This election is being fought in my mailbox
Plus: Hard work ahead for Charlotte’s 2040 plan; George Shinn memories; First day of real school in CMS; Poll says 2/3 of North Carolinians have never heard of David Tepper
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Column: It’s possible politicians can run positive campaigns. But you wouldn’t know it from most of the 100+ mailers I received.
(Photo by Phoebe Brannan)
By Colleen Brannan
While I know North Carolina is a battleground state, I had no idea it would be fought in my mailbox.
Over the past four weeks, we have received exactly 103 political campaign direct mailers delivered by the mail carrier with an apologetic “don’t shoot the messenger” grin. Some are from the candidates themselves touting everything from military service to family values, but the majority are attacking their opponents.
As a registered independent who has worked on local and statewide campaigns for both parties and for two candidates named Pat, I feel uniquely qualified to poke fun at these marketing gems that seem like something I could have authored back in the day. (I got out of that game when my last political client went to federal prison.)
With three legal voters in our household and consistent records of showing up at the polls, there’s no question why we’ve been targeted. Is it possible people decide which candidates to support based on these glossy mailers? With Election Day tomorrow, I decided to take a closer look.
Rhymes get me (almost) every time
My favorite comes from an outfit identifying itself in the fine print as the “Old North PAC.” Whoever that is, they are very opposed to N.C. Attorney Gen. Josh Stein. The “Liberal Josh Stein” file folder is complete with unflattering headlines, crime scene tape and a bonus Get Out of Jail Free Monopoly card. I love a good rhyme, so the “Liberal Josh Stein Soft on Crime” jingle almost got me, if not for all the sensational headlines and quotes without context.
One thing’s for sure: If Stein gets unseated, he leaves big fingerprints to fill.
Tree killers
It has been reported that the Cunningham/Tillis U.S. Senate race is one of the most expensive to date, spending a quarter of a billion dollars. I’m not sure how much of that was allocated to direct mail, but these pieces represent the bulk of my mailbox haul — a total of 28 pieces, or nearly 30%. That’s a lot of trees. Luckily, neither seem to be running on a save the environment platform. Honorable mention goes to N.C. Senate candidate Jeff Jackson for his 18 mailers.
Extra effort
If you live in Mecklenburg County, you vote in all 12 judicial district races, even though only two are contested. Of those two races and four candidates, I heard only from one: Thank you, Rex Marvel, for caring about my vote. Similarly, the campaign of county commissioner District 5 candidate Laura Meier sent me an actual handwritten note.
Floored this isn’t a bigger deal
While not the most high profile, the Commissioner of Labor race will determine who stares you down in the elevator going forward. That’s a big decision for me after my 20-year relationship with Cherie Berry, who is not running for re-election. The new candidates are Josh Dobson and Jessica Holmes.
Beyond who would be better to oversee workers’ rights across the state, I need to see their 8x10 glossies to fully commit to either candidate. Yet I didn’t hear from either of them. Imagine the labor costs of replacing that photo in the 30,000 or so elevators in North Carolina.
Mailbox superlatives
There are plenty of legit voter guides out there and this isn’t one of them. Instead, I offer you the best of this year’s political direct mail game, in my opinion:
Opposite day: A Trump ad paid for by the N.C. Republican Party invites you to look inside to see “what the media isn’t telling you.” Like a Crackerjack prize, it doesn’t disappoint, going on to tell you how Trump helped families struggling the most under the coronavirus.
Cringiest: Screenshots of a text conversation between married father of two Cal Cunningham and a woman who is not his wife: “Would make my day to roll over and kiss you about now.”
Who was that masked man? The only ad with a candidate wearing a mask was from Brandon Lofton, candidate for the N.C. House. Better yet, when he is shown without one, the ad notes the photo was taken pre-pandemic.
Breath of fresh air: N.C. Senate candidate Sonja Nichols, in her power red suit, seems like a force to be reckoned with, and her “Real World Experience, Real World Accomplishments” platform resonated with me. I remember seeing her emcee a Good Friends luncheon a few years ago and thinking she needs to run for office. Maybe she heard me?
Most confusing: I get that candidates want to instill a sense of urgency and let you know that the window to cast votes is dwindling. But it’s probably not the best idea to put “Time is Running Out” next to a photo of 77-year old Joe Biden, who, if he wins, will be the oldest president ever to take office.
Regardless of party affiliation, personal views or motivation to dress yourself and leave the house, you must vote in this critical election. And, if you need help, maybe consult a real voter guide.
Colleen Brannan owns BRANSTORM PR and makes it a point never to discuss politics, religion or the perm she got just before her high school senior photo, so this story is the exception. She welcomes more followers on Instagram (Colleen_Brannan), Twitter (@colleenbrannan) and LinkedIn but vows never to join Facebook. Reach her at colleen@branstorm.com
Polls are open tomorrow from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Voter guides: Charlotte Agenda, Charlotte Observer, WFAE, Queen City Nerve, Mecklenburg Republican Party, Mecklenburg Democratic Party.
Voting information at Mecklenburg County Board of Elections.
Charlotte’s 2040 plan: Now comes the hard part
The city of Charlotte released its long-awaited draft of the city’s 2040 Comprehensive Plan over the weekend — and since it is 320 pages, you can’t say it’s not comprehensive.
The city has put a lot of effort into it — two years of planning and many chances for public input. And it released it Saturday in a series of drive-in community meetings at the Park Expo. (We live-Tweeted the event.)
Let’s concede that planning for growth isn’t the sexiest of topics, and please pat yourself on the back right now for reading this instead of skipping down to the next item.
But just like in your personal life or in business, setting goals for the future is important. Like one of our old bosses used to say, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
The city’s 2040 plan is an ambitious series of goals, from providing affordable housing and good jobs for all who want them to increasing public art and reducing obesity. Most people will probably agree with most of the objectives.
But as hard as it was to put together something like this, it will be even harder to take many of the steps required to achieve the goals. That’s because the city government does not possess the power by itself to dictate how a city grows. And in the areas the city does control, there are a lot of needs that cost a lot of money.
Just look at how many older neighborhoods still lack sidewalks, even though the city has made that a priority for decades. And some of these problems seem intractable: If it were profitable for grocery stores to open in areas that lack them (“food deserts”), wouldn’t that have happened already?
There are also likely battles ahead on zoning and land-use planning. The city has been working on a new development ordinance that will change zoning classifications to allow, among other things, higher-density construction in areas now zoned for single-family homes. That might make sense as a city grows, but an awful lot of neighborhoods aren’t going to like that an apartment complex could suddenly be built nearby without their consent or input. Privately, some developers and neighborhood activists wonder if the city can pull this one off in a meaningful way.
It’s wise to set goals. But now let’s see how the city goes about achieving them. —TM
Today’s supporting sponsors are AccruePartners…
… and T.R. Lawing Realty:
New shock poll: Bojangles as unpopular as Coach K
Pollsters are paying all kinds of attention to North Carolina, as you might know. But a new poll out last week really got to the heart of the matter: What do the state’s residents think about a variety of sports figures and businesses?
UMass Lowell’s Center for Public Opinion asked 911 likely North Carolina voters about their perceptions of David Tepper, Matt Rhule, Harris Teeter, Krispy Kreme, Cook-Out and several other people and companies.
More than half the respondents said they had never heard of Tepper (the Panthers’ owner), Rhule (the Panthers’ coach) and Panthers quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.
The two with the highest unfavorable ratings? Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski and Bojangles, each with 10%. (Bojangles had 74% favorables, compared with just 40% for Coach K.)
The poll says it has a margin of error of 4.2 percentage points. (Hat tip: Sam Spencer on Twitter) —TM
That time when George Shinn’s lawyer channeled Johnny Cochran
After our item the other day that mentioned former Charlotte Hornets owner George Shinn’s donation to Atrium Health for its stroke center, a Ledger reader wrote in recalling one of the more memorable and controversial lines from Shinn’s famous 1999 civil trial. He was being sued by a woman who claimed Shinn forced himself on her at his Tega Cay home. Shinn said it was consensual. The jury sided with Shinn. No criminal charges were filed.
We’ll let a Charlotte magazine article from 2009 recount the famous quote from Shinn lawyer Bill Diehl:
[Diehl] successfully defended then Charlotte Hornets owner Shinn in a nationally televised civil trial in which a woman accused him of forcing her to have oral sex. Taking a cue from O.J.’s late lawyer Johnnie Cochran, Diehl infamously said, “If she ain’t bitin’, she ain’t fightin’.”
Shinn is donating $7.5M to Atrium, which will rename its stroke center “The George Shinn Comprehensive Stroke Center.”
Atrium CEO Gene Woods said: “We are deeply grateful to Mr. Shinn, and I’m certain this amazing gift will permanently elevate our stroke program at Carolinas Medical Center to ensure national and international prominence.” —TM
In brief:
Casino negotiations: Gov. Roy Cooper’s administration is negotiating with the Catawba Nation tribe on a plan to offer casino gambling in Kings Mountain, 30 miles west of Charlotte. The gaming compact would specify the types of games allowed, and how much the tribe would send the state. Those plans are opposed by the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians, which operates two casinos in Western North Carolina. (WRAL)
Covid relief lawsuit: A lawsuit filed in Wake County claims that the state’s method of distributing $335 to families with children is “discriminatory, irrational and unconstitutional” because it required people who didn’t file taxes in 2019 to send in a separate application. A lawyer for low-income families who didn’t know about the refund said that “lawmakers hurriedly designed a program that required low-income families to apply for money that middle- and high-income families will get automatically.” (Observer)
BofA ends supplemental pay: Bank of America has ended a supplemental pay program for employees at bank branches and call centers, which it put into place at the start of the pandemic in March. In a memo, the bank said it plans to “transition our compensation plans to be more business-as-usual once again” and that the “$200 special supplemental pay and special enhanced overtime pay programs” would end in October. (Fox Business)
Made in N.C.: The results are in for the N.C. Chamber’s “Coolest thing made in N.C.” competition, and … nothing from Charlotte made the top 15. The winner was Thomas Built Buses Saf-T-Liner C2 Jouley Electric School Bus, which is made in High Point. Other finalists included Caterpillar’s Cat 299D3 XE Compact Track Loader made in Sanford, the HondaJet elite jet made in Greensboro and George’s BBQ Sauce, made in Nashville, N.C. The competition was designed to recognize the state’s manufacturing sector, which makes up 10.4% of jobs in N.C. (Business North Carolina)
Back to school: Watch for the big yellow buses on the roads again today, as Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools welcomes elementary students back for two-days-a-week of in-person instruction. It’ll be an unusual first week back, however — all students have off Tuesday for a teacher workday (and Election Day).
Taking stock
Unless you are a day trader, checking your stocks daily is unhealthy. So how about weekly? How local stocks of note fared last week (through Friday’s close), and year to date:
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