Michael Whatley’s campaign is flailing. The Republican Senate candidate doesn’t have anything to run on, so he’s trying to find something to run against. So far, he’s stuck on re-litigating the COVID era. In particular, he’s trying to claim Roy Cooper released a bunch of prisoners who went on to commit more crimes. It’s not going to work because, one, it’s not true, and, two, this electorate is looking to the future, not the past.
Republicans are feverishly trying to make shutdowns, mask mandates, and vaccines the issue of the midterm elections. They’ve dragged Anthony Fauci before a Congressional committee and Trump is demanding he be indicted for something. RFK, Jr. can’t stop talking about vaccines, making Senator Bill Cassidy the biggest dupe in the Senate — no small accomplishment. Most of the country that’s not living on Twitter is ignoring the whole sordid episode.
Whatley’s campaign is accusing Cooper of releasing about 3,500 prisoners, implying that he’s soft on crime. Last week, the Assembly basically debunked that whole line of attack by reporting that Cooper’s administration fought the release of prisoners. The ACLU and other groups were suing the state, demanding 18,000 prisoners be released. The ones released were part of a compromise, not an initiative of the Cooper administration.
Besides, North Carolina was far from the only government to release prisoners. Other states also reduced their inmate populations to prevent the spread of the disease. Donald Trump released more than 13,000 federal prisoners to home confinement. Whatley’s certainly not complaining about his benefactor putting criminals back on the street.
Republicans are trying desperately to change the national conversation. It won’t work. Successful campaigns tap into voters’ concerns and let people know that they are being heard. Whatley is ignoring their problems and instead trying to distract them by talking about a time most people just want to forget.
He’s like a guy waving his arms at the back of a large crowd moving forward, yelling, “Look at me! Come this way!” As I said earlier, he’s flailing. And so are a bunch of other Republicans.
Every bit of good news is welcome and lifts my spirits. All Republicans exist to serve the president, who is a Russian asset, crook, and sexual predator. Anyone who does not see this is blinded by something, and in many cases I imagine it's racism. It will take this country decades to heal from this national security threat, this Russian "American overthrow" (to quote the title of Keir Giles' recent book). This sick, depraved person is the most corrupt president in US history and he's robbing from us in front of our eyes daily. What a tragic waste of time, money and energy at a time when our country can least afford it. I hope we can make lemonade out of lemons, learn some lessons, and emerge in some ways the better for it. Sadly, we will likely never reclaim our leadership role on the world stage, but maybe that's for the better, given the fact that we elected this anti democratic, sadistic crook twice. Whatley, a total Trump toadie, is everything wrong with our politics, and Cooper is a great fit for NC and the US Senate.
Tom, I like this piece. It hits hard. But it leaves a question standing in the room. How do so many people stay blind to what Cooper had to do? He didn’t choose the releases. A court ordered them. He had to follow the law and still keep the public safe. That is a narrow road, and he walked it.
The comments I’m seeing show how far ignorance can spread. Folks talk loud but don’t know the facts. Look at the numbers. Look at the recidivism. Cooper kept his balance on the tight rope. Based on the record, he did the job well.
And because of that, I’d trust him on the hard work ahead — cleaning up the damage in health care, untangling the mess in Iran, restoring our place in the world economy, and ending the needless violence on our streets being committed under the banner of ICE. Including this reparable damage done to your countries historic structures and places being replace with golden statutes and decorations, designed to feed the ego of the DONALD! A steady hand matters. Cooper with the help of other Democrats and independents can do it!