Friends falling out

Published September 27, 2013

by Carter Wrenn, Talking About Politics, September 26, 2013.

The Governor, it appears, looking at his ailing poll numbers, figured the legislature had landed him in the soup, so it was only prudent to put some distance between himself and the Republican skunks in the General Assembly.

Of course, it’s also sometimes difficult to trace the origin of a smell and to legislators it appears the Governor’s the real skunk: We’re not the ones, they say, paying our former campaign staffers whopping big salaries.

 

Either way, there’s not much doubt, over the last nine months Republicans have taken it on the chin – but why (and who’s to blame) is not exactly clear.

What is clear is we have now entered an era of friends falling out – after all, with the Governor saying a House bill cost jobs, how many Republican legislators are going to shake their heads regretfully and sigh, Oh, well?

This kind of politics can get very complex. It’s like watching three elephants (the House, Senate and Governor) parading around the circus ring, each with his trunk wrapped around the tail of the elephant in front of him, then suddenly one pachyderm, lowering his head, tusks the fellow in front of him.

That kind of surprise will, naturally, lead to ill feelings.

 

Read More NC SPIN >>

September 27, 2013 at 11:22 am
TP Wohlford says:

I appreciate it when my Dem friends show concern over the future of the GOP. Let me allay their fears....

"They" (the GOP) "took it on the chin" because one side is throwing the same temper tantrums they threw in Wisconsin, Michigan and other places. And just as in those places, they then threw garbage into the national media, making it look like a big deal -- you know, people like Dem marketing gurus who write columns for, say, NCSpin?

As I recall history, the Gov in Wisconsin, along with most of the GOP legislators, survived recall attempts, and the GOP looks to preserve power there for the foreseeable future. There, the protesters were banging drums and getting arrested and such -- a real big party! - but if anything, they're farther behind today than when they started protesting.

AS I recall the Michigan story, there were massive recall efforts for Engler in '91 after his upset victory. HE left office in Jan 2003, having served 3 terms, the last two elections almost uncontested. He, like Walker, dared to take on the unions and entrenched Dem power bases, and he won bigtime.

The Michigan GOP lost power starting in 2003 because they spent like Dems. In 2011, the "Tough Nerd" came to power, facing a $800 million rolling debt and about $1 billion deficit. And yes, the usual playbook -- recall petitions, public temper tantrums, a national media assault. Well, the budget was balanced, and after 8 years of constant cuts to education, that line item is going the other way. And yes, he did get a Right to Work law passed, and survived a "unions forever" state constitutional amendment vote.

So, history teaches us that this is all a Dem playbook thing. History shows us that, to date, it hasn't work, and perhaps has even worked against them in many ways. And history shows us that the GOP people get re-elected, but only if they remember why voters sent them in the first place.