Ethics may loom large in Marshall campaign

Wondering what sort of campaign Elaine Marshall might run in her bid for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate?

Well, Marshall provided the political equivalent of a movie trailer during an appearance at N.C. State University on Friday.

Marshall, North Carolina's secretary of state, was invited to the N.C. State University forum on ethics in public service weeks before she announced she was seeking the Democratic nomination. Her comments fit the event but also are bound to be repeated during the campaign.

First elected secretary of state in 1996, Marshall highlighted her early efforts to increase regulation on lobbyists as well as ramp up ethics disclosures for lobbyists and lawmakers.

"Folks said, 'It won't happen. It can't be done,'" she recalled, noting that she succeeded in expanding the staff for and scope of her office's scrutiny of lobbyists. Years later, the scandal surrounding House Speaker Jim Black forced broad ethics reforms.

Republicans are bound to tar any Democratic nominee with the party's scandals, including Gov. Mike Easley's free flights and home repair favors that were on display before the State Board of Elections two weeks ago.

Marshall expects as much, but in an interview after the forum, she said her record is an effective response.

"I hope that integrity becomes part of the debate," she said.

N.C. GOP brings in Hoffman

The N.C. Republican Party is bringing in Doug Hoffman, the defeated conservative New York congressional candidate who helped spark a national debate about the party's future, to speak at a political fundraiser in Raleigh this month.

State GOP Chairman Tom Fetzer said that Hoffman would be a good fit for Tar Heel Republicans.

"His candidacy in New York inspired conservatives across the country, and he will reach out to North Carolina conservatives to help us reclaim our government," Fetzer said.

Hoffman has been part of a national debate about what should be the party's stance toward moderates. The GOP leadership had nominated Dede Scozzafava for a U.S. House vacancy after President Barack Obama named Republican U.S. Rep. John McHugh as Army secretary.

But Scozzafava's conservative credentials were criticized because she favored abortion rights and same-sex marriage. Hoffman, alocal businessman, picked up the endorsement of such conservative luminaries as former Alaska Gov.Sarah Palin and TV personality Glenn Beck.

Scozzafava ended up withdrawing from the race and throwing her support to Democrat Bill Owens, who won a congressional seat that had been in Republican hands for 100 years.

Hoffman will speak at the party's Hall of Fame Dinner on Nov. 21 at the North Raleigh Hilton.

Book on Wilmington riot

There's a new book on the 1898 Wilmington race riot, called, not surprisingly, "A Day of Blood: The 1898 Wilmington Race Riot."

The book, by LeRae Umfleet, is published by the Historical Publications Section of the N.C. Office of Archives and History and the African American Heritage Commission. Umfleet is chief of collections management for the state Department of Cultural Resources.

Walters replaces Weinstein

Democrats in Robeson and Hoke counties have selected businessman Michael Walters to replace David Weinstein in the state Senate. Walters, 53, is president of Claybourn Walters Logging Co. in Fairmont.

Weinstein resigned his seat to become director of the Governor's Highway Safety Program.

By staff writers Mark Johnson, Rob Christensen and Bill Krueger

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