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GOVERNOR ONLINE: According to depositions taken in a public records lawsuit, Gov. Mike Easley kept a secret e-mail account for state business and his press secretary said he wanted public information officers to delete e-mails to the governor's office to avoid having them become public. Given the federal investigation still swirling around the Democrat, whether his administration followed the public records law may be a small concern for the former governor.

BIG BUCKS BURR: In one night, Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr raised more money than any of the Democrats who want to win his seat have been able to raise in months. Burr is by far the overwhelming money leader as the Senate race begins this year.

SHE LIKES HIM/NOT: U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx wailed on President Barack Obama in a post to her Twitter account. She concluded her criticism by reporting that she also got the president's autograph.

IN OTHER NEWS: Democrats, by a slim margin, tend to be rooting for the New Orleans Saints in Sunday's Super Bowl. The state Democratic Party has picked up a lot of travel expenses for Gov. Bev Perdue and her husband.

U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx complained this weekend that President Barack Obama was lecturing during a visit with Republican leaders.

In a Tweet, Foxx said that Obama's statements need a good fact-checking. That bit of commentary wouldn't be surprising from Foxx, a Banner Elk Republican, who has been an outspoken critic of Obama's policies. What was surprising, however, was how she ended her Tweet.

Foxx got the president's autograph. The White House confirmed Foxx's account — at least the autograph part — to the Huffington Post. 

Gov. Bev Perdue wants state agencies on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

Many state agencies already have a presence in social media. For example, Perdue's office has a Facebook account and the N.C. Department of Transportation provides traffic updates through Twitter.

Perdue said social media networks should be used to help make state government more open and transparent.

"Social networking is not the next big thing. It’s here now, and state government must stay current if we are to be fully transparent and accountable to the public," Perdue said in a news release (which Dome received via old fashioned e-mail, but was also announced on Twitter). "I encourage all state agencies to take advantage of social media to increase communication and interaction with the citizens of North Carolina."

Perdue's policy focuses on some obvious dos and don'ts — personal information and opinions don't belong on state agency accounts. But the policy also stresses that all social media communication is to be considered a public record. If a state resident sends a message through Facebook, that message is public just as if it had been sent to a state government e-mail account.

U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry says a Democratic colleague is seeking retribution against a group of Catholic bishops.

McHenry, a Cherryville Republican who is Catholic, posted a comment on Twitter about U.S. Rep. Lynn Woolsey, a Democrat from California who suggested that the IRS investigate an organization of Catholic bishops over their political involvement in an amendment meant to prohibit government funds paying for abortions, The Hill reports.

Woolsey wrote in an op-ed piece in Politico that the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops was stepping over the line in pushing for an amendment to health care legislation and may need to have its tax-exempt status examined.

That led to this comment from McHenry on his Twitter feed.

The nerve of some citizens to petition their government. In Woolsey-land, free speech is cause for retribution.

U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan has launched both a YouTube channel and a Twitter account to chronicle her work in the U.S. Senate.

For now, her last Tweet is from "the office of Sen. Kay Hagan," with updates posted by staff. Example: "welcoming a great group of North Carolinians for this week's Carolina Coffee," Barb Barrett reports.

Hagan had a campaign Twitter account last year, posting about her platform, her daily travels and occasional jabs at the competition ("This is what a Republican-run, special interest-based economy looks like," she tweeted a year ago.)

Her YouTube channel has a pair of videos so far. One welcomes viewers; the other features her biography.

"Tools like YouTube and Twitter will allow me and my office to share information about the most pressing issues facing North Carolina and our country and keep constituents updated about the latest news in the Senate," Hagan said in a statement. "North Carolinians can use these tools to keep up with me while I am in Washington and traveling across the state."

Also on Twitter:

Sen. Richard Burr's campaign

Rep. Virginia Foxx

Rep. Sue Myrick

Rep. Patrick McHenry

Rep. Walter Jones 

Update: Post includees Rep. Walter Jones' Twitter feed, which was inadvertently left off the list.  

Sen. Richard Burr, (left) Sen. John McCain, and Sen. Mitch McConnell at a forum at a Charlotte hospital on Tuesday.

McCain, the Republican presidential nominee in 2008 linked to the low-res photograph from his Twitter feed. McConnell is the Senate minority leader.

The event, which was not open to the public, was held at Carolinas Medical Center.

Burr, up for re-election in 2010, has offered an alternative to Democratic health care reform proposals that would give tax credits of up to $5,700 for families to pay for health insurance.

The parent company of the hospital has been a big spender on health care lobbying.

Hat Tip: JonThompsonDC 

The state Department of Transportation just announced that it will offer traffic updates on its Twitter page.

So how long before people start getting cited under the new texting while driving ban because they were checking for traffic information?

Dome can picture it now: "I'm sorry officer, the DOT made me do it."

Mindful of this potential, the department's news release trumpeting the new Twitter updates encourages travellers to check alerts before they leave home.

"The goal of this high-tech initiative is to help people 'know before you go,'" Transportation Secretary Gene Conti said in a news release.

The updates are surprisingly specific. Here's a recent post from the Triangle-area feed. 

1:57 PM, US-70 W,Boiling St: Traffic is traveling at 22 MPH at: US 70 BUS W; MM 94.4; Boiling St

For those who don't use Twitter, the department has posted instructions on how to sign up for an account and use the traffic feeds.

* Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum notes that he and Jesse Helms voted for Sonia Sotomayor before, but says they wouldn't again.

* Scheduler for U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx gets in trouble for a tweet about drinking "office beers" on "taxpayer time."

* U.S. Senate could take up bill regulating tobacco as soon as today, Sens. Richard Burr and Kay Hagan have vowed to fight it.

* Charlotte officials wonder if they should put in a bid for the 2012 Democratic or Republican national conventions, given a $60 million price tag.

* North Carolina has its first Twitterversy: Can a Democratic operative Twitter under the name of the House Republican leader?

* Greensboro blogger Ed Cone notes an old video against filibustering Supreme Court nominees that may limit Sen. Richard Burr's options.

* N.C. Republican Party chair candidate Tom Fetzer declines to participate in an online questionnaire answered by his competitors.

* Federal prosecutors subpoena the state auditor's office to find out what it knows about how Mary Easley got her job at N.C. State University.

U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry has a Twitter feed.

Dome came across the Cherryville Republican's page today while reading up on moderate Sen. Arlen Specter's decision to become a Democrat.

"It would be more newsworthy if Specter finally became a Republican ...," McHenry tweeted in response. 

Previously: Rep. Virginia Foxx twitters.