News & Observer cartoonist Dwane Powell, who has poked, skewered and lampooned political figures and issues for 35 years, retires today.

Powell, who turns 65 this week, drew more than 8,000 editorial cartoons that pointed out the foibles, the contradictions and affectations of the state's elected leaders, Rob Christensen reports.

"It's amazing," said Gary Pearce, a longtime Democratic operative. "With just a pen and a piece of paper, he could come closer to the truth about politics and politicians than thousands of words. He could really just nail you. Even when he did, you just had to laugh."

Steve Ford, editorial page editor for The N&O, said there were no immediate plans to replace Powell.

In 2007, the N&O put together a video featuring Powell's take on some of his memorable cartoons.

The old Jim Hunt crowd gathered in Raleigh on Friday for the groundbreaking of the library that will bear the former governor's name and for lunch at the Park Alumni Center at N.C. State University, Rob Christensen reports.

The crowd included a who's who from Hunt's 16 years as governor, including Jim Phillips, former chairman of the UNC Board of Governors; former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Burley Mitchell; Norris Tolson, a transportation secretary under Hunt; former Ambassador Jeanette Hyde; Hunt's former spokeman and strategist Gary Pearce; former Human Resources secretary Lucy Bode; former Cultural Resources secretary Betty McCain; former aide Ed Turlington, and former state Democratic chairwoman Barbara Allen.

Just to name a few. 

And what would a gathering of politicians be without a little fund raising? 

At the lunch, Hunt announced a $20 million fund raising campaign to help cover some of the costs of the library that will also serve as headquarters for the Institute for Emerging Issues, the think tank Hunt created.

"This is a marvelous opportunity," Hunt said. "It really is."

Candidates critical of a Wake County school diversity policy swept three school board seats in Tuesday's elections and a fourth, crucial seat appears headed to a runoff.

The school board races are nonpartisan, although the Wake County Republican Party endorsed the three candidates who won in those races.

Veteran Democratic consultant Gary Pearce wonders if the strong showing of the "bad guys" is a sign of things to come in next year's Congressional and state legislative election. He said Monday on his Talking About Politics blog that in 1993 Republican Tom Fetzer won the Raleigh mayoral race, the vanguard of what became a big Republican rout.

In 1993, like this year, Democrats had just won the presidential election. They were still celebrating, and they were complacent.

Just like this year, Republicans were angry and motivated. Fetzer (with Carter’s help) found a perfect issue in the downtown civic center. Fetzer ran a modern TV campaign while Democrats ran the familiar old handshake campaign.

It was a sign of worse to come in 1994. And tomorrow may be the canary in the coal mine for 2010.

Should Gov. Beverly Perdue take on taxes?

Gary Pearce says it may be just the issue Perdue, a Democrat, needs to make her mark.

Pearce, in his Talking About Politics blog, writes today that Perdue needs to find an issue that will get more attention than recent announcements she has made on new industries, rural health care and nanotechnology.

"It may be time to stop the short-yardage plays and start throwing for big gains," Pearce writes.

"In fact, it may be time to consider devoting her next two years to what common sense would tell you could be political suicide: sweeping tax reform."

Pearce argues that it takes a big issue to cut through the media clutter these days. He says such an issue could be a tax reform package that ends the state's "boom-and-bust budgeting" and pays for education reforms.

"Right now, Perdue's biggest problem is that nobody really knows what she stands for," he writes. "It's time to find it and stand for it."

Veteran Democratic consultant Gary Pearce suggests a serious look at former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate next year.

Wicker is one of several Democrats mulling a run.

Pearce self-deprecatingly notes in his blog that he made Wicker what he is today: NOT an elected official. Pearce ran Wicker's run for the Democratic nomination for governor in 2000: "We took a whipping."

The winner of the Democratic primary that year? Mike Easley.

"Maybe Wicker’s slogan could be: I told you I’d be a better governor than Easley," Pearce wrote.

Pearce praises Wicker for building a successful law firm and describes him as disciplined (noting his considerable and sustained weight loss), hard-working, possessing the right instincts and a master of the legislative process.

Gary Pearce says Ted Kennedy was "both an inspiration and political poison to North Carolina Democrats."

Pearce, writing on his Talking About Politics blog, says Democrats loved Kennedy for the way he unabashedly fought for causes such as civil rights, education and health care.

"But we couldn't afford to be seen in public with him," writes Pearce, a veteran Democratic strategist. "As he became more liberal than his brothers ever were, he became toxic in North Carolina."

Pearce describes the 1980 Democratic National Convention, when Gov. Jim Hunt was supporting Jimmy Carter against a challenge by Kennedy. Pearce said they fought the Kennedy camp all week.

"But the last night of convention Kennedy gave the greatest political speech I've ever heard," Pearce wrote.

The FiveThirtyEight blog ranks Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr's seat as the 11th most likely to change parties in next year's Senate elections.

The blog, which analyzes polling data, reports that Republicans are now more likely to gain seats than lose seats in next year's elections. Burr's seat ranks 11 of 15 on the blog's August ranking in likelihood that it would change party. That's an improvement for Burr, whose seat was listed by the blog as seventh most likely to change parties in May. 

Citing analysis by the Democratic firm Public Policy Polling, FiveThirtyEight's Nate Silver says that Burr's low-name recognition and low approval numbers suggest that his chances will depend on whether the election is an anti-incumbent year. 

That may be especially true since the Democrats are still scrambling to find a credible challenger to Burr. Rob Christensen reports that Democrats are "going through an awkward dance to find a candidate to go toe-to-toe with Burr in 2010."

"There is a vacuum," said Gary Pearce, a veteran Democratic strategist in Raleigh. "Nobody has really stepped in to fill it, nobody with the name or the money or the backing to put an end to all of this."

So the list of potential Democratic candidates continues to grow. There are little-known figures such as former state Sen. Cal Cunningham of Lexington, Durham lawyer Kenneth Lewis and Chapel Hill Mayor Kevin Foy who seem eager to jump into the race.

And there are potential candidates who are better known, but seem less sure. They include U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge of Lillington, former Lt. Gov. Dennis Wicker of Sanford, and Secretary of State Elaine Marshall of Lillington.

You'll work for a governor who has a reputation for being tough on her staff - and erratic. You'll be her "communications and policy adviser."

But she already has policy and communications advisers. And you won't be over them.

 

Uh-oh.

 

Her staff is roundly blamed for her problems. The usual: too insular, too young, too hard to reach. Also, they came from the campaign and don't know government. Or, they were in the Light Gov's office and aren't up to the Big Job. Yadda, yadda, yadda.

 

I'm sure they'll greet you with open arms and a warmly cooperative attitude.

Gary Pearce says Wolfpack Nation is angry.

On his blog, talkingaboutpolitics.com, Pearce says N.C. State fans are angry at the university's leaders, at The News & Observer and at Former Gov. Mike Easley and former First Lady Mary Easley.

He then offers his "up-to-the-minute guide to the venting."

Gary Pearce is banking on a dark horse.

In a post on Talking About Politics, the longtime Democratic consultant said that a "no-name" candidate may be better in next year's Senate race:

No-names can have good "between the commas" stories. Like "would be the first African-American U.S. Senator from North Carolina." Or "Iraq veteran who prosecuted crooked contractors."

A bit of advice: Never listen seriously to anyone who says about a candidate: "He has no name recognition." Or "nobody knows him in Charlotte." Or Raleigh, or Down East, or wherever.

Nothing matters less in the 2010 Senate race than name recognition today. In fact, zero name recognition today can be a good thing tomorrow. You get to write your own story. If you can raise the money.

He cites John Edwards and Kay Hagan as "no-name" candidates who ended up winning, and Erskine Bowles as a "big-name" candidate who lost.