Head Scratcher

The Watauga Conservative reports this a.m. that the Republicans will have candidates filing to run in the Boone municipal elections in November, but one of the two names mentioned is actually registered as a Democrat, according to the State Board of Elections. And wrong again on the party affiliation of the supposed Democrat who is running against Mayor Clawson. He's actually registered Unaffiliated.

The New Face of the Young Republicans

The Young Republicans National Federation, at its convention yesterday in Indianapolis, demonstrated that the "young" are as bent on maintaining the racism that took hold of the "old" in their party last year. By a vote of 470-415, the convention elected Audra Shay of Louisiana who recently entertained and applauded comments on her Facebook page that the Obama administration was "a bunch of coons." (Shay's subsequent explanation doesn't wash at all.)

John Avlon at The Daily Beast has the most detailed coverage of what went down yesterday, including the gay-baiting of Shay's chief rival for president of the group, Rachel Hoff, who was leading a reform slate calling itself "Team Next Level." Hoff's great sin, apparently, was announcing that she could support civil unions for gay couples. Therefore, said Shay supporters, she obviously dresses like a lesbian and probably is one.

So much for the "renewal" of the Republican Party. Young Republicans are every bit as ossified as their elders.

Barfing Up Frank Luntz

We linked below to a press release from the chair of the Watauga County Democratic Party, calling out 5th Dist. Rep. Virginia Foxx for regurgitating propaganda points written by Republican operative Frank Luntz to scare people away from any health-care reform.

Others have noticed Foxx's ventriloquism, in much more detail.

Loose Cannons

Madam Foxx makes the list. Right above Michele Bachmann.

Short Circuit

Recent polling of American voters found that more than half of us could not name even one member of the Supreme Court, so this news will likely resonate with -- what? -- a quarter of the voters, even among those in the states covered by the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals.

But with the retirement of the chief judge of the 4th Circuit, there are now a third of the 15 seats on that circuit that are vacant -- an opening for President (and former constitutional law professor) Obama to bring some balance to a court that has been historically the most ideologically conservative in the country.

Blue Cross ... Bad Dog!

We, like 96% of North Carolinians, are insured by Blue Cross/Blue Shield. They have a virtual monopoly on insurance coverage in the state.

They are totally in bed with Madam Foxx and the rest of her ilk in trying to bamboozle the public that any competition (remember that good ole American principle?) would not only be bad for their profit margins specifically but bad for Americanism and God and unadulterated apple pie generally!

Senator Kay Hagan is inclined to listen to Blue Cross executives more than to the rest of us, unfortunately.

Virginia Foxx and Her Ghost Writers

This posting today sez that Virginia Foxx's e-mail to her constituents attacking a public option in health-care reform lifts all its salient language from one Frank Luntz, who told Republicans back in May to use this language in scaring Americans away from any meaningful health-care reform options.

Virginia Foxx cribbing her talking points? Ain't nuttin new.

She deputized her employee Aaron Whitener, whom she also installed as the new chair of the Watauga County Republican Party, to publish under a fictitious name an outrageous attack on the Town of Boone as some sort of gay-friendly, devil-worshipping municipality that was ripe -- RIPE, we say -- for Republican take-over.

Gosh. Can't the Madam say anything original?

Pharmaceutical Industry Loves Itself Some Sen. Hagan

Senator Kay Hagan has gotten herself into a big soupy stew, sending conflicting and unclear messages about her support/lack of support for a public option in health-care reform. Adam Searing at The Progressive Pulse runs it all down.

As of Friday, we had thought that Sen. Hagan was on-board with a public option. But then the pharmaceutical industry starting running TV spots in N.C. praising her stand on health-care reform. Big Pharma wouldn't do that if Hagan were sincerely supporting a public option, which Big Pharma decidedly does not.

Something doesn't compute here.

And all this doubt about Hagan ain't helping her with her base. Not a whit.

What's Up With This Guy?

Senator Charles W. Albertson, who represents the N.C. coastal plain counties of Duplin, Lenoir, and Sampson counties, wants to ban the development of wind power in the mountains, because (sez he) "We know that if you put a bunch of windmills up there, it's going to change the aesthetics and mar the landscape."

His bill would actually ban -- ban! -- the practice of hooking wind turbines up to the power grid, so that excess energy can be sold to the Big Boys.

Such a proposed law has prompted some state bloggers to speculate that Sen. Albertson has some coal mine stock tucked away somewhere, or that he represents the worst of an older generation that never left the 19th century, let alone with 20th.

FOOTNOTE
When last heard from on this site, Sen. Albertson was also responsible for blocking a move to increase the number of poultry plant inspectors. Poultry plants are among the more notorious violators of NC labor laws. They also gave Sen. Albertson some $25,000 in campaign contributions.

So Albertson has a history of being something of a dick.