Carolina Politics Online

WASHINGTON — Rep. Patrick McHenry loaned $175,000 of his personal funds to his congressional campaign, a sign that the North Carolina Republican hasn’t raised as much money as he thinks he needs to win re-election.

“It’s nothing more than a sign that he’s willing to make a personal investment in his fight for good jobs and lower gas prices for North Carolina,” McHenry spokesman Brock McCleary said.

McClatchy

::cough:: bullshit! ::cough::

What it means is that McHenry is not happy with the current situation in his race.  He obviously feels he needs more money to beat Johnson than is what is at his disposal.  Johnson has been slowly catching up to McHenry in the polls.

Monday, July 21, 2008
Contact:  Brent Woodcox, Communications Director, 919-828-6423

Rangel Pays Big for Trial Lawyer Johnson’s Support of Higher Taxes on Middle Class Families N.Y. Congressman under investigation for ethics violation

RALEIGH-North Carolina Republican Party Chairman Linda Daves today called attention to the Federal Election Commission quarterly report of 10th District Democrat Congressional candidate and trial lawyer, Daniel Johnson.  Johnson’s report reveals that his biggest individual campaign contributor is New York Congressman Charlie Rangel, who has given $7,000 to Johnson.

Mr. Rangel is the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee which is responsible for establishing tax policy in this country.  As a freshman Democrat Congressman, Daniel Johnson can be expected to reciprocate Chairman Rangel’s financial generosity with votes in support of his tax agenda, which includes higher taxes on small businesses, middle class families, and retirement pensions.

“The last thing the families of Western North Carolina need is for Charlie Rangel and Daniel Johnson to enact job-killing tax hikes on small business employers and middle class workers.  Western North Carolina simply can not afford trial lawyer Daniel Johnson’s liberal policies,” Chairman Daves stated.

Additionally, Chairman Daves noted that Chairman Rangel recently admitted that he may have violated House ethics rules when he used his official stationery to solicit private donations for a foundation he is
building in honor of himself.  Rangel is accused of soliciting financial contributions from businesses with a large stake in the tax policies that his committee writes.  Even the liberal advocacy group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, is calling for an investigation of Chairman Rangel’s misconduct.  (Retter, Daphne, “Begging Rangel Cops to a Mail Dysfunction
<http://www.nypost.com/seven/07162008/news/nationalnews/_begging_rangel_
,” New York Post, July 16, 2008)

“By choosing to support corrupt D.C. politicians like Charlie Rangel, Daniel Johnson is already making it painfully clear that he does not represent the values of Western North Carolina families,” Chairman Daves concluded.

###

Daniel Johnson, Democratic nominee for the 10th Congressional District, is opening his campaign office tomorrow, June 12th at 1333 1st Ave SW in Hickory.  Festivities will be from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM.

The Democrat challenging Republican U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry said Thursday that a string of recent GOP defeats could mean North Carolina’s 10th District is in play this fall.

“Districts that have long been Republican strongholds are coming into play,” Daniel Johnson told Charlotte’s Uptown Democratic Forum. “We’ve got the right opponent in the right year.”

Charlotte Observer

He is correct. The Republican brand is tarnished all across the country right now. No Republican held seat is safe this year and these last three special elections in strong Republicans district have proven that.

For immediate release: May 7, 2008

As we all know the North Carolina primary is coming up on Tuesday and there are lots of races across the state for voters to decide. I am going to weigh in on a few here. Note, I am giving my opinion on who I think will win, not necessarily who I think is the best candidate or would like to see win.

I have already given my opinion on how I think the 11th Congressional Republican Primary will turn out.

In the Lieutenant Governor’s race there are primaries on both sides of the aisle. The Republican race is easy to call. Robert Pittenger has it locked up, end of story. The Democratic race is going to be a little more tight, but I think Walter Dalton is going to prevail by about 7 points, with Dellinger finishing second.

There are primaries on both sides in the 10th Congressional District as well. On the Democratic side I believe that Daniel Johnson will prevail over Ivester quite handily. On the GOP side, I think McHenry will win by a large margin. I think Sigmon’s ad about the Iraq attack after McHenry ran his video was a bit much for people to swallow and may have backfired on him. I think people viewed it as a cheap and dirty shot. I guess we’ll see on Tuesday. McHenry’s internals show him winning in a landslide. I don’t foresee as bad of a bloodbath as McHenry says it will be, but it won’t be a close race.

The Third Congressional District is going to be closer than people think, in my opinion. I predict that Walter Jones will triumph in the end, but not by a landslide margin. I think most Republicans in the district hold him in decent to high regards. I don’t feel that McLaughlin hitting Jones on his reversal of the war is a winning issue. The majority of Americans have grown tired of Iraq and that includes Republicans. Despite the high proportion of military families in the district, I don’t see Jones in much danger. People are also assuming that military families are automatically dedicated to the continued job in Iraq and that’s not a horse I would bet my money on.

In the U.S. Senate race Kay Hagan is going to trounce Jim Neal. That’s all I have to say about that.

Regarding the Presidential race, Barack Obama is going to win, but I don’t think he’ll break a ten point spread against Clinton. She has been gaining ground on him due to two things: her win in Pennsylvania and the continued media focus on Jeremiah Wright.

And now for the big one, the gubernatorial race. Bev Perdue wins the Democratic nomination hands down. Throughout the campaign she has generally lead Richard Moore, but there have been a few times that he has caught up with her in the polls. However, I think his sleazy attack ad about her husband selling Confederate memorabilia in his stores hasn’t played well with the public and it’s going to cost any chance he may have had.

On the Republican side, this is going to be close. While it’s technically a four man race, only Fred Smith and Pat McCrory are viable contenders on Tuesday. I think McCrory is going to pull this out, but not by much. It may not be enough for him to avoid a runoff and if that’s the case I think the following runoff election will favor Smith.

So there you have it. Tuesday awaits!

Daniel Johnson says he’s not a “natural-born politician,” but he is committed to public service and honest, efficient government.

A conservative Democrat who believes in a balanced federal budget and wants to end wasteful spending by Washington politicians, Johnson hopes to get his chance to make a difference.

He’s running for the U.S. Congress, a seat currently held by Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-Cherryville. A Democrat, Johnson will face Steve Ivester of Cleveland County in the May 6 primary.

News@Norman

I would love to see Johnson pull this off. I can’t stand McHenry and would like for nothing more than to see him bounced out of Washington. Johnson sounds like he’d be a no nonsense guy in D.C. and he’s right; I think people are tired of all of the bullshit in the Beltway. And don’t forget, he’s a real American hero:

In 1988. Ensign Johnson’s ship, the U.S.S. Blue Ridge, was being pulled from port by a tugboat in Pusan, South Korea, when he spotted one of his men in trouble.

Seaman Steven Wright was working the large cables that connected the tugboat to the ship and had become entangled. The tug began pulling Wright toward the ship’s side, something that would have ripped him apart.

Seven other personnel were on the scene, but only Johnson jumped to the seaman’s aid. As he worked to free the cable from Wright’s leg, his own legs got caught. Both men survived, but Johnson lost one finger and both legs below the knee.

This district tilts so heavily Republican, though. It’s going to be quite an uphill battle. Come on 10th District, do the right thing! Give this guy a chance.

You can donate to Johnson’s campaign here.

Steve Ivester, Democratic candidate for North Carolina’s Tenth Congressional District made a blog post concerning the illegal immigration problem over at BlueNC:

Many Republicans, following the style of Carl Rove, claim that Democrats are soft on illegal immigration. In fact the owners of our larger farms and factories (many but not all Republican) are the real beneficiaries of this illegitimate labor force. It can be manipulated and exploited through careless direct hires or contrived sub-contract arrangements. However, working people (many, but not all, Democrat) are the ones who have been most hurt. As I have traveled the district during the last twelve months meeting and talking to thousands of people, I am finding many Democrats who are angry and vocal about this issue. I am also finding businessmen, farmers, and others who fear over-reaction. Democrats are not soft on Illegal Immigration, and Republicans are not the only defenders of our liberty.

Most politicians either dodge this issue entirely or take over-blown, un-realistic, but popular, hard-line stands such as the one Mr. McHenry laid out in his mailer. They agitate people’s concerns but do little to find realistic solutions.

We do not need a Congressman in Washington who panders to our whims or exploit our fears. We need someone who knows the District and leads by a combination of consensus and vision (the art of the possible). I am such a person and invite you to check out my ideas, involvement in the life of my District and related experience on many issues at www.steveivester.com

BlueNC

I recommend you check out his Web site. He is a centrist Democrat and seems to have a fairly common sense approach to the issues. He has a primary battle first with Daniel Johnson, if he wins that election he’ll presumably go on to battle McHenry for his seat in November. I say presumably because McHenry also has a primary challenger. This is a very Republican district so I don’t know what the odds are of either Democrat defeating McHenry, but McHenry is a sleaze so maybe with their centrist stances it’s possible. I would be quite pleased to see McHenry replaced.

There is going to be a lot of excitement to keep watch over in the Tenth this year.

Daniel Johnson says he’s gone where no Democrat has gone before.

The former prosecutor from Hickory has raised $120,000 to run against Rep. Patrick McHenry, a Republican from Cherryville.

In McHenry’s two earlier congressional bids, his Democratic challengers raised $23,000 and $11,000 for the entire year, according to Federal Election Commission reports.

Johnson plans to file his two-month tally with the FEC today, said his campaign manager, Lauren Moore.

Moore said all the money was raised from individual donors, most of it in North Carolina, at small gatherings hosted by friends.

The Charlotte Observer

I said when he first announced that this guy was good and he has a serious shot at unseating McHenry. While running as a Democrat, he is molding his campaign more into an independent bid. His race reminds me much of Jim Ogonowski’s race last year in a special election to fill the vacancy of the Fifth Congressional District in Massachusetts. Ogonowski is a Republican who ran against Democrat Niki Tsongas. Despite the district’s heavy Democratic tilt, Ogonowski still managed to get 45% of the vote and just narrowly lost to Tsongas by running on a platform making him independent of the party apparatus and a message that Washington was broke. It resonated.

A large spike in donations like that over previous challengers certainly signals Johnson’s growing popularity among the electorate. I have a feeling this will continue and McHenry is going to have to bust his ass to keep this seat, if that’s even possible. If I lived in the 10th, I’d have no problem giving Johnson my vote.

Pledging to represent the values of North Carolina with character and integrity, Daniel Johnson announced today that he is running to represent North Carolina’s 10th Congressional District in the United States Congress.

“Running for Congress is a continuation of my service to America and the people of North Carolina,” said Johnson. “I look around the area I grew up in, and see people struggling with keeping their jobs, affording their health care and just making ends meet. It is time for a new brand of leadership – one that the people of this district can be proud of. I have the character and the experience needed to be an effective representative for my state.”

Daniel Johnson served in the United States Navy from 1998-2000, receiving the Navy Marine Corps Medal, the Navy’s highest peacetime award for heroism. For the past three years, Daniel Johnson served as an assistant district attorney in North Carolina. As a prosecutor, he began by prosecuting charges of DWI and other misdemeanors and rose to prosecute a wide range of felony cases that included drug trafficking, robbery, and murder.

North Carolina Democratic Party

Johnson is a true hero in that in 1999 he saved a crewmate’s life. As a result of that incident both of his legs had to be amputated from the knee down. He could be a strong challenger to McHenry