Feinstein is a good sports writer, I would not go as far as one of the finest of his generation.
For one thing his writing as in this case is colored by his leftist world view. He also has other biases.
He is pretty good when covering the Partiot League or Army-Navy football. But you have to remember he leftist, really maybe just Dim, biased in every thing you read from him.
Friends not endorsing any of 3 DA candidates
By WILLIAM F. WEST, The Herald-Sun
October 9, 2006 9:51 pm
DURHAM -- The Friends of Durham isn't endorsing any of three contenders for Durham district attorney in the Nov. 7 election, the chairman of the political action committee says.
David Smith says he and his fellow questioners couldn't reach a decision after approximately 30-minute interviews with District Attorney Mike Nifong, County Commissioner Lewis Cheek and lawyer Steve Monks.
"I think it's ... that we're as conflicted as the public in general is, that we have a lot of strong feelings lots of different ways and we didn't feel comfortable making a selection of the three of them," Smith said in an interview.
Meanwhile, another of Durham's main political action groups, the Peoples Alliance, endorsed Nifong earlier and will not hold further interviews.
The Bull City's third main political group, the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People, plans to interview candidates next week.
Though Nifong won the Democratic primary in May, he continues to face much criticism about his handling of the Duke lacrosse case. Three 2005-06 players are indicted for the alleged sexual assault of a stripper at a mid-March party at a house across from Duke East Campus.
Smith said the subject came up in the candidate interviews, which he said happened Thursday at University Tower.
"And we asked Mike Nifong, and one of his comments was that he's the only one that's interviewed this victim," Smith said. "And he feels confident in his case."
What the panel heard from Cheek and Monks was that "it's not just about the lacrosse case" and that they could do a better job than Nifong in office, Smith said.
"Our feeling was, 'Why didn't they file to run before, if it was more to it than just the lacrosse case?' " Smith said.
Cheek, a Democrat, for weeks considered an 11th-hour run against Nifong. But in late July, citing the impact on his law firm, Cheek decided to withdraw his name from consideration after enough residents had gotten signatures from voters to put his name on the ballot.
Because of the timing of his decision, his name remains on the ballot as an unaffiliated candidate.
Monks, chairman of the Republican executive committee in Durham County, is campaigning as a write-in candidate.
Nifong couldn't be reached for comment Monday.
Cheek said he's sure the Friends of Durham considered what was heard and "made a decision that they felt, under the circumstances, was the proper decision to make. ...
"But I know the people who were there are serious people who are interested in seeing Durham be the best that it can be -- and I know that they would not have made a decision like that lightly."
Monks said while he's "naturally" disappointed, he said he also understands people are conflicted.
"It's unfortunate that I wasn't able to better impart, I suppose, my vision for the office and why I was running," he said.
While Monks maintains he's the best-qualified candidate, he acknowledged that, absent the lacrosse case, he wouldn't be running.
"Mike has taken such a big hit from a personal stance in terms of credibility in the community that we have a very difficult problem with criminal justice -- or the perception of the criminal justice system -- in our community," Monks said.
"And, frankly, given for a lack of a better term, the hole that Mike has dug himself, I don't know that he can ever reasonably dig his way out and get us to where we need to be," Monks said.
Meanwhile, a political action committee titled "Recall Nifong -- Vote Cheek" has been urging voters to replace Nifong with Cheek. If the committee is successful, given Cheek's decision, Gov. Mike Easley would have to name the prosecutor.
Smith said Friends of Durham did endorse two district court judge candidates -- Nancy Gordon over Anita Smith and Ann McKown over Tracy Hicks Barley.
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-- Friday is the deadline for new voter registrations or changes in information, which is 25 days prior to the Nov. 7 election.
The Friday cutoff time is 5 p.m. at the Board of Elections Office, 706 W. Corporation St., though officials said it's acceptable to send the paperwork by mail as long as there's an Oct. 13 postmark.
To be a voter, a person must be 18 years of age on the day of the election, must have been a legal county resident for 30 days before the election and also must be an American citizen.
-- Oct. 19 marks the first day of One Stop No Excuse Absentee Voting at the Board of Elections Office. That process closes at 1 p.m. Nov. 4.
On the Nov. 7 election day, the polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Links related to this article:
Durham County Board of Elections: www.co.durham.nc.us/departments/elec/
The Herald-Sun'sVoteBook: www.heraldsun.com/votebook/
URL for this article: http://www.heraldsun.com/durham/4-777120.html