plain and simple, she doesn't WANT the ad removed. She's sworn herself to positivity, so she has to get someone to do her dirty work for her. And Scott Falmlen has just the right kind of experience for Bev Perdue.

Pat McCrory responds to attack ads

McCrory requests face-to-face discussion with Perdue regarding negative advertising

The following is a letter sent from Mayor Pat McCrory to Lt. Governor Bev Perdue earlier today:

--

Dear Lt. Gov. Perdue:

Unfortunately, the Democratic Party and labor unions have decided to start an advertising war with negative attack television advertising. You and I know we can do better for the voters. Although your campaign team rejected my former offer of a series of live statewide television debates on the issues, I hope you will consider a proposal to address negative advertising.

When negative advertising appears, we can clarify the issues by meeting face-to-face in an open, televised forum to discuss the charges and their truthfulness or pertinence. I would suggest we meet within the next week in an open, televised forum to discuss your party’s charges that: 1.) I oppose the minimum wage, 2.) I favor pay increases for politicians and myself, and 3.) I oppose free community college tuition for all high school graduates.

It would be appropriate to hold our discussion on a community college campus such as Wake Tech. The format could be simple: 1.) We provide an equal amount of time to discuss the issues raised in the ad, 2.) we question each other for an agreed time on the issues, and 3.) we make closing comments. The moderator would ensure we both have equal time. I would suggest the community college president as the moderator of the first forum.

Negative advertising has become pervasive and you have expressed a personal opposition to negative campaigning. Perhaps, together, we can change the tone of campaigns by creating a situation where candidates are forced to defend negative advertising face-to-face. Our example can change the tone of this campaign and maybe future campaigns. It is worth a try.

My schedule is very full as I am sure is yours. But I will clear any day this week for our first attempt to end negative campaigns by directly addressing the issues.

Please feel free to contact me at my campaign office (704) 714-4344.

Sincerely,

Pat McCrory

--

I'll be interested in seeing how she responds to that. Not that I'm holding my breath for anything. It was like pulling teeth to get that woman to agree to any debates during this election season -- I seriously doubt she's going to want to publicly discuss an ad to which she is voraciously attempting to remove herself.

Well here's a big shocker

Charlotte, N.C. – The McCrory for Governor Campaign today condemned The Alliance for North Carolina, a mysterious Washington-based 527 group that supports Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue’s campaign for governor, for breaking North Carolina election law.

“North Carolina law mandates that third party political organizations that run ads must file a detailed report with the State Board of Elections within 24 hours of airing an ad. Yet this secret 527 group has launched over $300,000 worth of negative television ads without disclosing any information whatsoever,” said Amy Auth, communications director for McCrory. “This is the latest example of the culture of corruption and secrecy that Raleigh politicians like the lieutenant governor are a part of. Pat is running for governor to change that culture.”

---

She couldn't have said it any better. The Perdue camp can deny it all they like, but they had a hand in that McCrory attack ad. And now, they're breaking the law in regards to running those ads. BIG SURPRISE THERE.