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Gov. Stein to deliver his first State of State address

Gov. Stein to deliver his first State of State address

Yahoo12-03-2025
North Carolina Governor Josh Stein is delivering his first State of the State address Wednesday night.
Gov. Stein will lay out his plans for the next two years from the N.C. Legislative Building in Raleigh.
ALSO READ: Gov. Stein visits western NC after Senate approves round of Helene disaster relief
One honored guest expected at Wednesday night's address is from Mecklenburg County.
Debbie Dalton lost her son, Hunter, to a fentanyl overdose in 2016. Since then, she's founded the The Hunter Dalton HDLife Foundation.
The foundation provides education and resources to help prevent drug use.
Following Stein's address, N.C. House Speaker Destin Hall will offer the Republican Party's response.
You can watch the governor's address on wsoctv.com, or our free WSOC-TV App, beginning at 7 p.m.
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Jay Leno Says Today's Late-Night Hosts ‘Alienate' Half the Audience With Political Jokes ‘Cozying Up to One Side': ‘I Don't Think Anybody Wants to Hear a Lecture'
Jay Leno Says Today's Late-Night Hosts ‘Alienate' Half the Audience With Political Jokes ‘Cozying Up to One Side': ‘I Don't Think Anybody Wants to Hear a Lecture'

Yahoo

time32 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Jay Leno Says Today's Late-Night Hosts ‘Alienate' Half the Audience With Political Jokes ‘Cozying Up to One Side': ‘I Don't Think Anybody Wants to Hear a Lecture'

Jay Leno believes late-night TV comedians have become too politicized — and that they risk losing half the viewing audience by 'cozying up to one side or the other.' 'To me, I like to think that people come to a comedy show to kind of get away from things, you know, the pressures of life, whatever it might be,' Leno said in a recent interview with David Trulio, president and CEO of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute. 'Now you have to be content with half the audience because you have to give your opinion.' More from Variety Jay Leno Says Jimmy Kimmel 'Humiliated Me' During 2010 'Tonight Show' Interview and 'I Let It Happen. I Didn't Edit It. It Was My Mistake.' Jay Leno Says Election Day Was 'Fair' and 'It Was Honest' After Trump Win: 'It Was a Great Day For Democracy' Jay Leno Recovering From Motorcycle Accident, Two Months After Suffering Serious Burns: Report Leno didn't name names. But the current roster of late-night hosts — Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel, Jon Stewart, John Oliver, Seth Meyers and more — has routinely mocked President Trump and the MAGA movement. To be fair, they have also opportunistically lampooned Democrats. Leno's impression is that late-night TV these days skews toward specific political viewpoints. 'I love political humor, don't get me wrong,' the late-night veteran told Trulio. 'But it's just what happens when people wind up cozying too much to one side or the other.' Leno asked rhetorically, 'Why shoot for just half an audience all the time? You know, why not try to get the whole. I mean, I like to bring people into the big picture.' Leno's interview with Trulio, formerly Fox News Digital's managing editor and head of strategy and editorial operations, was conducted before CBS announced on July 17 that it was canceling 'The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.' CBS claimed it was 'purely a financial decision.' The axing of Colbert's show appeared to many critics to be another concession to Trump, coming after CBS parent company Paramount Global agreed to pay the president $16 million to settle what legal experts said was a meritless lawsuit going after '60 Minutes.' After Trump said 'I absolutely love that Colbert got fired,' Colbert told Trump to 'Go fuck yourself.' On Friday, David Letterman, former 'Late Show' host, slammed the cancellation of Colbert's show as an act of 'pure cowardice' and suggested that Skydance Media (whose takeover of Paramount is set to close next month after the FCC approved the deal) wanted Colbert ousted to avoid problems with the Trump administration. The caption on the Reagan Foundation's YouTube interview clip with Leno, which was posted July 22, says, 'Late-night TV used to be about laughs — not lectures. ‪@jayleno‬ tells us why he never shared his political opinions on The Tonight Show, and why he thinks today's hosts are losing half of America by doing so.' The first part of Trulio's interview with Leno was posted July 9 on YouTube. Part 2, in which Leno 'shares his thoughts on Reagan's comedic brilliance,' was uploaded July 15. Leno hosted 'The Tonight Show' on NBC from 1992 to 2009; Conan O'Brien briefly took the reins of the show before NBC brought Leno back from 2010-14. Leno was the first late-night talk show host to conduct an interview with a sitting president, with President Barack Obama appearing on the show in March 2009. After Trump's victory in the 2024 presidential election, Leno said in an appearance on 'The View' that he was 'not a fan' of Trump but that, 'The nice thing about this election is, it was fair, it was honest…. there was no cheating. Everybody says it was honest. I mean, it's a great day for democracy,' Leno added. In the interview with Leno, Trulio alluded to a study of the comedian's 'Tonight Show' jokes, which Trulio said had found were 'roughly equally balanced between going after Republicans and taking aim at Democrats.' According to a George Mason University analysis released in 2009, on 'The Tonight Show' from 1992-2008, Leno told 4,468 jokes about Bill Clinton, nearly 50% more than George W. Bush (2,999 jokes). Asked by Trulio what his strategy was vis-a-vis political humor, Leno replied, 'It was funny to me when I got hate letters [that said], 'You and your Republican friends' and 'Well, Mr. Leno, I hope you and your Democratic buddies are happy' — over the same joke. And I go, 'Well, that's good. That's how you get a whole audience.'' Leno has previously shared his belief that late-night hosts who have come after him are too one-sided. In 2019, he said on 'The View' that he 'always liked to humiliate and degrade both sides equally.' SEE ALSO: Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week 'Harry Potter' TV Show Cast Guide: Who's Who in Hogwarts? Final Emmy Predictions: Talk Series and Scripted Variety - New Blood Looks to Tackle Late Night Staples Solve the daily Crossword

GOP field begins to emerge in 2026 race for Pennsylvania governor
GOP field begins to emerge in 2026 race for Pennsylvania governor

Miami Herald

time3 hours ago

  • Miami Herald

GOP field begins to emerge in 2026 race for Pennsylvania governor

Influential Republicans believe the perfect candidate to go up against popular Democratic incumbent Gov. Josh Shapiro might be a woman who is a decorated veteran, has business chops and has already aced a state-level election by getting the most votes in Pennsylvania history. But will Stacy Garrity run? Virtually the entire Republican Party in Pennsylvania is waiting for the answer. The 2026 gubernatorial election race looms, and Garrity, the twice-elected state treasurer from Bradford County, has been the main focus of attention since U.S. Rep Dan Meuser removed himself from consideration. "I will have an announcement about the future of my career in service very soon," Garrity said when asked about her plans. Social media posts have hinted the 2022 Republican nominee, Sen. Doug Mastriano of Franklin County, might be thinking about another run. But attempts to obtain a comment from Mastriano were not successful, and higher-ups in the party say there has been little talk about the former nominee. "I have not heard a soul discuss that he is running, or should run, or that he would have any support," said Jason Richey, Allegheny County Republican Committee chairman and a former gubernatorial candidate himself. "I think Stacy is going to announce. I think she is going to run." State Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward of Westmoreland County said she hopes Garrity will run. "She's a fighter. And she's smart. She's a really intelligent, thoughtful treasurer, and I think she would make a superb governor because she's got all the ingredients," Ward said. "I look forward to her announcement and being behind her 100%." And Melissa Hart, an attorney in Allegheny County and former Republican congresswoman, said Garrity has the "inner strength" to go up against Shapiro - widely regarded as a very tough opponent. While he has not yet formally announced a bid for reelection, recent polling has shown more than twice as many Pennsylvanians approve of Shapiro's job performance than disapprove. And his national prominence was underscored by a Thursday night appearance on Stephen Colbert's late-night television show. To Hart, who was once a state senator, hesitancy to declare candidacy is understandable. There's a "coarseness" in modern politics that did not used to be present, she said. Hence, the "enthusiasm for running for office is not as healthy as it should be," she said. Nonetheless, while Republican chatter focuses on an unannounced Garrity, other potential Republican candidates may be sitting on the sidelines, according to pollster Chris Borick. A political science professor at Muhlenberg College in Lehigh County, Borick said if Garrity chooses not to run, "you would probably see a bunch of candidates throw their hats in the ring." In 2024, Garrity beat Democratic challenger Erin McClelland in the state treasurer's race by a 52%-to-46% margin in a field with five candidates. Her total of more than 3.5 million votes was the largest ever for a state-level candidate in Pennsylvania history, observers said. The campaign raised eyebrows when Shapiro opted not to endorse McClelland, a fellow Democrat - a decision that may have been influenced by less-than-flattering social media posts made by McClelland concerning Shapiro. The only hat in the ring for Democrats in the May 19, 2026, primary will likely belong to the 52-year-old Shapiro. He will ride into the 2026 contest on a long string of election victories - for state representative, Montgomery County commissioner, attorney general, and governor. "Gov. Shapiro is in a very strong position, as most incumbent governors are," said former Republican state Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman of Centre County. To date, Corman said, things "have gone very well" for Shapiro but a lot could happen before the November 2026 general election. In his first year on the job, Shapiro received a barrage of criticism from Republicans for a decision to line-item veto money for a voucher-style school scholarship program, a concept he had supported during during his election campaign. They have consistently attacked his spending proposals as unsustainable - one senator said a Shapiro budget would "bankrupt" the state - and more recently, Republicans have attacked what they describe as a lack of transparency in the use of taxpayer-funded airplanes. Some Republicans believe Shapiro's continued flirtation with a possible presidential run may sour some voters. "Gov. Shapiro has always had his eye on his next office," Ward said. "Everything he has done, as far as I am concerned, has been calculated into 'How does that affect his run for president.' And I don't think that's a positive for Pennsylvania." Since he was a finalist in Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris' 2024 search for a running mate, Shapiro has remained on the national stage. A late June Emerson College poll put Shapiro in a tie for fourth when Democratic primary voters nationwide were asked about a potential 2028 presidential candidate. Both Shapiro and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez polled at 7%, behind former U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg with 16%, Harris with 13%, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom with 12%. Shapiro will have national and state Democratic backing in the 2026 governor's race, according to state Sen. Jay Costa of Allegheny County, the top Democrat in the state Senate. Hanging on to the Pennsylvania governorship is "imperative" for the party, Costa said, and Shapiro and Lt. Gov. Austin Davis of McKeesport comprise "a very strong, formidable team." Borick said that's a charge Republicans are sure to hurl at the governor regardless of who their candidate is. His likely response, Borick said, has already become apparent in his frequent appearances all over the state. "He is saying, 'Look at my job performance. Look at where I am. Look at what I am doing,'" Borick said. As July nears to a close, Shapiro is bogged down in closed-door negotiations for a state budget that had a deadline of June 30. How long it takes and how the spending plan is perceived will influence the upcoming campaign, multiple observers said. And even though Garrity has not declared her intentions, friction has developed between supporters of Shapiro and those who plan to back Garrity. Earlier this month, a Philadelphia-area union official said on social media that if Garrity ran for governor, she would never again have support from the union, "not even for county dog catcher." That and other comments raised the ire of Ward and other women in the Senate Republican caucus, who claimed they were sexist and meant to intimidate. Costa, who said he saw the posts, rejected that notion and said the wording did not convey the message Republicans were trying to attach to it. Shapiro was asked about it during a public appearance on Wednesday, and he brushed it off. "Here is what I know to be true. The Republicans will nominate someone to run against me for governor. Let them play that out - that deals with their politics on their side. I am going to continue doing my job, governing for all Pennsylvanians," he said. That response drew more fire from Republican women in the Senate, who believed he failed to address the issue. Sen. Camera Bartolotta, R-Washington, said it was a "masterful" dodge of the topic. Shapiro's win by more than 700,000 votes over Mastriano in 2022 came after the senator was the top vote-getter in a bruising, nine-way primary. The state Republican party wants to avoid a repeat of the chaotic scenario. Its communications director, James Markley, said the GOP is working to narrow Democrats' registration advantage, which he put at less than than 70,000 "active" voters. The goal, he said, is to provide the eventual nominee with "the strongest infrastructure possible" for the campaign. Garrity worked at Global Tungsten & Powders Corp. in Towanda in Bradford County for decades - eventually becoming a corporate vice president - but also served a full career in the Army Reserve, with three deployments. Markley said Garrity has produced "real results" in multiple aspects of her life. And Borick, the pollster, said an opt-in from Garrity would set up a fascinating match. "We don't see this very often in Pennsylvania politics - where you get two clear party stars to face off." _____ Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.

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