People in Politics August 23, 2014 Print
People In Politics
Friday, 22 August 2014 09:02

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Races for seats on the North Carolina Supreme Court take the spotlight this week as Gov. Pat McCrory appoints two candidates to open seats, in effect making them the incumbents in the races. You'll hear Gov. McCrory's comments about why he's elevating sitting Justice Mark Martin to the Chief Justice seat being vacated by retiring Chief Justice Sarah Parker. You'll also hear other high-profile endorsers of Justice Martin, who also spoke at the appointment ceremony: former Chief Justice Burley Mitchell and current Justice Barbara Parker. Then host Donna Martinez delves into the politics of the appointment of Martin, as well as the subsequent appointment of Bob Hunter to fill Martin's empty seat, with Carolina Journal's Rick Henderson. The two discuss reaction from Martin's political opponent for the seat, Ola Lewis, as well as whether the "nonpartisan" approach to judicial elections is real considering that both major political parties endorse a slate of candidates. Then we turn to the latest developments in the U.S. Senate race, with both Kay Hagan and Thom Tillis up on the air with advertising. Martinez also talks with Tom Jensen of Public Policy Polling about new data showing Hagan still leads Tillis but her margin is shrinking. Tillis' big problem, says Jensen, is Libertarian Sean Haugh who is pulling 8 percent of the vote, though most of the Haugh voters say their second choice is Tillis. And finally, we hear from 4th District Democratic Congressman David Price, who speaks about illegal immigration and why he thinks House Republicans have shirked their responsibility to pass a comprehensive reform plan. 
 

Last Updated on Friday, 22 August 2014 09:04