Based on what the Raleigh News & Observer‘s is reporting on its Under the Dome blog, it looks like New Hanover District Attorney Ben David is now conducting a criminal investigation in what was originally a State Board of Elections probe of $48,000 in contributions to Beverly Perdue’s gubernatorial candidate from people connected to Rusty Carter. The allegation is that Carter reimbursed all or some of these donors, which is a no-no under state campaign-finance law.
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31
2010 At 10:02 am, EQV Said:
Why the silence on the Basnight contributions? The blogger at daretruth.wordpress.com (no, that’s not me) has done some great investigative work into Basnight’s contributions. Of course, the N&O is silent, or dismissive on the Basnight connection in their stories on Carter.
The N&O offered the following articles, presumably written by Ben Niolet, who edits UTD:
1. “The other Mr. Carter” blog posting 3/23 – Niolet refers to Fetzer’s raising questions about Basnight’s contributors, but offers Wes Carter’s (of Hobbs Upchurch, the employer of “Wes Carter”) assertion that he’s not Rusty Carter’s son – apparently the blogger mistook Wes Carter, the Basnight contributor employed by HU, for Rusty Carter’s son) . Fine. But Niolet could have said that Rusty does indeed have a son, Wes, as the N&O knows full well, because Rusty’s father, Horace Carter, won awards from the N&O – he had become a journalist after founding Atlantic Corp. Look at W. Horace Carter’s obituary back in Sept. – it clearly states he had a son, Russell “Rusty” Carter, and a grandson, Wes Carter:
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/charlotte/obituary.aspx?n=w-horace-carter&pid=133041639
But the confusion over “Wes Carter” obscures the points made by the blogger about Basnight’s campaign contributions. I’ve worked with many surveyors, who made a decent living, but I’ve never known one who could afford to make an $8K contribution to a NC state lawmaker, in addition to other contribtions over the years, as apparently Gary Culp of Raeford, survey manager with HU, did. But hey, I guess that Culp really, really, admires Basnight.
2. “DA investigating Carter contributions” blog posting 3/30 12:52 pm – no mention of Basnight
3. “Inquiry targets Dem fundraiser” article by Ben Niolet 3/31 2 am – no mention at all of Basnight, but Niolet takes pains to paint the picture of “Republicans do exactly the same thing”-type excuse. But the blogger at daretruth.wordpress.com has shown that the grants received by Atlantic & Hobbs Upchurch, and the fact that Basnight appointees sit on the boards of the very agencies that decide what companies receive those grants, should at least raise the curiosity level of the NC media.
The blogger at daretruth.wordpress.com has raised questions that should be raised by the N&O, and yes, by you folks too.