Stark Contrast with McCrory

Pat McCrory’s first TV commercial of the general election continues his pattern of making untruthful claims about Bev Perdue.

Bev Perdue has consistently said that she supports offshore drilling, urging oil companies to use some of their record profits to immediately begin drilling in the untapped 68-million acres currently under lease, almost half of which are located offshore.

Bev Perdue has consistently supported drilling off America’s coast:

• “Well I’m not against offshore drilling per se… you know we’ve got 68 million acres that are already under lease in America right now, and if oil companies would start drilling there right this very minute then the question of what comes about from drilling would be answered.” [WWNC 570AM in Asheville, 8/8/08]

Includes contributions from 95 counties and 1,765 first-time donors

The Bev Perdue campaign reported raising $2,342,221.64 during the second quarter 2008 reporting period, with $1,418,217.60 cash on hand as of June 30. The campaign finance report covers the period from April 20 – June 30.

Highlights include:

• 3,002 individual donors this quarter (more than 10,000 overall)
• More than 1,500 first time donors, totaling more than $830,000
• Women account for more than half of all 2nd quarter donors
• $128,620 from Mecklenburg County
• More than $800,000 from women donors
• Donations from 95 different counties this quarter, and all 100 overall

In major speech, Perdue challenges McCrory support for vouchers, repeal of lottery

ASHEVILLE -- In a speech to the NC Association of School Administrators and Western Region Education Service Alliance's Summer Leadership Conference, Bev Perdue today challenged Pat McCrory's education positions that could create a $1.2 billion hole annually in North Carolina's education budget.

Citing McCrory's support for private school vouchers and repeal of the Education Lottery, Perdue said, "There are real differences between my opponent and myself on how to build a world class education system here in North Carolina... the combination of vouchers and the elimination of the lottery could blow a yearly billion dollar hole in the education budget. We can't afford that."

In case you missed it, Bev Perdue and Pat McCrory met for the first general election debate on Saturday, and viewers were able to see clear differences when it comes to our kids’ education.

The headline from the Charlotte Observer said it all: "McCrory and Perdue differ on vouchers," as Bev strongly declared her opposition to private school vouchers, which would take millions of dollars out of our public schools.

This was just the first of five scheduled debates, more than in any modern gubernatorial election in North Carolina, and we’re sure to see more sharp distinctions between the candidates each time.

Click here to watch the full debate.

Raleigh News and Observer

Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue and state Treasurer Richard Moore, the two leading candidates for the 2008 Democratic nomination for governor, have built campaign war chests totaling $8.4 million. But they've been tapping different sources for their fundraising, and the race is shaping up as an unusual one: Wall Street versus the good old boys. Perdue, who has yet to formally announce her candidacy, has raised $4.2 million so far and had $3.4 million on hand as of June 30, according to filings with the State Board of Elections. And the Democratic money dwarfs the funds raised by the three Republican gubernatorial candidates: Salisbury lawyer Bill Graham, former N.C. Supreme Court Justice Bob Orr and Sen. Fred Smith. Combined, the three have raised $486,000.