Free Republic

U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao had been on the job only a few weeks when she took action on one of the region's most intractable problems and directed millions in federal transit dollars be withheld from the District, Maryland and Virginia until they create a safety agency to oversee D.C.'s subway, Metro. Chao was making good on a threat by her predecessor, Anthony Foxx, a move that surprised some local officials who had hoped that the jurisdictions had shown enough progress to stave off the action. It's too soon to say whether Chao's action is a sign she will continue...

Kay Hagan, defeated senator from North Carolina, may be gearing up to make a run at Senior Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) in 2016. She narrowly defeated Senator Elizabeth Dole (R-NC), and in turn was herself narrowly defeated by Thom Tillis (R) in 2014 in what wiki called “one of the toughest re-election bids in the country.” (2) The Hagan-Ruthven family combine of real estate development and solar energy projects in central Florida and NC, just keeps finding ways to feed at the public trough! After serving in the NC state senate, Hagan launched herself into the national political arena where...

Rick Santorum is regarded by many of his supporters as the “real” conservative in the GOP presidential race, and most Democrats pay him the unintended compliment of considering him an arch-conservative. Undoubtedly, Santorum is a conservative of a certain type, but how far to the right was his voting record during the three terms he spent in the United States Senate? To answer this question, I went to the American Conservative Union’s ratings archive for 2006, Santorum’s last year as a senator, and looked up the lifetime ratings of those who were in the Senate at that time. One could...

The Subprime home mortgage collapse...a Primer. It's ALL about the CRA of 1977 Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) of 1977 - This required banks to offer credit throughout their entire market area for “underserved” populations and small businesses. The CRA gave incentives to help low income borrowers become “home owners”. Liberals call this group “low income borrowers”. Conservatives call them a RISK!The CRA was passed by the Carter administration. In 1995 the Clinton administration authorized subprime loans under the CRA. Democrats added these provisions for the securitization of subprime loans and then ENFORCED the lending to high risk individuals. By 2000,...

Why We Ran the "Godless" Ad—And What I'd Do Differently In the final week of the 2008 election, Sen. Elizabeth Dole’s campaign aired a television ad that would be one of the most controversial of the year. The ad criticized our opponent, Kay Hagan, for attending a fundraising event in her honor at the home of two well-known atheists. One was a founding member of the Godless Americans PAC. Many in the media, especially on the liberal side, were quick to point to the ad and claim it backfired, costing Dole the election. Nothing could be further from the truth....

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen.-elect Kay Hagan this afternoon dismissed her lawsuit against the woman she defeated, Sen. Elizabeth Dole, over an advertisement that Hagan said attacked her personal faith. Dole, a Republican, had launched an ad in the last week of the campaign tying Hagan to a political action group called "Godless Americans" that promotes the separation of church and state. The advertisement ended with a photo of Hagan and another woman’s voice saying, "There is no God." Hagan, a Democrat, attended a fundraiser in August at the Boston home of a couple who is active in the group. The...

The voting shift in this nation is largely about two dynamics: safe seats and the Carolina blues. To get a really good close-up glimpse of what demographic problems the Republican Party is facing in the national electorate, one has to look no further than the North Carolina Senate race lost by Elizabeth Dole. The loss by Dole was not simply a result of the headwinds (self-inflicted as they were) that all GOP candidates faced in 2008, though that was a factor. The Dole loss was more than that. Dole lost a senate seat held by Republicans since 1972. Dole lost...

Just said Liddy Dole lost

This is the discussion thread for North Carolina results. Post important news and info here; I'll make new posts for the final results of the major races here, but in the meantime, this is where we can sweat and celebrate. Some of the major races other than McCain-Obama, for interested outsiders... Governor: Pat McCrory (R, 13 year mayor of Charlotte) v Beverly Perdue (D, Lt. Governor) Senate: Elizabeth Dole (R, Inc) v Kay Hagan (D, state senator) Lt. Governor: Robert Pittenger (R, state senator) v Walter Dalton (D, state senator) 8th US House District: Robin Hayes (R, inc) v Larry...

Two minutes and thirty seconds is all it takes to see why you need to support Elizabeth Dole. Two minutes and thirty seconds is really all it takes to watch this: What is it? It documents Kay Hagan's ties to the Godless America PAC. Godless America PAC is a legitimate organization that denies there is any such thing as God. They want to remove "In God We Trust" from our currency. They want to remove God from the Pledge of Allegiance. They even, no kidding, want to get rid of Christmas as a federal holiday. Seriously. And one of their...

WASHINGTON, (AP) -- Will he or won't he? Vice President Dick Cheney is one of the nation's most prominent Republicans, but there are doubts about whether he will attend the GOP convention. ... Separately, at least five Republican senators have decided to skip the GOP convention. Sens. Gordon Smith of Oregon, Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina and Susan Collins of Maine all face tough re-election campaigns. Two others, Wayne Allard of Colorado and Larry Craig of Idaho, are retiring.

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Dole (R-NC) and state Senator Kay Hagan (D-Guilford) are in a statistical dead heat according to the latest poll released by the Civitas Institute. Of the 800 likely general election voters surveyed, 45 percent support Senator Dole while 43 percent support her challenger, Democrat Kay Hagan. Twelve percent were undecided. “The national tide against Republican incumbents is definitely hurting Senator Dole right now,” said Francis DeLuca, Executive Director of the Civitas Institute. “It appears some of the cross-over appeal to Democrats and Unaffiliated voters she enjoyed six years ago is eroding.” Click here for full results and...

In an election for United States Senator from North Carolina today, 24 weeks to Election Day, incumbent Republican Elizabeth Dole narrowly edges Democrat Kay Hagan, 50% to 46%, according to this SurveyUSA poll conducted exclusively for WTVD-TV in Raleigh.

Democrat Kay Hagan, a state senator from Greensboro, easily won the Democratic Primary last Tuesday night and starts the general election campaign essentially tied with incumbent Senator Elizabeth Dole. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in North Carolina Hagan attracting 48% of the vote statewide while Dole earns support from 47%. A month ago, Dole led Hagan by thirteen percentage points. Hagan currently leads by three points among women while Dole wins by three among men. Hagan leads among voters under 50 while Dole leads among older voters. Both candidates are popular with the state voters—at least before the campaign...

Click Here For More News Links, Photos and a Re-Broadcast of the Commissioning Ceremony The USS North Carolina was Commissioned today at Wilmington, NC. Linda Bowman, who sponsored the submarine and christened it in April 2007, sent the crew running from the back of the audience onto the submarine. "You are a team and ready to go forth and defend this country," Bowman told the crew. "My hope is that she will sail in peace to keep us free. My assurance is that she will always be ready to defend that freedom whenever necessary. "Officers and crew of the...

The U.S. Senate race in North Carolina also features two prominent women: the Republican incumbent, Elizabeth Dole, and her would-be challenger, Democrat Kay Hagan of Greensboro. Hagan, a powerful state legislator, is running against investment banker Jim Neal for the Democratic nomination and the chance to face Dole in the general election.

Jim Neal, Democratic Challenger to North Carolina Sen. Elizabeth Dole, Says He Is Gay Monday , October 22, 2007 AP CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Jim Neal, the Democrat who plans to challenge Sen. Elizabeth Dole, is gay, a camapign spokesman confirmed Monday. Neal spoke publicly of his sexual orientation over the weekend during an online discussion organized by a liberal blog, spokesman Thomas Mills said. In response to a message on BlueNC.com asking whether he was gay, Neal is quoted a saying: "I am indeed. No secret and no big deal to me — I wouldn't be running if I...

RALEIGH, N.C. — About half of the public approves of how Sen. Elizabeth Dole is doing her job a year before she runs for another six-year term, according to a poll released Friday. The Elon University Poll also found Hillary Clinton has a sizable lead over John Edwards in his home state for the Democratic presidential nomination, while former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson is apparently ahead of Rudy Giuliani among Republicans. --snip-- The poll also found Clinton receiving 37 percent of support for president among Democrats surveyed, compared to 18 percent apiece for Edwards and U.S. Sen. Barack Obama. While...

State Sen. Kay Hagan said Tuesday she is "looking into" a run for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Republican Elizabeth Dole. The Greensboro Democrat's name has been raised frequently by political analysts in the past nine months as a potential contender. However, this is the first time Hagan herself has directly addressed the possibility of challenging Dole, who faces re-election in 2008. Until now, Hagan has been circumspect in talking about a potential run, saying during this year's legislative term that she was focused on completing the state budget. On Tuesday, Hagan said Dole is "vulnerable" to a...

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole will be in Raleigh today to talk with sheriffs from Wake, Johnston, Chatham, Franklin and six other counties about illegal immigrants who commit crimes. Dole is holding a series of conferences with sheriffs this month about a federal program to let deputies determine the legal status of immigrants and process those here illegally who are charged with crimes. Kicking off the tour on Tuesday, Dole met with sheriffs from the western Piedmont. The sheriffs — from Catawba, Burke, Caldwell and Alexander counties — said they often see the same immigrants breaking laws across county lines, the...