I recently wrote that Democrats need to stanch the bleeding in rural North Carolina. The party brand has been tarnished to the point that most rural residents see Democrats as a threat to their way of life. Reversing that trend will take decades, not a few election cycles, but addressing some of their most pressing concerns is a good start. Attorney General Josh Stein is making an effort and Democrats should watch him.
Stein joined a group of attorneys general in suing the pharmaceutical companies and distributors over the opioid crisis. Since last summer, he announced a series of settlements totaling in the billions of dollars. This week, he announced he wants to set up a Fentanyl Control Unit within the Department of Justice. That’s both good policy and good politics.
Also this week, an Axios-Ipsos poll shows that Americans consider opioids the number one health threat. The numbers are skewed by partisanship, like everything else in the country. More than a third of Republicans, 37%, say that opioids are the greatest threat, while only 17% Democrats say they are the greatest threat.
Opioids have disproportionately hit the rural areas where Republicans live. They’re seeing the damage on daily basis and many people know victims of overdoses or addiction. By aggressively addressing the problem, Stein is sending a signal that he hears their concerns. As I said, that’s good policy and good politics.
Democrats have been able to hold the Governor’s Mansion for most of the last 50 years by running candidates from rural areas. Roy Cooper is from Rocky Mount. Bev Perdue lived in New Bern. Mike Easley was a district attorney from Southport. Jim Hunt grew up on a farm in Wilson County. Their connection to these areas made them sympathetic to needs of rural communities. They could speak the language.
Assuming he wins his primary, Stein will be the first Democratic gubernatorial nominee from an urban area in decades. He was born in Washington, DC, and raised in Chapel Hill. He needs to show the people from small towns and rural counties that he understands the issues most important to them. Listening to their concerns and acting on them is a good beginning.
Stein won’t win most of the rural counties in the state, but he can keep them from seeing him as the enemy. The conservative-leaning swing voters in these areas might even choose him over an unacceptable GOP nominee. Even some non-MAGA Republicans might sit out a Governor’s race between a Democrat who tries and Republican candidate who is unqualified and divisive. A no-vote is better than a vote against.
Democrats would be wise to follow Stein’s example. They should spend more time hearing the concerns of rural North Carolinians and take them seriously. Another place they should pay attention is crime. According to one study, seven of the ten most dangerous cities or towns in the state are outside urban areas. The opioid epidemic probably plays a role here, too, but keeping criminals off of the streets is a priority for many residents of small towns. As attorney general, Stein is also in a position to address these concerns.
Democrats won’t win rural North Carolina but they can stop hemorrhaging votes. Republicans have been rapidly increasing their vote-share in our smaller counties since Trump’s election. Stopping that trend is essential for Democrats to stay competitive in the state. In a presidential year, the party should get the turnout they want. In rural North Carolina, they just need to lose by less.
Thomas Mills is the founder and publisher of PoliticsNC.com. Before beginning PoliticsNC, Thomas spent twenty years as a political and public affairs consultant. Learn more >
Wayne, every one of those bills that Stein voted against were attempts to delay and discourage women seeking abortions under the guise of caring for the health of the pregnant ladies. They were basically antiabortion laws . Did those measures actually help the pregnant ladies healthwise ? No. They just made abortion health care harder. Stein is an honorable man who cares for everyone and not impose his religious beliefs on others.
If for NO other reason, Josh Stein should NEVER be considered for the role of Governor of the state of North Carolina due to his appalling stance on abortion! Let’s look at a few background facts:
Back in 2011, when Stein was still a state Senator, he voted against the Woman’s Right To Know Law—a bill which required a 24-hr abortion waiting period, and the informed consent of the woman. (S.L. 2011-405)
Then in 2013, he voted against public school health education programs on the preventable causes, including abortion, of pre-term birth, and of extremely low birth weight of subsequent pregnancies. (S.L. 2013-307). Arguably important information for teenagers, because teen births are associated with high risk for stillborn infants—stuff you would want a teenaged mother to be informed about, ehhhwot??
Yet again—in 2013–Stein voted against REQUIRING a doctor to be present at an abortion! Seriously…??? He ALSO voted against allowing for ‘conscience protections’ for health care providers potentially involved in an abortion procedure. Previously, only doctors and nurses were covered. So, for the medical profession—just DO what the politicians TELL YOU to do, right??!! HMMmm…didn’t Hitler’s minions offer that excuse too?? “I was ordered to do it!!” And then, as if to cap off the entire insult, Stein voted to have TAXPAYERS pay for purely elective abortions! (S.L. 2013-366) So whether you AGREE with abortions or not—you’re gonna PAY FOR IT! Talk about edicts from the Marxist state! You can’t make this stuff up!
After the Dobbs decision came down on June 24, 2022, now-Attorney General Stein LOUDLY condemned the decision from the US Supreme Court overruling Roe v. Wade. Appallingly, Stein even campaigned and raised money based upon his pledge of unyielding opposition to ANY protection for innocent—preborn–human lives. NOSSIR!! –LET ‘EM DIE!! Predictably, the worker bees in his office filed a brief in Federal District Court OPPOSING reinstatement of the 20-week protection for babies! THEY claimed it would just be “too confusing,” – it would “creating “apprehension” — and then they had the unmitigated GALL to state that the opinion of the NC General Assembly, which stated that this protection for late term children should be reinstated, was irrelevant!
There is a LOT more to this disgusting narrative describing Josh Stein’s reprehensible position on abortion. The Democratic Attorney General Association CONSTANTLY sends out fundraising e-mails denying protection for unborn children. They make it abundantly clear that Democrats support abortion for ANY reason–ANY time–ANY where—and ALL of it paid for by the taxpayer, whether the taxpayer agrees with it or not! But they NEVER mention the unborn child!
Josh Stein ALSO never mentions the unborn child. Does that unborn infant even EXIST in his vocabulary, or even in his mind? Does Stein even KNOW what the ultrasound of a 22-week unborn child even looks like, and that his decisions and his actions as a Governor would help destroy? Josh Stein is an unprincipled, marching-in-lockstep-Democrat who takes his marching orders from the Democrat elites. WHY in the world would we EVER want to elect such a mendacious, amoral proponent of the brutal and inhumane process known as abortion? The onus of culpability for this atrocity rests on the Democrat Party.
Jim Hunt was born in Guilford County.