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Veterans and newcomers in politics

I dropped by the election office in the old courthouse just after noon and found Katie Dorsett and Linda Shaw sitting side by side waiting to file for re-election.

Now there is a pair of veteran pols for you. Both could not be more gracious, which is part of the secret of their success in elected office.

Moments later, a young man came in to launch his first campaign for public office. He's 27-year-old Jon Hardister, a Republican running for the N.C. House of Representatives in District 57. The seat is held by Democrat Pricey Harrison.

Hardister will have his work cut out for him. Harrison has been an effective legislator and, as Mark reported Sunday, she began 2010 with a staggering $108,000 in her campaign fund.

But this promises to be a tough year for Democrats in North Carolina as it is nationally. Democrats have been in charge of state government here for quite a while, and they certainly can't claim things are going very well. So, we'll see.

Of course, Hardister has to introduce himself to voters and make the case that he's a viable alternative. He'll have to earn the trust of the people who live in his district.

On that score, he'd be well advised to learn a few things from the two (much) older candidates just ahead of him in line today, Sen. Dorsett and Commissioner Shaw.

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Posted by Doug Clark on Monday, February 8, 2010 at 1:14 pm

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jonfire

February 9, 2010 - 10:10 pm EST

It's always interesting to read a comment like "an effective legislator". I guess that you consider an effective legislator one who continually votes to increase taxes, increase regulations, and limit personal freedom. Pricey Harrison tows the liberal Democratic line. In that sense she is effective in creating a larger government yoke over the citizens of North Carolina. I'm sure Mike Easley, Tony Rand, Jim Black, Mike Decker, (What do they have in common?)Marc Basnight, and Bev Perdue have loved having her in their pocket. Civitas Action however ranks her slightly different than you Doug. She may survive the next election, but I hope we can put some common sense back in our legislature and summarily dismiss her.

Doug

February 10, 2010 - 8:23 am EST

You're wrong about my definition of an effective legislator. An effective legislator is one who is good at achieving her goals. I didn't pass any judgment on the value of those goals. Based on Sunday's basketball game, I would say that Maryland point guard Greivas Vasquez is an effective player -- even though I hated what he did to the Tar Heels.

I would say this about Pricey Harrison -- I seriously doubt she is in the pocket of Marc Basnight and Bev Perdue (she's not even in the same chamber as Basnight, who runs the Senate. She's very independent. I recall she was the first Democrat to speak out against Jim Black, and one of the few to resist the pressure to vote for the lottery.

That said, she certainly is a liberal. A conservative challenger, if he runs an effective campaign and appears to be a credible candidate, might give her a run for her money.

jonfire

February 10, 2010 - 8:23 pm EST

I will concede effectiveness base upon your criteria. I will respectfully disagree regarding her independence. And yes she is not in the same chamber as Basnight, but I did not intimate that she was; only that she towed the party line, which has resulted in a multitude of bad legislation, bad public policy, and shackled this state with a bloated budget.

Doug

February 11, 2010 - 10:17 am EST

I agree that any legislator's voting record and the effect of legislative policies are issues that ought to be raised during a campaign.

"Independence," however, does not mean that a legislator has to disagree with her party or its leaders. It means she makes decisions unbound by obligations to them. If a legislator agrees with her party and leaders, it just means she's chosen the party and leaders that are right for her.

If a Republican were to win Pricey Harrison's seat, would he have to side with the Democrats on some issues to demonstrate his "independence" from the Republican Party and its legislative leaders? Certainly not.