Obama to be in Raleigh next week
President Barack Obama will be at an event on the economy in the Raleigh-Durham area on Wednesday, a White House official said Thursday.
Obama lost North Carolina in the 2012 presidential election but his approval rating in North Carolina is higher than the national rate.
A national study by Public Policy Polling showed Obama’s approval rating at 41 percent. But the firm released another study showing Obama has a 44 percent approval rating in North Carolina.
Watt sworn in by Foxx
Former U.S. Rep. Mel Watt, D-N.C., was sworn in as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency on Monday.
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx, former mayor of Charlotte, performed the official oath for Watt.
Watt and Foxx have a long history. Foxx’s mother and Watt’s wife are second cousins. Watt also helped Foxx get his start in politics, having Foxx serve as his campaign manager in his 2004 run for reelection.
On the same day, Gov. Pat McCrory announced that the election to fill Watt’s seat would occur on the general election date for the 2014 midterm election.
Aiken considering run for Congress
American Idol runner-up Clay Aiken is reportedly considering a run for Congress against Rep. Renee Ellmers, R-N.C, according to the Washington Blade.
Aiken was on the second season of American Idol. Along with his musical career, he has done humanitarian work for UNICEF and attended a Capitol Hill briefing on anti-bullying legislation in 2010.
Ellmers won re-election with almost 56 percent of the vote in 2012.
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