U.S. Senate: Kay Hagan vs. Jim Neal - I will be voting for Kay Hagan, but I do have to say that I like Jim Neal a lot. He is openly gay, which I of course support, and I think he would do a really good job. Friends that I really respect and value their opinions are supporting him and working for him. I have also met him and he is just a very warm and genuine person. But there are two big reasons I am voting for Kay Hagan: experience and ability to beat Liddy. Kay has served 5 terms in the NC Senate and served on the Budget Committee. With the economy headed where it is, I really want someone who has this kind of experience. I also think she has the ability to beat Liddy Dole. It will be a tough race, and plenty of people aren't sure if anyone can beat Liddy. But quite frankly, I don't think a man can beat Liddy. Women are winning elections, and I think Liddy would beat a man. I would say that all things being equal, I would vote for a woman to encourage diversity, but with Neal being openly gay, I think that diversity is very important as well. So for me it really boils down to her experience and that I think she can beat Liddy. I also have to say that either Hagan or Neal will be light years better than Liddy. At least both of those candidates care about NC. I think Liddy has been about the most useless senator in recent memory in NC.
Governor:Richard Moore vs. Bev Perdue - This is a tough one for me, but I will be voting for Richard Moore. Quite frankly, I have not been very impressed with Bev Perdue. As you know, my issue is the death penalty. Both Perdue and Moore support the death penalty. Both were on the Council of State last year (Perdue as Lt. Gov, Moore as state treasurer) when they approved changes to the lethal injection protocol after refusing to hear from the inmates' attorneys (Insurance Commission Jim Long was the only person to vote against approving the change in protocol, which means Elaine Marshall, who I LOVE, also voted to approve it). Perdue has said she supports a moratorium. From what I can tell, Moore hasn't been asked that question. I tell you all of this basically to say that while the death penalty is my main issue, I can't vote on that because all of the candidates are pretty bad on it. However, I will say that when asked about the death penalty by the NAACP at a forum, Moore said that while he did support the death penalty in certain cases, it was not implemented fairly in our current system (I give him credit for that answer because the NAACP is incredibly anti-death penalty, and I can't stand it when politicians pander to groups). He has a law degree, was a federal prosecutor for several years, and served as head of the NC Department of Crime Control and Public Safety while in the NC House of Reps. This is a big plus to me because I don't think Perdue really has any experience with the justice system. While I usually don't like former prosecutors being governor because I think there is an inherent conflict of interest, he never prosecuted someone currently on death row so he will never have to decide on clemency for a defendant that he personally prosecuted (as Easley has done several times).
In looking at other issues, I just like Richard Moore a lot better. Perdue's campaign ads attacking Moore have been misleading and exaggerated. And I think Moore has done an amazing job as treasurer. NC has been recognized nationally for what Moore has been able to do in securing pension funds. There has been some controversy recently over whether he invested pension money in groups that have supported his campaign for governor, but most of those accusations have not been proven.
Lt. Governor:Dan Besse, Walter Dalton, Hampton Dellinger, Pat SmathersThis is another tough one. I really, really, like 3 of the 4 candidates. The one I discount quickly is Walter Dalton. I'm not a fan of his. But I think Besse, Dellinger, and Smathers are all really great. I will be voting for Pat Smathers. I've had the opportunity to meet all three of these guys at campaign events around the state. Besse is a longtime friend of my parents'. Smathers' son is also a 3L at UNC Law (Zeb Smathers). So why Smathers? He has been mayor of Canton, NC for a long time. He served in the National Guard, and I think we need Democrats who have served in the military in leadership positions. I think they are the key to defeating Republicans this term. What I really like about Smathers is that he has the experience of working in a community and using the strengths of that community to make it better (not just use a cookie cutter form to make all towns look the same). Part of his platform is taking that type of mentality into the Lt. Gov. position. I also have to say that I have a tendency to pull for the underdogs, and Smathers and Besse are the underdogs. Either one of them would be great, but I think Smathers has a better chance of winning.
Superintendent of Public Instruction:June Atkinson vs. Eddie DavisI'm not sure of this one, but I will probably support June Atkinson. She is running for re-election and I think she's done a good job. I haven't looked into this race in a whole lot of detail, though.
NC Court of Appeals - Wynn Seat: James Wynn. There's not much I need to say here. Judge Wynn is fabulous. He has been on the bench for a very long time, and was on the NC Supreme Court for a few years. He has never been in a primary in his 18 years of being on the bench. This year, 2 complete unknowns are challenging him and forced him into a primary. As Judge Wynn says at events, all you need to run for the Court of Appeals is a law license and the filing fee, and that is all the other 2 have. Judge Wynn should win be a landslide.
Tyson Seat: Kristin Ruth. As you know, these seats are non-partisan. So if more than 2 candidates enter the race, there is a primary to narrow it down to 2. The top 2 then compete in November. Kristin Ruth and Sam Ervin are the democrats challenging John Tyson. Tyson is pretty awful. Kristin is a district court judge in Wake County and has been on the bench for 10 years. I appeared before her numerous times last summer and saw her as very fair. I really like her and she seemed to really respect everyone that came before her, including the defendants. There was also an incident while I was there in the summer when a state trooper lied to her under oath. She found out and charged him with contempt of court. There was almost a hearing over it, but they reached a plea deal just before the hearing was supposed to start. I really respect her for this because she knew she was going to be running for the Court of Appeals and she knew it would cost her some endorsements (which it did, of organizations like the Troopers and other law enforcement). But she did it anyway because it was the right thing to do. I think she's great and will throw my full support behind her.
Insurance Commissioner:Wayne Goodwin vs. David SmithI have to say, I know nothing about this race. I'm going to look into endorsements and see what groups are saying about them.
Labor Commissioner:Robin Anderson, John C. Brooks, Mary Fant Donnan, Ty RichardsonFrom what I know, Cherie Berry (current Labor Commissioner, and a Republican), is going to be incredibly difficult to beat (but really needs to lose because she's terrible). I'm going to see who gets some key endorsements, like the Independent Weekly's endorsement, but as of now I really like Robin Anderson and think she would do a really good job. However, John Brooks has served as Labor Commissioner before, and is now running again, so there's no reason to think he wouldn't be good.
Treasurer:Janet Cowell, Michael Weisel, David YoungI'll be voting for Janet Cowell. She has been in the NC Congress for several years and has the financial background to do a really good job as treasurer. I think she'll be great. I don't know much about David Young, but I saw Cowell appear with Weisel and he was just not impressive at all. I think Cowell will be great.
State Auditor:Fred Aikens vs. Beth A. WoodI've seen both of these candidates appear several times at different events and I really like both of them. I am pretty undecided as to who I am going to vote for at this point. I am leaning towards Fred Aikens, but not sure yet. The Independent Weekly is going to release their endorsements on April 23rd, and I really want to see what they say about this race and who they choose to endorse.
POSTED BY EMILIE BROWN AT 9:56 PM
2 COMMENTS:
Wayne Goodwin said...
Dear Em,
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on your blog! I have one of my own (Wayne's World) and it is both very satisfying and a pleasure to publish for my loyal readers.
In your discussion of the Insurance Commissioner race you mentioned that you did not know anything about either of the two candidates. Well, now you have the direct opportunity to hear from one of those Insurance Commissioner candidates: me (i.e., Wayne Goodwin)!
First, I highly recommend that you visit www.waynegoodwin.org, my campaign website. In addition to reviewing my bio and my platform, and since you stated you were interested in who has endorsed the Insurance Commissioner candidates, please click onto the section of my website dedicated to my endorsements. Even though this is admittedly a partial list, the long list of individuals and groups who have chosen to publicly endorse the Wayne Goodwin campaign is very diverse, broad, and deep.
In fact, I respectfully suggest that my campaign has received the vast majority of known endorsements across the State for Insurance Commissioner.
My endorsements include current Insurance Commissioner Jim Long, former Gov. Jim Hunt, the NC Association of Educators, the NC State AFL-CIO, the Raleigh-Wake Citizens Association, the Black Political Caucus of Charlotte-Mecklenburg, Democracy for America (Asheville chapter), The Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, and many, many wonderful community and state leaders.
To the best of my knowledge, my primary election opponent has only received ONE public endorsement, and that is from a group in his home county, a group of which he has either been a member and/or has financially assisted over the years.
Meanwhile, do note the following:
UNLIKE my opponent, I have worked and continue to work in the NC Dept of Insurance. I have served in several roles, most recently and for almost 3 years now, as Assistant Commissioner of Insurance. We need an Insurance Commissioner who truly understands the office from within and without, and not someone who just knows about it very generally and marginally in comparison.
UNLIKE my opponent, I have served in elective office, most notably as a State Representative for 8 years in the NC General Assembly. One needs both a working knowledge of the legislature and relationships with key legislators in order to effectuate positive legislation regarding insurance, especially health insurance accessibility and affordability.
UNLIKE my opponent, I have been endorsed by the current Insurance Commissioner, Jim Long, the legendary state leader who has been at the helm for 24 years.
And, UNLIKE my opponent, I do NOT work FOR the insurance industry. My opponent is a longterm employee of and/or advocate of the insurance industry. (He tries to claim otherwise, but the truth is what I rest my case upon.) In fact, my opponent is right now President-elect of the NC Health Insurance Underwriters Association.
If you have any questions about me or my campaign or about the Department, then please feel free to email me directly, using the email address on the home page of my website.
I personally ask for your vote for Insurance Commissioner, and would be most honored to have your personal endorsement. After all, the only true endorsements that matter in the long run are those that individual voters provide at the polls.
Thank you for your consideration!
Sincerely,
WAYNE GOODWIN
Democratic Party candidate for
NC Insurance Commissioner
www.waynegoodwin.org
APRIL 20, 2008 7:18 PM
Em said...
I must say, that was astounding. Yes, that's quite the argument. I think I'll vote for Wayne Goodwin for Insurance Commissioner.
APRIL 20, 2008 8:13 PM
And, on an unrelated note, here are a couple photos of Daniel I took today:
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