The fairy tale wars continue in North Carolina's Senate race.
The campaign of Elaine Marshall sent out a news release in the form of a fairy tale belittling the claims made in Republican Sen. Richard Burr's first TV ad Monday. The release called Burr's 'Main Street' ad a "grim fairy tale," and said "like many people who spend too much time in Washington, [Burr] lost his way."
On Tuesday, the Burr campaign responded with a web video titled "The Marshall Tales." The video said, "Once upon time, atop her ivory tower in Raleigh ... Elaine Marshall dreams of joining Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi to solve America's problems." The video ends with a black screen and a ticking national debt.
Who's anti-business?
Next week, North Carolina Republicans will embark on "100 days that will change North Carolina," a tour to tell voters why they should elect a Republican legislature in November.
At a news conference at state GOP headquarters Tuesday, state Republican Chairman Tom Fetzer predicted that the Democrats would lose control of the legislature for the first time since 1898. (The GOP controlled the state House for two terms in the 1990s.)
Fetzer cited a number of good omens for the GOP, including a Gallup Poll giving Republicans an unprecedented 10 percent advantage in generic congressional balloting. Also, historic trends show the out-of-power party with big pick-ups when the president is polling under 50 percent, as is the case with Democratic President Barack Obama.
"This is the best crop of candidates in North Carolina I have ever seen," said Fetzer, flanked by about a dozen state House and Senate candidates.
The candidates, given a few minutes at the microphone, generally voiced support for limited government, lower taxes, and reduced spending. They promised policies that would be more business-friendly.
"We are becoming an anti-business state," said Mike Stone, a House candidate from Sanford.
Andrew Whalen, executive director of the state Democratic Party, said the criticism of Democrats being anti-business was "completely bogus."
He noted that CNBC has rated North Carolina in the top five states for business and that Site Selection magazine made North Carolina the top state in business climate in eight of the past nine years. He said Forbes ranked Raleigh as its third best city for businesses this year.
The GOP tour will start in the mountains Tuesday and will continue until Sept. 23.
Marshall's a Clay-mate
Pop singer Clay Aiken helped Democratic Senate candidate Elaine Marshall at a Durham fundraiser Friday night.
Aiken was the special guest along with state Treasurer Janet Cowell at an event held at the home of Ama lendu and Arundhati Chatterjee in Durham. The price of admission ranged from $2,400 for hosts to $100 for guests.
Aiken, who grew up in Raleigh, backed Marshall's former rival Cal Cunningham in the Democratic primary in the spring.
