The speculation is based not only on gossip but the fact that Wynn has twice before nominated for the 4th Circuit only to have his nomination stalled by then Republican Sen. Jesse Helms, Rob Christensen reports.

Some of the key players, have been avoiding reporter’s calls.

Former NC. Chief Justice Burley Mitchell headed a four-member committee that screened potential candidates for Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan, would not say who the panel recommended.

But he heaped praise on Wynn, noting that he had known Wynn as a fellow judge and attorney for several decades.

"Nobody in the state is better qualified for the 4th Circuit in North Carolina in my view than Jim Wynn," Mitchell said.

More after the jump.

   Comments (0)

Gov. Mike Easley has nominated Susan Rabon to the N.C. Utilities Commission.

A Holly Springs resident, Rabon was a corporate lawyer in Wilmington before going to work as special counsel for the N.C. Department of Justice under then Attorney General Easley in 1993. She became chief of staff of the department in 1994.

Currently she works as senior assistant for administration in the governor's office.

Rabon graduated from N.C. State University in 1982 with a degree in political science and received her law degree from the University of Virginia in 1986. She clerked for N.C. Court of Appeals Judge Jack Cozort.

"Susan Rabon is an accomplished lawyer who has served our state with distinction and dedication," Easley said in a statement.  "Her integrity and knowledge of state government are unmatched. Her first priority has always been the needs and concerns of the people of North Carolina and I know she will take that same approach as a member of this commission."

The appointment will fill one of two openings on the board. Easley also nominated Crime Control Secretary Bryan Beatty today.

Both appointments will have to be confirmed by the legislature. 

Automated polls are like fast food: Cheap and easy, but not always nutritious.

That was the take of polling expert Tom Guterbock, a sociology professor and director of the Center for Survey Research at the University of Virginia.

Though Interactive Voice Response, or IVR polling, has been around for a while, Guterbock said it's really taken off in this election cycle.

In North Carolina, Raleigh firm Public Policy Polling and national pollsters SurveyUSA and Rasmussen Reports have used IVR to poll in the presidential primary and the Senate and gubernatorial races.

Guterbock raised several concerns about IVR: 1) Pollsters can't verify who answered the phone. 2) Issues must be simplified for touch-tone answers. 3) It can't handle complex responses.

On the other hand, IVR polling can be more accurate on sensitive questions where respondents may be afraid to tell the truth, such as teen smoking. And on "horse-race" polls about candidates, he said complexity is not as much of an issue.

"In polling, we're always debating the trade-off in quality of information versus the cost of gathering it," he said. "IVR is far lower in cost and gives reasonably accurate information, but very few people think it gives more accurate information than regular polling."

Overall, he said "the jury is still out."