He was a political power broker who helped shape NC’s reputation for moderation
N&O  // Rob Christensen // July 16, 2018
Summary: Bert L. Bennett Jr., who for 40 years was North Carolina’s most important Democratic Party power broker helping shape the state’s reputation for moderation, died Monday at age 97 in Pfafftown. Bennett, a Winston-Salem businessman, used his extensive statewide network to elevate Democrats Terry Sanford and Jim Hunt to the governor’s office.  At a time of growing unrest about integration in the South, Bennett championed candidates who pushed for racial reconciliation and who supported the advancement of public education. Vice President Hubert Humphrey once called him “the Lord God Almighty of politics” in North Carolina.

Midterms

Cumberland County sets early voting times and places
Fayetteville Observer // Paul Woolverton // July 16, 2018
Summary: The Cumberland County Board of Elections last week set the early voting hours and locations for this year’s general election, Elections Director Terri Robertson said. Voters will be able to cast their ballots early over an 18-day period, from Oct. 17 through Nov. 3. Early voting will be held at four locations: The Board of Elections office at 227 Fountainhead Lane in southeast Fayetteville; the North Regional branch of the Cumberland County Public Library at 855 McArthur Road in northeast Fayetteville; Cliffdale Recreation Center at 6404 Cliffdale Road in western Fayetteville and the Hope Mills Recreation Center at 5766 Rockfish Road south of Fayetteville. The early voting hours at the Board of Elections office are different than the hours at the other three locations. Voting hours at the Board of Elections office will be 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays starting Oct. 17. It also will be open for voting on Nov. 3, the final Saturday before the election, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. It will not be open on any other Saturday during the early voting period. The early voting hours at the Hope Mills Recreation Center, the Cliffdale Recreation Center and the North Regional library will be 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays starting Oct. 17. They also will have early voting on two Saturdays: From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Oct. 27, and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Nov. 3.

Gaston’s early voting schedule could be decided Tuesday
Gaston Gazette //Dasheill Coleman // July 16, 2018
Summary: The early voting process in North Carolina will change ahead of this year’s general election, and the public has the chance to weigh in Tuesday on what that means for Gaston County. The county’s Board of Elections will meet at noon Tuesday at its 410 W. Franklin Blvd. office to decide when people can vote early on weekends. There will be a period for public comment before votes are taken. At issue is new legislation that requires all early voting locations to be open the same amount of time, mandates those hours on weekdays, and leaves weekend hours up to local authorities. During the 17-day early voting period across the state, voting sites must be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday. “The General Assembly kind of tied our hands,” said Gaston County Board of Elections Director Adam Ragan. “Saturdays and Sundays are going to be the options — if the board wants to have Sunday voting vs. additional Saturday voting. We’re pretty much set in stone as far as Monday through Friday.” The early-voting period lasts from Oct. 17 to Nov. 3, and Election Day itself is Nov. 6. While weekend hours can be decided by the board, those hours must be the same at each of the three one-stop voting sites. The board will vote on two plans Tuesday. Under one plan, the sites would be open for seven hours on Saturday, Oct. 27; four hours Sunday, Oct. 28 and six hours on Saturday, Nov. 3. Under the second plan, there would be an additional Saturday for voters but no Sunday hours. There would be four hours Oct. 20, seven hours Oct. 27 and five hours Nov. 3.

Why Democrats shouldn’t try to out-Trump Trump
N&O // Gary Pearce // July 16, 2018
Summary: Sometimes Carter Wrenn and I get asked to speak about the 1984 Hunt-Helms Senate race. Some people in the audience weren’t even born then. For them, it’s like going to the Dinosaur Museum — and the dinosaurs come out and talk. Because my side lost, I’m often asked what was the biggest lesson I learned. That’s easy, and it’s not what people seem to expect, given all the attention to the negative ads and tough attacks both campaigns dished out. My lesson was — and is: The most powerful weapon in politics is a positive message. In 1984 our mistake was making the race about what a terrible, awful person Helms was. We forgot to make the case that Hunt could do more for North Carolina. We didn’t make the same mistake when Hunt ran again for governor in 1992 and 1996.

Where Is The Uproar Over Charlotte's #RNC2020 Bid Coming From?
Old North State Politics // Michael Bitzer // July 16, 2018
Summary: With the pending decision by the Charlotte City Council on whether to formalize the bid for hosting the Republican National Committee's 2020 Presidential Nominating Convention causing a great deal of controversy in the Queen City, it might be good to step back and see the transition that Charlotte has undergone, and continues to do so, in its political behavior and how its politics, especially at the presidential level, is playing out.

NC-9

Shocking survey says Democrat McCready leads 9th District GOP House candidate Harris by 7 points
Fayetteville Observer // Paul Woolverton // July 15, 2018
Summary: A survey published last week said Republican Congressional candidate Mark Harris is running seven points behind Democratic candidate Dan McCready in the 9th Congressional District. The survey result is surprising because the 9th District, which runs from Charlotte to Fayetteville and Bladen County, was designed by the Republican-controlled legislature to favor Republican candidates. Instead, the survey says, 43 percent of the district’s voters would vote for McCready while only 36 percent would vote for Harris. It has 3 percent backing Libertarian candidate Jeff Scott. “This race has all the indications of being a nail-biter into November, but Republicans should be concerned with a negative 7-point spread in a district that has an R+7 rating,” wrote Donald Bryson, president of the Raleigh-based North Carolina Civitas think tank and public policy organization. Civitas usually takes a conservative position on public policy matters.

NC-13

Letter: Why I support Kathy Manning
Salisbury Post // Opinion // July 16, 2018
Summary: I support Kathy Manning because she will address the challenges facing Salisbury and the 13th District. Kathy is for commonsense gun laws. Kathy is for improving the relevance of education in the global market. Kathy is determined to close the revolving door of recidivism. Kathy will focus on the pandemic of drug addiction with treatment.

NC Education 

Review Worth Sharing Identifies Flaws in NC Voucher Evaluation
NEPC // Newsletter // July 12, 2018
Summary: An evaluation of an education program typically gives some information about whether or not a program is working. But a recent evaluation of North Carolina’s school voucher program is so flawed methodologically that it fails to explain whether the state’s Opportunity Scholarships help or harm a student’s education, according to a review by Kris Nordstrom, an education policy consultant on the Education and Law Project at the North Carolina Justice Center, a social justice-focused research and advocacy organization. Nordstrom’s review is part of a new NEPC feature called Reviews Worth Sharing, which are not commissioned or edited by NEPC but that we believe contribute to our goal of helping policymakers, reporters, and others assess the social science merit of reports and judge their value in guiding policy. The views and conclusions addressed belong entirely to the author.

Gov. Cooper appoints Representative Graig Meyer to Southern Regional Education Board
EdNC // Graig Meyer // July 13, 2018
Summary: Governor Cooper announced his nominations and appointments to 17 boards, commissions, and councils last week, naming Rep. Graig Meyer (D-Orange) to a seat on the Southern Regional Education Board. In addition to his appointment as a board member of the SREB, Meyer will also serve on the Legislative Advisory Council of the organization. The Southern Regional Education Board is the nation’s first regional interstate compact for education, created in 1948 by Southern governors and legislators who recognized the link between education and economic vitality.  The SREB is made up of 16 member states, including Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia, and continues its focus on critical issues that can help to improve the quality of life by advancing public education. The Southern Regional Education Board focuses on what works in both policy and practice. SREB brings together member states to forge consensus and work together on initiatives that would not be possible alone.

The States Are Now the Best Route to Gerrymandering Reform
American Prospect // Sam Wang, Ben Williams, Rick Ober // July 16, 2018
Summary: It's been a tough few weeks for gerrymandering reform. Two decisions in the closing days of the Supreme Court’s term, Gill v. Whitford and Abbott v. Perez, have raised barriers to proving claims of gerrymandering. With the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy, those barriers will only worsen. The writing is on the wall: It's time for trench warfare.  In Gill, a case concerning partisan gerrymandering in Wisconsin, the Court refused to address the legal theory that voters with a shared political affiliation can be harmed by a statewide pattern of baroque districting. Despite being presented with easy and clear mathematical tests to calculate the statewide impact of partisan gerrymandering, the Court insisted on a district-by-district analysis. Unfortunately, this piecemeal approach opens the risk of biased or incomplete remedies. Then, in Abbott, which concerned racial gerrymandering in Texas, the Court raised the bar dramatically on what it would take to prove discriminatory intent. Together, these two rulings are major setbacks for those who wanted the Court to limit gerrymandering.

RNC 2020 

Charlotte council gives blessing for city to host GOP convention
WRAL // Staff // July 16, 2018
Summary: The Charlotte City Council has voted 6-5 to support the city's bid to host the 2020 Republican National Convention. The GOP is expected to choose between Charlotte and Las Vegas later this week.

Trump Russia and Associated Scandals

Donald Trump’s disgraceful bow to Russia
N&O //  Editorial Board //  July 16, 2018
Summary: Donald Trump’s meeting Monday with Russian president Vladimir Putin was historic in all the wrong ways. It featured an American president siding with an enemy of the U.S. over his administration and intelligence officials. It was the first time in memory a president was this deferential, this weak, in the presence of an adversary.  If there was a bright side, it’s this: It might be the only way for some Americans to understand just how alarmed they should be about their president’s perspective on Russia. What did America see in one incredible news conference Monday?

Editorial: Astonishing! Trump stands up for Putin, fails to defend USA
WRAL  // CBC Opinion // July  17, 2018
Summary:  Watch the simple and direct questions from a reporter to President Donald Trump during a news conference in Helsinki with Russian President Vladimir Putin. REPORTER: “Just now, President Putin denied having anything to do with the election year interference in 2016. …My first question for you sir is: Who do you believe? My second question is: Would you now, with the whole world watching, tell president Putin that you denounce what happened in 2016 and would you warn him to never do it again?” Astonishingly, a president of the United States failed to answer either question. He did suggest he believed Putin and failed to stand up for the United States. It is an important piece of history. You must see it and, unfortunately, believe it.

What Do You Do Now, US National Security Leaders?
Defense One // Kevin Baron // July 16, 2018
Summary: It’s over. The charade is over. President Donald Trump stood next to Russian President Vladimir Putin and said he believed the former KGB leader, and not the U.S. intelligence and law-enforcement communities, that Russia did not and does not interfere with American elections, including his own in 2016. “The Russian state has never interfered and is never going to interfere with into internal American affairs, including election process,” Putin said. Trump agreed. In a Helsinki press conference for the ages, Trump sided with the former KGB colonel against the United States of America over and over. On spying. On Syria. On military relations. On camera. On the record. It was so pointed that about two hours after the press conference Trump’s own Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats issued a defensive statement against his boss. “The role of the Intelligence Community is to provide the best information and fact-based assessments possible for the president and policymakers. We have been clear in our assessments of Russian meddling in the 2016 election and their ongoing, pervasive efforts to undermine our democracy, and we will continue to provide unvarnished and objective intelligence in support of our national security.” So what do you do, now? If you are an intelligence officer, a spy, an analyst, a Pentagon official, a diplomat, a general, admiral, senator, or congressman, what do you do now? For some appalled members of Congress, the condemnation came swiftly.

Trump’s wet kiss to Putin seals a new world order
Politico // Christopher Cadelago // July 16, 2018
Summary: President Donald Trump cast his meeting Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin as a step “towards a brighter future.” But the global community had a different assessment: the summit in Helsinki signaled the manifestation of a new world order. As Trump decamped from his weeklong trip to Europe, he was holding up America’s friends as its “foes,” and presenting Russia, the former superpower scorned by his predecessor as a fading regional player, as significant enough to be in competition with the U.S. Trump, during a surreal joint news conference following the meeting, showed deference to Putin by repeatedly refusing to criticize the Russian president, noting that his description of him as a “competitor” was meant purely as a compliment. At another point, Trump stepped in to answer a pointed question directed at Putin, only days after special counsel Robert Mueller indicted a dozen Russian intelligence agents for allegedly hacking the Democratic National Committee and his 2016 opponent Hillary Clinton’s campaign to help Trump win the contest. Trump told reporters that while he has “great confidence” in U.S. intelligence officials, “President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial today.”

Republicans Call Trump Summit Remarks ‘Shameful’ and ‘Bizarre’
Bloomberg // Steven T. Dennis, Billy House // July 16, 2018
Summary: A growing number of Republican lawmakers harshly criticized President Donald Trump’s performance at a Monday news conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin, with House Speaker Paul Ryan saying that Russia must be held accountable for meddling in the 2016 election. Trump’s strongest GOP critics were those who have faulted the president in the past. A handful of Republicans defended the president’s remarks, made after the two leaders met in Helsinki. Senator John McCain, an Arizona Republican, said Trump’s comments represented “one of the most disgraceful performances by an American president in memory” and that “no prior president has ever abased himself more abjectly before a tyrant.” “The damage inflicted by President Trump’s naivete, egotism, false equivalence, and sympathy for autocrats is difficult to calculate,” McCain said in a statement. “But it is clear that the summit in Helsinki was a tragic mistake.”

Burr says Trump must recognize Putin’s denials as lies; Republicans pounce on president
N&O // Brian Murphy // July 16, 2018
Summary: Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr defended the intelligence community’s conclusions about Russian influence in the 2016 election, defying President Donald Trump, who earlier Monday indicated he believed Vladimir Putin’s denials over U.S. evidence. Trump met the Russian president in Helsinki, Finland, for a one-day summit. In a press conference after their meetings, Trump seemed to side with Putin, who denied that Russia had meddled in the 2016 election.

NC leaders react to Trump's meeting with Putin
Spectrum News // Staff // July 16, 2018
Summary: President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin met one-on-one at a summit in Finland. The summit comes days after the U.S. Justice Department indicted 12 Russian nationals for their alleged roles in interfering in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Here's how North Carolina leaders are reacting to the meeting and subsequent press conference that followed:

U.S. officials charge D.C. resident with acting as illegal Kremlin agent
Politico // Josh Meyer // July 16, 2018
Summary: Federal authorities on Monday charged a Russian citizen living in Washington, D.C. with conspiracy to act as an illegal agent of the Russian government, including attempting to establish "back-channel" relationships with U.S. officials on behalf of the Kremlin, the Justice Department said. Mariia Butina, 29, was arrested Sunday and made her initial appearance Monday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah Robinson in Washington. Butina was ordered to be held pending a hearing set for Wednesday. U.S. officials allege that Butina, while attending college in Washington, worked from 2015 until at least February 2017 as a Kremlin agent under the direction of a high-level official in the Russian government and Russian central bank, according to an FBI affidavit in support of the complaint. Although the complaint does not name him, it appears to refer to Alexander Torshin, an associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin and longtime supporter of the National Rifle Association who reportedly also has ties to Russian security services and organized crime figures.

Apple, Google cashed in on Pizzagate-offshoot conspiracy app
NBC News // Ben Collins, Brandy Zadrozny // July 16, 2018
Summary: An app promoting a conspiracy theory featuring Hillary Clinton and a child sex ring lingered at the top of Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store for months, with both tech giants receiving a cut of the revenue in the process. The app, called “QDrops,” sends alerts about a conspiracy theory called Qanon, an offshoot of the “pizzagate” fiction that claimed Clinton was running a child sex trafficking ring out of the basement of a Washington pizza shop that didn’t even have a basement. Like many conspiracy theories, Qanon got its start on 4chan, an anonymous posting site that is a seedbed for extreme thought and a large number of online subcultures. A group of believers in Tucson, Arizona, have been arguing with police over the last month at an abandoned homeless encampment, claiming with no evidence that the site was used as a child sex trafficking camp. In June, an armed Q follower blocked an entrance to the Hoover Dam with his vehicle. At recent Trump rallies, families and children have been pictured wearing Qanon merchandise. Billboards promoting websites selling Qanon apparel and other items have sprouted up in Georgia and Oklahoma. QDrops was built by a husband and wife team out of North Carolina, whose dedication to the Q cause is unknown.

Thom Tillis

Campaign Watchdog Wants Investigation of NRA Senate Donations
Courthouse News Service // Brad Kutner // July 16, 2018
Summary: A campaign watchdog group is pressing the Federal Election Commission to investigate how the National Rifle Association spent money in relation to four past senatoral campaigns. In  a complaint filed with the FEC Monday morning, the Campaign Legal Center alleged the National Rifle Association used a shell company to funnel money into campaign ads while another straw company took in money and acted as a “common vendor” for the four campaigns. The Center claims the scheme involved two separate NRA entities: the National Rifle Association of America Political Victory Fund and the National Rifle Association of America Institute for Legislative.