A portrait of the late U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms, done by an African-American artist, will be unveiled Wednesday in Washington's Capitol Hill Club.

The unveiling of the painting by Rene Dickerson is expected to bring together Helms friends and admirers, including Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly, U.S. Reps. Virginia Foxx, Patrick McHenry and Sue Myrick. Former U.S. Sen. Conrad Burns will act as master of ceremonies. Dot Helms, the senator's widow, will be on hand.

The choice of artist could generate a buzz at the event, reports Rob Christensen.

Helms opposed every piece of civil rights legislation while serving in Congress and he was a major critic of the civil rights movement while he was a Raleigh television commentator.

Not only is Dickerson an African-American, but his work is not traditional portraituture. The California native cites as his inspiration such artists as Van Gogh, Picasso, Dali, Jacob Lawrence and Romare Bearden.

Dickerson's work is featured in the private collections of Oprah Winfrey, Bill Cosby and former Motown president Berry Gordy.

The portrait is being sponsored by the Jesse Helms Center in Monroe and by Brian Summers, a former Helms staffer, who has ties to Motown and Gordy.

The portrait will remain in the Capitol Hill Club, which has served as a social club for Republicans since 1951. It is located next door to the Republican National Committee and two blocks from the U.S. Capitol.

Add talk show host and comedian Wanda Sykes to the list of national shows that have taken a shot at U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, a Republican from Banner Elk.

Sykes derided Foxx's most recent outrage-inducing remark, that health care reform legislation poses a greater danger than any terrorist, as sounding like something actors are paid to say, such as Samuel L. Jackson's profanity-laced lines from "Snakes On A Plane."

Brooke Cain's TV blog has the whole story.

Ice may be thawing between U.S. Reps. Virginia Foxx and Barney Frank.

Foxx, as Dome readers know, is a conservative Banner Elk Republican who is prone to getting her name in print, on blog posts, in the punchline of late night monologues — you get the idea — for blurting hyperbole that tends to outrage the left.

And Frank is the liberal, openly gay Massachusets Democrat.

And so it's not too surprising that Politico reports that a few months ago, Frank got so annoyed with Foxx's endless questioning that he just walked out of a committee meeting.

This week, though, Frank and Foxx had some friendlier banter. We heard the conversation went something like this:

Foxx: "You’re looking particularly disheveled tonight."

Frank: "Well, my partner is the one who keeps me sheveled, and he’s been out of town."

(Please imagine Foxx’s reaction to that. Truly, it would have been priceless.)

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RAND OUT: State Sen. Tony Rand is quitting the Senate. The news that the chamber's chief Democratic enforcer and most formidable political gamesmen is leaving likely thrilled liberal Democrats and conservatives alike. Rand is one of the great characters in state politics and the legislature just got a little more boring.

HOW MANY IS THAT: Gov. Bev Perdue's communications director David Kochman has resigned as her approval numbers remain in the sub-basment. From her days as lieutenant governor, Perdue has had four communications directors in six years, making the job a little bit like being the drummer for Spinal Tap. With luck, Perdue's approval rating will go above 11.

REP. HYPERBOLE: U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx said the Democrats' health reform proposals are more dangerous than terrorists. Republicans may have more to fear from Foxx's own mouth than anything Democrats have to say.

IN OTHER NEWS: President Barack Obama has nominated two North Carolina judges to the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, which has had only six Tar Heels since 1801. With the election of a new mayor in Charlotte, Pat McCrory will be out of elected office, but his loss to Perdue is apparently still gnawing at him, so don't expect McCrory to be out of politics. N&O political cartoonist Dwane Powell has retired after 35 years of skewering politicians.

Here's a summary of what members of Congress had in their campaign accounts through September 2009. The remaining members of the state's delegation will be added to the list.

G.K. Butterfield: $231,000.

Howard Coble: $525,000.

Bob Etheridge: $1 million.

Virginia Foxx: $1.1 million.

Walter Jones: $127,766.

Larry Kissell: $244,000. Businessman Lou Huddleston has raised $57,641 from individuals and loaned himself $45,125. Tim D'Annunzio, who owns a skydiving business, has loaned himself $303,000 and raised $8,400. Hamlet resident Darrell Day has raised $30 and loaned himself $3,000. Republican Thomas Sweeney has not reported raising any money.

Patrick McHenry: $158,000. Iredell County Commissioner Scott Keadle has loaned himself $250,000 to challenge McHenry for the Republican nomination.

Mike McIntyre: $824,917. Republican Will Breazeale has received $3,800 in individual contributions and has $400 in his campaign account.

Brad Miller: $148,000. Challenger William Randall II has not reported raising any money.

David Price: $218,000. Republican challenger Frank Roche has raised $10,879, mostly through individual contributions. Republican George Hutchins has loaned himself $5,000.

Heath Shuler: $1.1 million.

Mel Watt: $140,000.

In a blistering editorial Thursday morning, The Charlotte Observer took U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, a Republican from Banner Elk, to the woodshed for comments she made on the House floor earlier this week that Americans had more to fear from the Democrats reforming health care than from any terrorist attack.

U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx is a visible reminder of the Forrest Gump saying, "Stupid is as stupid does." Foxx has made so many gaffes since her first election to Congress in 2004 that it's more than just mildly embarrassing for North Carolina. It's find-an-island-to-ship-her-to embarrassing. And it's becoming how-can-voters-keep-electing-her embarrassing.

The editorial then goes on to recount a litany of statements and actions by Foxx it characterizes as either hypocritical or dumb, and then urges voters in her 5th district, which stretches from the Piedmont to the mountains, to turn her out of office in 2010.

Count that as a strong negative endorsement from the state's largest newspaper a year before the election. Maybe the congresswoman should reply with a box of chocolates.

U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, a Banner Elk Republican, this morning said Americans have more to fear from the Democratic health bill than from terrorists, reports Barb Barrett.

According to a YouTube clip posted by liberal media watchdog Media Matters, Foxx said in a House floor speech:

“I believe that the greatest fear that we all should have to our freedom comes from this room -- this very room -- and what may happen later this week in terms of a tax increase bill masquerading as a health care bill. I believe we have more to fear from the potential of that bill passing than we do from any terrorist right now in any country.”

A full House floor vote on the health care bill could come as early as Friday.

U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx has $1.1 million in her campaign account, according to federal campaign finance records.

Foxx, a Banner Elk Republican, has received $322,000 during the current election cycle. Of her contributions, more than $252,000 were from individuals and more than $70,500 were from political action committees or other campaigns, records show.

Notable contributors include Richard V. Higgins of Taylorsville, president of gel-coating maker HK Research ($2,400); Robert Luddy of Wake Forest, president of kitchen ventilation company CaptiveAire; a political action committee of American Crystal Sugar Company of Moorhead, Minn., ($5,000) and a PAC of the National Beer Wholesalers Association in Alexandria, Va., ($2,500).

Federal elections records list no opponent for Foxx's seat.

Four U.S. House members from North Carolina signed a letter calling for the firing of an education official charged with advocating school safety.

The letter to President Barack Obama was signed by 53 Republicans who say that Kevin Jennings is unfit because he has been "promoting homosexuality and pushing a pro-homosexual agenda in America’s schools," according to a copy of the Oct. 15 letter published by The Hill.

Throughout his career, Mr. Jennings has made it his mission to establish special protections for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered students to the exclusion of all other students. The totality of Mr. Jennings’ career has been to advocate for public affirmation of homosexuality. There is more to safe and drug free schools than can be accomplished from the narrow view of Mr. Jennings who has, for more than 20 years, almost exclusively focused on promoting the homosexual agenda.

The signers from the state delegation are Sue Myrick (R-Charlotte), Walter Jones (R-Farmville), Patrick McHenry (R-Cherryville) and Virginia Foxx (R-Banner Elk).

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ONE MORE QUESTION: U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx has introduced a bill that would requires U.S. Census takers to try to find out how many illegal immigrants are in the U.S. We're guessing some answers to that question might just not be truthful.

BILLIONS AND BILLIONS: The state lottery director wants to add another national super jackpot game to complement Powerball. The move would be the first step toward creating a near-nationwide big jackpot game that would appeal to those who think the Powerball odds are too fair.

BIG SPENDER: State Sen. R.C. Soles Jr., a Columbus County Democrat, spent the second most of any competitive candidate — more than $830,000 — to win his Senate seat last year. That was BEFORE he shot someone. No telling what the figure might be next time.

IN OTHER NEWS: Margaret Harper, who ran twice for lieutenant governor and was a pioneer among female political figures in North Carolina, died at 92. The Triangle region buys 40 percent of all lottery tickets sold in the state. The Attorney General won't appeal Superintendent June Atkinson's right to run the state school system.