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Trail Mix, the campaign blog of the Winston-Salem Journal, is a conversation about North Carolina's elections in 2008. Come here for news and analysis on the U.S. Senate race, the governor's race and all the other statewide races.
Trail Mix is written by James Romoser, the Journal's Raleigh reporter. Got a tip? E-mail me at .
Hillary Clinton appeared with the poet Maya Angelou at Wake Forest University this evening for a meandering conversation about diversity, equality and a little policy, too.
“I know that Senator Clinton is a long-distance runner,” Angelou said. “And however the odds may go and the polls may show – from today, to tonight, to tomorrow morning – I know she’s in it for the long run. I am honored to say I am with her for the long run.”
Clinton called Angelou “a grace note in our lives” and fondly recalled reading her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.
In front of about 2,000 people at Wait Chapel, the two spoke about overcoming bigotry of all kinds and bringing the country together in the years ahead.
“We are so much more alike than we are different,“ Clinton said. “We have allowed those relatively minor differences among us to defy and divide us, and one of the challenges of the 21st century is to affirm our common humanity.”
Angelou and Clinton also touched on Clinton’s proposals to make college more affordable and to discourage companies from moving jobs overseas. And Clinton spoke of her work during her husband’s administration trying to unite Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland
After her conversation with Angelou, Clinton took three questions from the audience. The crowd was audibly stunned by the first question.
“I love you, Hillary. I always have, I always will,” said a woman in the first row after, drawing approving cheers. But then she brought up the most taboo of all taboos at Clinton campaign events.
“I felt so sorry for you when Bill had his affair,” the woman said. “I think the best way to overcome it is to become president.” She then quickly asked a question about who Clinton would choose as her vice-presidential running mate.
As the audience murmured in shock, Clinton said shortly that it is too early to speculate about a running mate. She did not address the subject of Monica Lewinsky.
From today’s print edition: In Winston-Salem, students supporting Barack Obama opened the early-voting period by marching to the county elections office, while in Lexington, Terry McAuliffe, the national campaign chairman for Hillary Clinton, helped organize Clinton’s early-voting strategy. That story here.
And at a Raleigh rally, Obama reacted to the Tuesday night debate in Philadelphia and suggested that another debate in North Carolina may not happen. That story here.
Yes — at least for a moment yesterday during Obama’s rally at the state fairgrounds.
Obama was discussing how he reacts to criticisms from Hillary Clinton that he considers meaningless distractions. “You just gotta kind of let it—“ Obama said, then brushed his shoulder, as if to remove some dirt or lint. “That’s what you gotta do.“
It’s a gesture that was made iconic by the hip-hop mega-star Jay-Z — an artist that Obama has previously acknowledged having on his iPod.
Above, watch as Obama does the impression with near-perfect delivery. “It’s one of those things that makes Obama’s connection to younger voters so culturally solid,“ writes Politico’s Ben Smith.
RALEIGH — Barack Obama criticized what he called “slash and burn” politics in a speech today in Raleigh, saying that both Hillary Clinton and Republicans want to distract voters away from real issues.
He also declined to commit to a debate against Clinton in North Carolina before the state’s May 6 primary.
“We’re trying to figure out what our schedule looks like, but I’ll be honest with you, we’ve now had 21” debates, Obama said in response to an audience member’s question. He added, “We’re just trying to figure out what’s the best way for me to reach as many constituents as possible in North Carolina.”
Last night, Obama and Clinton debated in Philadelphia, and Obama was frequently put on the defensive over issues like his relationship with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, his recent remarks about the bitterness of small-town Americans, and his connection to a member of a radical group that carried out bombings in the 1960s.
Obama called last night’s debate “the rollout of the Republican campaign in November.” “It happened just a little bit early,” he said.
“I understand that, because that’s the textbook Washington game,” Obama said. “That’s how our politics has been taught to be played. That’s the lesson that she learned when the Republicans were doing the same thing to her back in the 1990s.”
He said he is running for president to change the nature of politics in Washington.
Obama spoke this afternoon in front of about 2,000 people at the Kerr Scott building at the North Carolina state fairgrounds. He is scheduled to hold a rally in Greenville later today.
Starting today, North Carolinians can cast their ballots in the Democratic or Republican primary at early-voting sites across the state.
Thanks to a new state law, people who are not registered to vote can also register at early-voting sites — and then immediately cast a ballot.
Early voting is available from today, April 17, until May 3. The primary is on May 6.
More information on early voting in Forsyth County is available here, and a full list of Forsyth’s early-voting sites, and the dates they are open, is available here (PDF). Voters in other counties should check with their local board of elections.
Both the Obama and Clinton campaigns are launching intense efforts to take advantage of the early-voting period, especially the new provision that allows people to register during early voting. Previously, North Carolina law required people to register at least three weeks before an election.
In North Carolina, Democrats and Republicans must vote in their own party’s primary, but unaffiliated voters can choose which primary they want to vote in. Seventeen-year-olds may also vote in the primary if they will turn 18 by Nov. 4, the date of the 2008 general election.
From today’s print edition: More on the endorsements of Barack Obama by Congressmen Mel Watt and David Price, plus a preview of the campaigns’ early-voting strategies.
Also, the two Democrats vying for the chance to run against Republican Congresswoman Virginia Foxx debated at Wake Forest University last night. As the Journal‘s Bertrand Gutierrez reports, Roy Carter and Diane Hamby agreed on most issues and spent much of the debate criticizing Foxx. Carter tried to portray himself as the presumptive nominee for the 5th Congressional District seat, while Hamby highlighted her experience in county government.
U.S. Congressmen Mel Watt and David Price have endorsed Barack Obama.
“Barack Obama is the candidate of positive change, transformational change, that will revitalize America at home and in the world. Barack Obama will work for every American every day,“ Watt said on a conference call with reporters this afternoon. Watt represents North Carolina’s 12th congressional district, which includes part of Winston-Salem.
Price said that he believes Obama can win North Carolina in the general election. “He’s committed to competing and winning in our state of North Carolina,“ said Price, who represents North Carolina’s 4th congressional district. “I believe we can turn North Carolina blue in November.“
The announcement is a boon for Obama. Other than John Edwards and Mike Easley, Watt and Price were probably the most influential Democratic superdelegates in North Carolina whose endorsements had been up for grabs between Obama and Hillary Clinton.
Watt and Price, like other Democratic congressmen from North Carolina, had previously endorsed Edwards when he was still in the race.
Among North Carolina’s 21 Democratic superdelegates, six have now endorsed Obama and one has endorsed Clinton.
Gov. Mike Easley sent a letter today to Barack Obama asking him to participate in a debate in North Carolina.
Noting that more than 125,000 North Carolinians have registered as Democrats or unaffiliated voters this year, Easley wrote in the letter:
“I understand that CBS has offered to sponsor a debate moderated by Katie Couric and Bob Schieffer on the evening of April 27 in Raleigh at the RBC Center. Your commitment to participate in this event will give North Carolinians their best opportunity to hear you and Sen. Hillary Clinton discuss important issues, from education, our economy and our nation’s role in the world, that face our nation today. I am confident that this debate will even further energize and motivate North Carolina’s voters to express themselves at the ballot box on May 6.“
Clinton has agreed to the April 27 debate, but Obama has not. Obama previously agreed to debate in North Carolina before April 22, which is the date of the Pennsylvania primary, where Clinton is favored.
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama released details today of their planned visits to North Carolina later this week.
Clinton, as previously reported, will return to Winston-Salem to campaign at Wake Forest University’s Wait Chapel on Friday evening. The doors open at 4 and the event is scheduled to begin at 6. It is free and open to the public. The event is being billed as a conversation between Clinton and poet Maya Angelou. (The next day, Winston-Salem is hosting a celebration in honor of Angelou’s 80th birthday.)
On Thursday, Obama will hold rallies in Raleigh and Greenville. His Raleigh event is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. in the Kerr Scott Building. The event is free, but tickets are required; they will be distributed at Obama’s Raleigh headquarters all day Wednesday. In Greenville, where Obama will campaign at East Carolina University, doors will open at 4 p.m. Tickets are not required to that event, but an RSVP is “strongly encouraged.“ People can RSVP at Obama’s North Carolina web site.
Note to the Hillary Clinton campaign: The man in the picture above is not a woman.
He is Ashley Thrift, a prominent Winston-Salem attorney and the chairman of the N.C. Partnership for Children. Why is his gender relevant? Because his name appeared on a long list of prominent women who are supporting Clinton in North Carolina. The list was sent out today by the Clinton campaign.
On the list, which was billed as a “North Carolina women’s leadership council,“ Thrift appeared three spots below Maya Angelou, the renowned poet and professor at Wake Forest, and one spot above Emily Herring Wilson, a Winston-Salem writer. Also included on the list: Julianne Thrift, the former president of Salem College ... and wife of Ashley Thrift.
Thrift’s name wasn’t the only gender gaffe from the campaign. Dana Cope, the (male) executive director of the State Employees Association of North Carolina, also appeared on the list.
(Hat tip to the eagle-eyed Laura Leslie for first pointing this out.)
