Sen. Tony Rand stepping down

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Rand's role

Regarding your July 12 article "Rand can't recall discussing Easley salary audit":

I think it is time the feds started looking into the antics of state Sen. Tony Rand. Better yet, since they are already looking into the alleged improprieties of former Governor Easley and his wife and since Rand provided legal counsel to Mary Easley in a prior probe of suspicious overseas travel spending and since Rand has the hammer on the state auditor's report about Mrs. Easley's salary at N.C. State University, why not employ the economies of probe and add him to the feds' list?

Isn't there something basically wrong with the governor or his wife hiring the majority leader of the state Senate to act as her legal counsel? This entire debacle needs a deeper look.

Lottery viewpoints 1130110484912171

With a Senate lottery vote still a few weeks away, proponents and foes of a state-sponsored lottery had their chance Wednesday to express their views.

After the discussion, state Sen. Tony Rand, the chairman of a special lottery committee, said he didn

He left his best face at home that day

State Sen. Tony Rand was on the stand Wednesday, being grilled by a lawyer for former state lottery commissioner Kevin L. Geddings.

The questions concerned what Rand remembered of a Scientific Games lobbyist -- and friend of Geddings -- named Alan Middleton.

Rand said several times that he could barely place the man, much less remember meetings with him.

The Senate won't be the same

In an institution that once was peopled by colorful characters with engaging nicknames and soaring oratorical powers, longtime state Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand's surprise decision to leave the Senate before the end of the year does several things all at once:

It makes the Senate a paler, less lively place that will go without Rand's pointed wit, flamboyant hand gestures, fierce advocacy on behalf of his alma mater and firm grasp on the rhythm and heartbeat of legislative work. As my colleague Lynn Bonner of the News & Observer once wrote of Rand, "The Senate belongs to the people of North Carolina, but the power to set its pace belongs to Sen. Tony Rand."

It opens up the possibility of considerably more power-sharing in a chamber where President Pro Tem Marc Basnight, D-Dare, and Rand, D-Cumberland, have run the place so long that most legislators cannot remember when things were different. Basnight is now in his 18th year as the chief lawmaker of the chamber, and Rand, who served as majority leader

Back to beige

Once, during a lengthy debate over a bill in the state Senate that he helped rule as the Democratic majority leader, Tony Rand of Fayetteville was leaning back in his front row seat looking like he was about to doze off. One senator in particular was asking question after question, and finally another senator who was trying to answer her said, "That's above my pay grade." Whereupon the inquisitive senator asked, "Well, Sen. Rand, could you speak to this? Have you been listening to this discussion?"

Rand rose slowly, as was his habit, held his microphone under his chin and replied, "Ah'm afraid sooooo." The discussion ended quickly, and the bill ... well, it went wherever Rand wanted it to go. In 22 years in the Senate, Rand rose to leadership as the right hand of Marc Basnight of Manteo, the president pro tem. He was an enforcer sometimes, a counselor other times, a parliamentary genius all the time.

His colleagues seemed a bit perplexed with the announcement of his resignation Wednesday, after which he