tobacco

Perdue strikes back at 'status quo'

ryanteaguebeckwith — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:13:08 -0400

Beverly Perdue is striking back at "Status Quo Bev."

In a speech at a gubernatorial forum on ethics this morning in Raleigh, the Democratic gubernatorial candidate took aim at a nickname given to her in ads by the Republican Governors Association.

Stressing that her campaign was about "change," Perdue said she was against "the status quo" twice.

"I've spent my entire life trying to make things better and fighting the status quo," she said.

Later she said that she was "committed to changing the status quo."

As a two-term lieutenant governor with ties to Gov. Mike Easley, Perdue has faced charges from Republican Pat McCrory and his allies that she is to blame for problems in Raleigh. She has countered by arguing that she was outside the inner circle.

In her speech today, she cited three examples: 1) Running for office as a woman in Eastern North Carolina, 2) "taking on tobacco" as a health care leader, and 3) campaigning for children's health insurance and teacher salaries.

Claims Dept: Dole on 'Fibber Kay'

ryanteaguebeckwith — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 18:20:08 -0400

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole has a new ad attacking her Democratic rival, Kay Hagan.

What the ad says: The ad begins with images of a small dog barking and jumping at a fence. Narrator: "They call her 'Fibber Kay Hagan.' Fib after fib, she tries to turn us against Elizabeth Dole. But we know Elizabeth has been consistently voted one of the 10 most admired women in the world. Her clout works wonders for North Carolina. So bark away Fibber Kay. That dog don't hunt." Dole: "I'm Elizabeth Dole and I approve this message." Text on the screen says Dole "saved jobs," "saved bases," "saved farmers" and "helped sheriffs."

The background: The ad does not specify who "they" are who call Hagan "Fibber Kay."

The Dole campaign said they did not come up with the nickname, but they did not know who did.

"We're not sure who coined it, but we hear people call Kay Hagan 'Fibber Kay' on the campaign trail and we hear it frequently," said spokesman Hogan Gidley.

A search of North Carolina newspapers, blogs and Web sites did not return any references to "Fibber Kay" from before the ad began airing, and nearly all written since were about the ad itself.

The ad does not name any of the supposed "fibs" that Hagan has made.

MOST ADMIRED: Every year since 1948, the Gallup organization has surveyed a random group of Americans on the men and women in the world they most admire.

As secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation under President Reagan, Dole first made the top 10 in 1987, returning three years later as secretary of the Labor department.

Though she received votes in other years, she returned to the top 10 as the wife of presidential candidate Bob Dole and president of the American Red Cross. Between 1996 and 2003, she was ranked between third and tenth place.

She also landed in ninth place in 2005, but she has not been on the list in the last two years.

She was in the top 10 a total of 11 times — the same number as the poet Maya Angelou and news anchor Barbara Walters.

JOBS AND BASES: The U.S. Department of Defense announced a round of base closings and other changes in 2005 as part of a regular program begun at the end of the Cold War. The multi-year process is designed to be insulated from political pressure.

Some North Carolina leaders had feared the loss of thousands of jobs — something that never materialized. A number of politicians, including Dole and Democratic Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue, have claimed credit for North Carolina's relative success, but there is no way to quantify how much each helped.

FARMERS: In 2004, Congress and President Bush approved a buyout of the Depression-era system of price supports — or quotas — for tobacco leaf. Cigarette companies financed the buyout, passing on the costs to consumers.

The buyout is designed to put $9.6 billion into the pockets of quota owners and growers over 10 years. Some farmers have used the money to reinvest in the crop, while others chose to change crops or retire.

Dole supported the buyout during her 2002 campaign and was a vocal advocate in Congress, along with other senators from tobacco-growing states.

SHERIFFS: Since 1996, the federal government has offered a test program for sheriff's deputies to investigate illegal immigration.

Though immigration enforcement is typically handled by the federal government, the goal of the 287(g) program is to start deportation proceedings on illegal immigrants who are arrested for non-immigration related crimes.

In North Carolina, a handful of sheriffs' offices, including Mecklenburg and Wake counties, have signed up for the program, which Dole has promoted.

The federal government pays for the cost of training deputies in immigration enforcement and grants sheriffs' offices access to immigration records.

Is the ad accurate? There is no way to verify the "Fibber Kay" nickname or who coined it and no evidence it has been used. Dole has been consistently ranked among the most admired women in the world. Though the ad's claims are vague, Dole did help farmers and sheriffs in Congress, but there is no way to quantify her role in saving the state's military bases.

— Ryan Teague Beckwith and David Ingram

Claims Dept: Dole's response

ryanteaguebeckwith — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 11:39:52 -0400

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole's campaign has a new ad responding to an earlier ad responding to an earlier ad from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

What the ad says: The ad begins with a clip from an anti-Dole ad: "'I'm telling you Liddy Dole is 93.' '93?'" It moves to a profile image of Dole and then images of people involved with the military, farming and law enforcement. Narrator: "Does Kay Hagan think we believe that? Elizabeth Dole's got firepower. She just received the Best of Congress award. She saved our military bases and thousands of jobs -- saved our farmers -- and gave sheriffs tools to fight illegal immigration." Person on a park bench: "She's dedicated her life to helping us." Dole: "I'm Elizabeth Dole, and I approved this message."

The background: The opening clip is from an ad paid for by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, an independent group legally prohibited from coordinating with Kay Hagan's campaign. It is not a Hagan ad, though Hagan has made the same criticism.

DOLE AT 93: The "93" criticism refers to an annual study conducted since 2005 by the Congressional data service Knowlegis. The study ranks members of Congress on their power.

After scoring in the middle of the pack the first two years, Dole's rating plummeted to 93rd when Republicans became the minority in the Senate in 2007.

Her rating was also low due to fewer mentions in the news media and service on less powerful committees on banking and armed services.

Dole's campaign says those committees are important to North Carolina, home to a number of banks and military bases.

BEST OF CONGRESS: Working Mother magazine named Dole one of the "Best of Congress" in August. The award is not a general look at effectiveness. It measures lawmakers' support for issues important to working mothers, including medical leave, and their support for "family-friendly" policies in their own offices.

Fifty lawmakers applied for the award. The magazine gave it to 24 of them.

MILITARY BASES: The U.S. Department of Defense announced a round of base closings and other changes in 2005 as part of a regular program begun at the end of the Cold War. The multi-year process is designed to be insulated from political pressure.

Dole supported the buyout during her 2002 campaign and was a vocal advocate in Congress, along with other senators from tobacco-growing states.

SHERIFFS: Since 1996, the federal government has offered a test program for sheriff's deputies to investigate illegal immigration.

In North Carolina, a handful of sheriffs' offices, including Mecklenburg and Wake counties, have signed up for the program, which Dole has promoted.

The federal government pays for the cost of training deputies in immigration enforcement and grants sheriffs' offices access to immigration records.

Is the ad accurate? The ad implies incorrectly that Hagan's campaign sponsored the ad attacking Dole. It also omits any detail on the "Best of Congress" award, and there is no way to quantify her role in helping the state's military bases. Otherwise, it is accurate.

— David Ingram and Ryan Teague Beckwith

Dole, Hagan agree on tobacco regulation

bkrueger — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 15:25:40 -0400

Both major candidates for the U.S. Senate say they oppose regulation of tobacco by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration - though incumbent U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole goes further than her challenger, Kay Hagan.

Dole and Hagan argue that the FDA does not have the expertise or the resources to regulate the tobacco industry, given the agency's focus on the safety of food and pharmaceuticals, reports David Ingram.

"The last thing on earth we need is to have tobacco added to that list," said Dole, a Salisbury Republican. "They don't have expertise in tobacco, and heaven knows they don't have the funding to do what they're doing now."

Hagan, a Greensboro Democrat, said much the same thing in an interview.

"I don't think FDA has the staff to do tobacco regulation at this point in time," she said.

Asked whether she might support FDA regulation if the agency had more resources, Hagan declined to answer. "To me, that's hypothetical," she said.

Dole, in a separate interview, said she is opposed generally.

"This is a back-door way of simply shutting down the industry entirely," Dole said.

In July, the U.S. House voted 326-102 in favor legislation that would for the first time put the FDA in charge of regulating cigarettes. The bill faces tough opposition in the Senate from tobacco-producing states such as North Carolina.

The bill's supporters say it provides the FDA with separate funding to oversee tobacco.

What Hagan said about 2003 budget

ryanteaguebeckwith — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 10:02:18 -0400

How did Kay Hagan feel about the 2003 budget?

As a first-time cochairwoman of the Senate Appropriations committee, the Greensboro Democrat was quoted about two dozen times on the budget that year.

With Hagan running for U.S. Senate, the budget will come up again.

In the beginning, Hagan told reporters that she wanted to see more cuts related to government efficiency and higher raises for state workers (Greensboro News & Record, March 6). After the Senate put forth its plan, she called it "a good budget" that allocates money "in a wise and careful manner" (Charlotte Observer, April 29) and she worried that revenue would be down (N&R, May 5).

She also staunchly defended two proposed hikes in sin taxes on cigarettes and alcohol saying they are "a lifestyle choice" (N&R, June 12) and that the alternative, a lottery, wouldn't pass (N&O, June 12).

She added that the alternatives were worse: "I'm looking at not going to a four-day school week. I'm looking at not firing teachers. I'm looking at the basic infrastructure of the state, which is education and economic development." (Char-O, June 12)

She also stressed that the budget should be on time (N&R, June 16).

And she defended an additional $10.2 million in fee increases on things such as visiting a state park, operating a nursing home and getting a driver's license included in the budget.

"Those fee increases are very, very small," she said. "Some haven't been changed for years and years." (N&R, July 13)

Taxes in Hagan's 2003 budget

ryanteaguebeckwith — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 11:29:25 -0400

What taxes were in the 2003 budget?

The first budget partially negotiated by state Sen. Kay Hagan included $14.8 billion in spending, a $400 million increase from the previous year.

The budget will likely come up again in the U.S. Senate race, with Republican Sen. Elizabeth Dole signaling that she will attack Hagan's record.

Here's a few details from the budget that she may focus on:

Temporarily Continued: The budget continued the "temporary taxes" on sales and the wealthy first instituted during a 2001 shortfall and set to expire in 2003. The two taxes were expected to generate about $384 million.

Sin No More: Senate leaders proposed adding 25 cents in tax to a pack of cigarettes and 5 cents to a can of beer, but House leaders shot the idea down. The taxes would have raised $326 million to offset proposed education cuts.

Higher (Cost) Education: Tuition at state universities went up 5 percent, though the budget added $5.1 million in need-based financial aid. In-state community college tuition rose 3.2 percent. For out-of-state students, it was 8.2 percent.

Obviously, there's a lot more to the budget than these three items, but they're the ones easiest to explain to voters in a short attack ad.

Dole's major bipartisan legislation

ryanteaguebeckwith — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 14:36:20 -0400

What bipartisan efforts has U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole worked on?

At Dome's request, the Salisbury Republican's staffers sent a list of bipartisan efforts that she is most proud of from the past six years:

* Climate Change: Dole co-sponsored a "cap and trade" bill to reduce carbon emissions by Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman and Republican John Warner this session.

* Military Family Leave: Dole co-sponsored a bill by Sen. Hillary Clinton to allow some workers 12-month leaves to care for family members wounded in action.

* Lumbee Recognition: Dole worked with Gov. Mike Easley, U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre, Maryland Sen. Barbara Mikulski, among others, on legislation to recognize the Lumbee tribe.

* Tobacco Quota Buyout: Dole worked with U.S. Reps. McIntyre and Bob Etheridge on a tobacco quota buyout program included in a 2004 jobs bill.

* Catching Fugitives: Dole co-sponsored a bill with Sen. Richard Durbin to give law enforcement agencies help capturing fugitives from the U.S. Marshals.

Dole's staffers also cited her work on 211 expansion with Clinton, creating infrastructure bonds with Sen. Ron Wyden, requiring a White House conference on nutrition with Sen. John Kerry, demanding Iraq fund a greater share of its reconstruction with Sen. Ben Nelson, and amending trade adjustment laws and calling for an Oil and Gas Market Fraud Task Force with Sen. Maria Cantwell.

Previously: Dole's Democratic cosponsors 2003-08.

Should Obama start smoking?

ryanteaguebeckwith — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 17:43:04 -0400

A former smoker says Barack Obama should light up again.

In a guest column in the New York Times today, author Tony Horwitz says that taking back up the smoking habit might help the Democratic presidential nominee:

Bottom line: small-towners in the Rust Belt and Appalachia don’t cling to guns and religion so much as they do cigarettes.
By rejoining them, Mr. Obama would also touch voters in several heavy-smoking swing states: Michigan, Missouri and Nevada. Added bonus — Virginia and North Carolina, two leading tobacco-producing states, are both in play this election.

No driving while smoking for state workers?

ryanteaguebeckwith — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 11:18:35 -0400

The state Senate wants to ban driving while smoking — at least for state employees.

Senators voted 37-7 Monday to prohibit state employees from smoking inside a vehicle owned or leased by state government, David Ingram reports. The bill would also allow local governments to place similar restrictions on vehicles they control.

Violating the law would carry no punishment, though the person in charge of assigning the vehicle would be required to place a no-smoking sign in at least one "conspicuous" area inside.

It would apply to all vehicles assigned by the N.C. Department of Administration's motor pool division.

There was little discussion before senators voted for the bill, which is aimed at improving health. A final Senate vote could happen as soon as Tuesday. If successful, the bill would then move to the House.

Dole's new ad

bniolet — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 16:03:22 -0400