Some updates: The company trying to build a giant cement factory near Wilmington (LINK, Feb. 13, 2010) has changed its legal and lobbying team, abandoning the McGuireWoods firm that once boasted having former Gov. Mike Easley and several of his associates on its payroll. Easley and Ruffin Poole have left McGuireWoods, and some key legislative supporters (e.g., state Senators Tony Rand and David Hoyle) won’t be back in 2011. Titan America is going with Womble Carlyle, the state’s largest law firm with a well-established lobbying arm; opponents of the proposed factory say they’re gearing up for continued battle.
In national news, the New York Times has two more stories about the escalating spending of outside groups in the 2010 elections – one about the unprecedented scale of the money this year, thanks to billionaires backing GOP candidates, and another about a pro-labor group that has filed a complaint with the IRS against the Chamber of Commerce for allegedly using money from a foundation for its political spending. AdWeek also reports that spending on advertising by the candidates will break the 2008 record, even though this is not a presidential election year.
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