Forget that there was a live debate between two of the three candidates for governor of North Carolina last night. Here’s the take-away quote for the evening :
“I was not in the last eight years part of anybody’s elite circle.”
That is what Bev Perdue told reporters after the debate, desperately trying to undo Pat McCrory’s linkage of her time in public office in Raleigh to Raleigh’s various scandals and ineptitudes. Perdue willingly told voters that, contrary to the campaign message she has tried to hammer home, she has been completely ineffectual and powerless as an elected leader to statewide office. Coming on top of a weak and disjointed debate performance, Perdue’s declaration was a staggering gaffe, one that must shake all but the most die-hard of her supporters.
The only saving grace for the Democratic candidate is that Libertarian Mike Munger was not invited to participate in the debate. Had he been, Perdue would have easily been the third-worst debater out of a three-person field, a revelation for some viewers who know Bev only via her TV ads.
