North Carolina Governor Planted Questions From Fake Reporters To Avoid Answering Ones About Anti-LGBT LawThe Charlotte Observer reports that North Carolina governor Pat McCrory’s campaign planted three fake “press” questions at a recent event to keep that newspaper from inquiring about the millions of dollars of revenue lost by the state after its passage of the anti-LGBT House Bill 2.
McCrory and the state legislation have continually attempted to wipe away doubts and concerns from the LGBT community and local business owners over the ill effects of the law since its passing; while recent decisions by the NBA, NCAA, and ACC have had little effect on McCrory’s feelings on the matter, a recent report from the Charlotte Observer shows the governor’s staff is feeling the heat.
According to the Observer, McCrory’s camp planted three questions under the guise of being presubmitted by that newspaper at a recent event for Charlotte business owners. When editorial page editor Taylor Batten attempted to step in and ask a question, McCrory brushed him off, claiming the previous trio of questions was enough from the state’s most-read newspaper.
When the moderator asked how to get started, McCrory said, “Anything you like. No filter here.” Sure, who needs a filter when you posed the questions yourself?
When I tried to ask McCrory a question, the filter went up. “We’ve got three Observer questions answered already. I think you guys dominate the news enough.”
Of course, those weren’t Observer questions. They were softballs from his staff about what he wanted to do with his next term; how he wanted to reduce the state’s rape kit backlog; and how the state crime lab performed under McCrory’s opponent, Roy Cooper.
Batten confirmed the questions were planted by the McCrory staff in speaking with Ricky Diaz, a campaign spokesperson. Diaz claimed the questions were inserted as an attempt to, in his words, “keep the conversation format going.”
http://deadspin.com/north-carolina-governor-planted-questions-from-fake-rep-1786760853
