Sunday, July 28, 2013

My View: The Obama Factor and the Legislature

What a political mess, nationwide and in this state! With all of the happenings as the legislative session ended here, one could not help but reflect on how we arrived at this point. When trying to unravel the events you find that state politics and national politics are intertwined as one impacts the other so drastically. But at this point in this long entry let me get one point straight initially, I am not a Jesse Helms type right winger but neither am I a Clinton type left winger. I suppose most people would call me the person on the fence and since I don't give a flip what people say that is OK with me!! I can do my own thinking, thank you.

North Carolina has always been somewhat conservative due to its agricultural holdings. However, with that being a fact in the time I have lived in this state the majority of governors have been Democratic. The Republican governors elected in the years with which I am familiar have been more middle of the road Republican. In addition to that the legislative body has never had a Republican majority until now.( In my day, anyway.) Therefore, I found myself pondering how this came about and how a Republican governor was elected, as well.
My conclusions were and remember this is only my opinion: North Carolina still remains anti-minority / integration -- whether Black or Hispanic, or Asian. North Carolina always favors and votes for the Republican candidate for president -- even Mitt Romney. In spite of the northern population influx here, there is really intense dislike for Obama so much so that the state swung right in most cases. For the first time in more years than anyone alive remembers NC wound up with a Republican governor and a Republican legislative majority. My thinking is that it all happened due to that one factor -- Obama.

The Republican politicians in this state had an agenda --I called it their Grudge-Bucket List. They had been threatening and complaining all while putting their list together and collecting grudges from their contributors and their supporters. All of those went on the G-B List and they just laid in wait for their day to come. Let me make it clear that I see nothing wrong with some of the items passed that were included on their G-B List!! I am just writing what I believe happened and trying to keep abreast of this argument I am trying to make.

I don't believe that John Q Public believed that those elected legislators would come to town and achieve what they have. Perhaps the citizenry believed all was idle threats or they were just not as attuned as they should have been. Some became convinced as the session moved along, but it really didn't matter. The legislators had an agenda and they were hell-bent on making it live!! And they did! Now comes the whining and the crying. The next several elections will tell the story in terms of results of what the majority believes, thinks and commits to in this state.

I still say, what a mess, folks!!

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