by John Plecnik
July 7, 2004
Wakeup Republicans!! North Carolina’s 4th congressional district is back in play. Contrary to popular belief, the Triangle is not a lock for tenured Duke professor, Rep. David Price (NC-04). While Duke’s liberalism might rival that of Harvard and Yale, central North Carolina is not New England. Republicans have carried the 4th district before. N.C. Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Cobey won the seat during the days of Reagan. David Price even lost his reelection bid back in 1994.
With all due respect, I disagree with the conclusion of famed conservative columnist John Hood, that only North Carolina’s 8th and 13th districts will boast competitive races. In fact, I am skeptical of Hood’s supposition that Rep. Robin Hayes (NC-08) might face a serious challenge from either of his likely opponents. The 4th district is showing signs of an upset and the contest brewing in Durham is the one to watch.
The clear frontrunner for the Republican nomination against David Price is Robert E. "Whit" Whitfield. Born and raised in Durham, Whitfield attended Durham city schools. after serving in Vietnam, he earned his law degree from North Carolina Central University. To date, Whitfield has practiced law in the area for over 26 years.
Well educated and well known, "Whit" has proven to be a prodigious campaigner. Graced with the eloquence of a Southern lawyer, he has distinguished himself in debate and drawn considerable coverage from his speeches. Whitfield has already raised and spent substantial sums–remaining the only Republican in the race to launch a radio or television ad campaign. Extraordinarily enough, Whitfield’s performance is attracting attention–and dollars–from out-of-state. Most notably, Rep. Ron Paul (TX-14) granted Whitfield his personal endorsement with a thousand dollar donation.
Much to the chagrin of his floundering opponents, the Duke College Republicans also added their endorsement to Whitfield’s growing base of support. In the interest of full disclosure, I presented the award and the following is a link to video of my endorsement speech: http://www.whitforcongress.com/press050804.html.
as impressive as Whitfield’s candidacy has been thus far, the real reason why the 4th district is contestable flows from Price’s abysmal record in congress. While a good liberal might well be unbeatable this election year, Price has neglected his constituency to the point of abandonment. From 1999 to 2002, Price was the primary sponsor of a paltry 4 bills. The congressman has recently tried to increase his legislative activity, but has accomplished little over his lackluster career. a good liberal pulls in the pork and brings home the bacon. Price has done neither.
John Plecnik is a twenty-year-old law student at Duke University and Executive Editor of The Devil’s advocate. as Policy advisor for the Duke Chapter, John authored the first-ever statewide platform for the North Carolina Federation of College Republicans.
John Plecnik is a 20-year-old law student at Duke University and Executive Editor of The Devil’s advocate. as Policy advisor for the Duke Chapter, John authored the first-ever statewide platform for the North Carolina Federation of College Republicans.
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