A LOOK TOWARD NOVEMBER
- An Expanded Battleground: With fantastic Democratic candidates running in every single legislative district and the unprecedented support of Break the Majority, Republican leadership is being stretched thin. Democrats have looked beyond suburban Wake and Mecklenburg to target nearly 60 Senate and House races this cycle.
- Unprecedented Fundraising: North Carolina Democrats have a $4.5 million cash-on-hand advantage over the NC GOP while strong Democratic candidates continue to outraise their vulnerable opponents.
- Historic Investments in the Grassroots: NC Democrats and Break the Majority have launched one of the largest legislative field programs in the country with the goal of knocking on 1 million doors by Election Day.
- Democrats Have a Winning Message: While Republicans are stuck on defense running a tired playbook labeling every Democrat as “extreme” with a “radical agenda,” Democrats are looking ahead with a winning message on the issues that matter most to North Carolinians like public education and affordable health care.
- Republicans are Getting Desperate: GOP candidates are busy trying to distract from their missteps and shift blame on their poor records, while desperately trying anything that will help turn out their conservative base in the fall.
NO NEW CONGRESSIONAL MAPS … FOR NOW

CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES PICK UP SPEED
North Carolinians are ready for new leadership in Washington. With an expanded map and unprecedented enthusiasm from the Democratic grassroots, this year’s congressional contests are heating up in districts that haven’t been competitive for years.In NC’s seventh district, 538 recently increased Democratic candidate Dr. Kyle Horton’s chances of success from 40 to 1 odds to a 3 in 10 chance, spelling trouble for Republican incumbent David Rouzer.



TED BUDD TRIES TO WASH RECORD ON ACA CLEAN


TRUMP ADMIN SUBPOENAS NC VOTING RECORDS

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS STILL ON THE BALLOT
Last week, Republicans took a second stab at rewriting their deceptive constitutional amendments. This week, a three-judge panel ruled that the updated amendments can appear on the ballot in November.Any cosmetic changes legislative Republicans made don’t change the fact that these amendments remain an attempt to steamroll our constitution and mislead voters into doing the GOP’s dirty work:
- The ballot language for one amendment is so complicated you would need multiple PhDs to understand it.
- The other creates a 4-4 Board of Ethics aimed at creating partisan gridlockand insulating legislators from their own shady dealings.
ICYMI: MIDTERMS A REFERENDUM ON THE TRUMP ECONOMY

WHAT EDITORIAL BOARDS ARE SAYING
On constitutional amendments:
News & Record:
“These amendments were drafted in the dark, presented under a deadline, removed from full-throated debate, shoved on the ballot for you to consider. Why? Because their passage cedes to the legislature tools to execute more self-serving judgments without input from your representative. The only way to check this power play is for you to reject them all.”
Star News:
“Cooper is right; this is still a bald, partisan power play that would weaken state government, leaving it more venal and more vulnerable to corruption. Regardless of which party holds the executive office, we need to preserve a legitimate balance of power in state government. That is why Republican former governors — including Pat McCrory, who’s not exactly a big fan of the current governor — spoke out. If these two amendments ever do make it to the ballot, voters should reject them outright.”
Charlotte Observer:
“The two amendments at issue are both designed to take significant power away from the governor and give it to the legislature. Amassing power in one branch should concern voters whatever their political party, because checks and balances are essential to responsible government”
On Confederate monuments…
N&O:
“By mandating a statewide solution, legislators fueled discord instead of preempting it… There’s a clear path to a solution, and that’s for the legislature to restore the authority over the monuments to the communities that erected them.”
WRAL:
“While the actions by the General Assembly’s leadership that essentially commandeered every Confederate monument in a public space in the state may have been motivated by efforts to stir a political base, it has done little to effectively address real public concerns and help North Carolina step out of the muck of the past onto higher ground.”
TWEET OF THE WEEK
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