U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge will focus on trade matters and oversight issues in his first term on the influential Ways and Means Committee in the House of Representatives.

Etheridge, a Lillington Democrat, is the first North Carolinian named to the committee since 1953. The committee is the source of all tax bills and has jurisdiction over Medicare and Social Security, Barb Barrett reports.

Etheridge was named today to the subcommittees on Trade and Oversight.

The oversight panel will give Etheridge a position to help shape the economic recovery plan being pushed by President-elect Barack Obama. Etheridge this week wrote Obama asking him to including Etheridge's school construction proposal in the plan.

On the trade subcommittee, Etheridge said he wants to not only enforce current agreements but make sure new agreements support North Carolina's workers and products.

Dear TV news talking head:

Welcome to North Carolina! We're not used to seeing your kind around here, especially during presidential election years. Heck, the last time North Carolina was a "battleground state" was April of 1865 — when General Sherman's troops came through!

By now, you can confidently rattle off the names of crucial neighborhoods in Cleveland, Miami and Philadelphia with ease, but you may be a little nervous talking about North Carolina. To help you along this election season, we've come up with a quick list of talking points:

RED STATE: North Carolina is typically a red state when it comes to presidential politics. The last time we went for a Democrat was Jimmy Carter in 1976. (To drive this point home, you can remind people that Sen. Jesse Helms was from here.)

PRIMARY FIGHT: This state was crucial in the primary battle between Obama and Hillary Clinton. Obama won the state and, by some accounts, ended Clinton's hopes for a comeback. The primary also left him with a network of supporters here.

ISSUES: With several military bases and a growing Hispanic population, Iraq and immigration once looked like big issues. But these days, it's all about the economy and jobs. The sale of Wachovia and ongoing discontent with free trade are a major factor.

NICKNAMES: Officially, this is "The Old North State." (It's even our state song, though you'd be hard pressed to find someone who knows it.) You'll probably be better off referring to it by our unofficial nickname, The Tar Heel State. (That's two words: Tar Heel.)

TRIVIA: We have 15 electors. We claim Andrew Jackson, James K. Polk and Andrew Johnson as natives, though all three were elected from Tennessee. Two of our recent senators — Elizabeth Dole and John Edwards — ran for president. 

Oh, and there's no such place as Raleigh-Durham. They are two separate cities. (You may be confused because of Winston-Salem or the fact that our airport has that name.)

We hope that helps and we look forward to seeing you soon — maybe in 2012?

— Under the Dome 

A mailer criticizes U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole's record on trade.

The glossy eight-page mailer from Majority Action, a liberal 527 group, argues that free trade agreements like NAFTA and CAFTA have led to losses in North Carolina's manufacturing sector.

"After 43 years in Washington, the only job Elizabeth Dole hasn't done is protect ours," it says. "She's sending North Carolina jobs overseas instead."

Inside, the mailer argues that "China was a Third World country when Dole went to Washington," but it has grown into a manufacturing giant because of free trade.

It also says that Dole voted to give tax breaks to companies that outsource, though it does not list any specific bills to back up its claim.

Sarah Palin says she supports free trade, respects U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms' years of service and is ready to serve as president if needed.

After the jump, her interview with Rob Christensen.

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Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is hitting John McCain over the closure of North Carolina textile mill.

In a new TV ad airing in North Carolina, the Obama campaign ties the closure of Maiden-based Carolina Mills factories to McCain's support for free-trade measures.

"Workers once proud to make their thread for American flags have their futures outsourced to Asia," a narrator says in the ad. "Washington sold them out with the help of politicians like John McCain."

Facing competition from Chinese factories, Carolina Mills laid off 2,600 workers at 17 plants in recent years.

Today, the company has been restructured as an investment firm with a stake in several manufacturers that employ a total of 200 workers in North Carolina.

Chairman of the Board George Moretz was not aware of the ad until contacted by Dome this afternoon.

"Being a lifelong Republican, it intrigues me that the Democrats are using our company as a resource for their ads," he said. "But I would agree that trade policies have been detrimental to us."

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole has a long resume.

As a former debutante who grew up in 1950s North Carolina, she broke with tradition to become a two-time Cabinet secretary, head of the American Red Cross, wife of a presidential candidate then candidate herself and U.S. senator.

Even in the current anti-Washington climate, Dole thinks her experience running major organizations will resonate with voters. (N&O)

Still, she's remained a back-bencher in her first term, a senator more likely to co-sponsor major legislation than author it, more likely to join a group of negotiators than lead it. She's now being criticized for her effectiveness in Washington.

Dole has blocked some international trade deals until they included provisions to shield local textile companies from overseas competition. She led an effort to protect military families from predatory lending and she forced the Navy to provide information on toxic water at Camp Lejeune.

But her star turn at the head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee ended miserably and she's been frustrated at efforts to get the Lumbee tribe recognized. (N&O)

Barack Obama's top economics advisor said his plan would help the middle class.

Responding to a conference call by Republican presidential candidate John McCain's campaign today, Obama advisor Jason Furman told Dome that cutting taxes for the middle class and small businesses would turn the economy around.

"Barack Obama's tax plan is centered around tax cuts for middle-class families and small businesses because they're responsible for the majority of job creation in America," he said.

He said that the tax cuts would be "evened out" by increases in taxes on higher income earners, who received breaks under President Bush, arguing that would "restore fairness to the tax code."

Furman disagreed with the McCain campaign's characterization of Obama as being against free trade.

He said that Obama favors amending free trade agreements such as NAFTA to include stronger protection for labor and the environment.

"In the last eight years, trade policy has gone wrong in this country, and John McCain is defending what George Bush has done," he said. 

The campaign of Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama said Wednesday it was making a major effort in North Carolina because of the alignment of the issues and because of an unprecedented get-out the vote effort.

"The people want out of this war and they want some changes in the econony," Democratic Gov. Mike Easley said during an Obama campaign teleconference. "It's going to be very difficult for the people of North Carolina to vote for the status quo rather than change, which is where we are right now."

The Obama campaign said they have so far opened 16 offices across the state, spent more than $2 million in TV ads, and registered thousands of new voters, Rob Christensen reports.

"We are in striking distance," said Patrick Gaspard, the Obama national political director said of North Carolina.

The Obama campaign seemed to be reaching out to blue collar workers, who tended to vote for Hillary Clinton in the May primary.

The Obama campaign said it would emphasize rising gas prices, manufacuring jobs lost through unfavorable trade deals and John McCain's opposition to the Farm Bill.

The Obama campaign said it planned to organize every precinct in the state. The campaign said it would focus on voter registration between now and the Oct. 10 deadline.

They noted that since January, Democrats had picked up 169,635 new voters, while Republicans had gained over 51,542.

Barack Obama is still courting those Hillary Clinton voters.

A campaign blueprint for North Carolina released today indicates that Obama is working to expand his base of supporters here to include many of the blue-collar white voters he didn't win in the primary.

On the issues, the presentation leans heavily on effects of the poor economy on the textile industry and farming, attacking John McCain over a farm bill and support for free trade. 

Rising gas prices, the other major issue listed, are a more generic Obama issue that amplifies the economic attack.

Free trade has been a major theme for Democratic challenger Larry Kissell, although it hasn't gotten traction in other parts of the state in large part because of the largely Republican makeup of other textile-heavy districts. 

Barack Obama has released his blueprint for North Carolina.

In a 19-page presentation, the Obama campaign says that it considers the state a "key battleground" among the 18 states where it is advertising on TV.

It also lists several lines of attack against John McCain: Trade policies, high gas prices and a farm bill.

Free Trade: Amplifying a free-trade critique from the primary, the presentation argues that "Bush-McCain" trade policies have cost North Carolina jobs.

Gas Prices: The presentation echoes recent Democratic attacks that blame high gas prices on tax breaks for oil companies and says Obama would give an "Emergency Energy Rebate" of up to $1,000.

Farm Bill: The presentation says that Obama supported a farm bill that would give "support and assistance" to North Carolina farmers, while McCain "vehemently opposed" it.

The presentation also gives some impressive numbers on its ground game: 3,066 people attending 93 county organizational meetings, 5,860 volunteers and 36,747 North Carolinian supporters on Obama's social networking site.