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BY DAVID SINCLAIR: Managing Editor

Third of Three Parts
Peggy Crutchfield says state Rep. Richard Morgan, co-speaker of the House, doesn’t seem to take her seriously.

Crutchfield has resigned from her job as president of the United Way of Moore County to run against Morgan in a Republican primary this summer. Her last official day with the United Way was Wednesday.

“You’ll be seeing and hearing a lot more about my campaign from now on,” she says.

Morgan’s adversaries from outside of Moore County have promised to give Crutchfield financial help. Morgan, one of the party’s most prolific fund-raisers, doesn’t seem worried.

Crutchfield says she agrees with those who have accused Morgan of “betraying his party” by cutting the power-sharing deal with Democrats.

“There is such confusion and discontentment surrounding our representative here in Moore County and in the state,” she says. “I really want to be a representative of the people of Moore County. My opponent is more interested in promoting himself instead of representing the people who elected him. He has a serious problem here.”

Morgan says he would like to see a Republican majority in the House, but he isn’t planning to spend money across the state to help defeat Democrats.

In fact, many of his critics say Morgan has made no secret that he plans to use some of political war chest to defeat his political enemies within the party. Morgan’s political consultant, Paul Shoemaker, uses the term “Morgan Republican” in referring to candidates they will back — ones who supported the bipartisan coalition that last year handed co-speakerships to Morgan and Rep. Jim Black, a Mecklenburg Democrat.

Crutchfield says that only about 10 percent of Morgan’s campaign contributions come from Moore County.

“I find that really strange,” she says. “He’s not really concerned about Peggy Crutchfield. So why does he need all of this money? What I am hearing is that he wants to defeat his enemies within the party. Something is wrong here.”

‘A Bunch of Rumblings’

Morgan remains confident that he will win election to an eighth term. He barely acknowledges that someone is running against him. It would be his first primary opposition since 1998.

“I have heard a bunch of rumblings from potential candidates who say they may run,” he says.

Morgan says Crutchfield is only a front for Mike Fields, the former Southern Pines mayor who is her campaign manager. Fields had been rumored from time to time as a possible opponent for Morgan.

“Why doesn’t he step up to the plate instead of hiding behind the disguise of another candidate?” Morgan says of Fields.

Fields says he has no interest in running for state House now.

“I am quite sure that Richard Morgan and his political consultants are concerned about running against Peggy Crutchfield and her exemplary record of serving the people of Moore County,” Fields says, “as opposed to Morgan’s record of serving the lobbyists, the special interest groups and the Democrats in Raleigh.

“Peggy is a great candidate who has a genuine passion to serve the people of Moore County in the state House. We are lucky to have such an intelligent and thoughtful candidate. I am proud that she asked me to be her campaign manager. It should be an interesting race.”

‘Message to Moore Voters’

Crutchfield can expect support from outside Moore County in her effort to topple Morgan.

John Aneralla, chairman of the Mecklenburg Republican Party, says he wishes Crutchfield the best. Republicans in Mecklenburg County passed the resolution calling for Morgan’s removal from the party’s executive committee for disloyalty.

“If Peggy Crutchfield calls and asks for my help, I will gladly give it to her,” Aneralla says.

Judy Keener of Wake County, who organized a petition drive to get the state party to consider a resolution accusing Morgan of disloyalty to the party, hopes this will send a message to voters in Moore County — and if that helps Crutchfield, that’s fine, too.

“I hope Moore County voters will see him for who he is,” Keener says. “The voters of Moore County didn’t send someone up here to raise taxes, help the Democrats by gerrymandering a redistricting plan, give incentives to big businesses and do business at the last minute.

“This certainly was not intended to help his opposition. I hope she’ll be able to use this and educate voters. Our state and our party will be better off if he is not in the House, or at least not as co-speaker. It will take a pretty good majority (in the House) to get him out of power.”

The thing that really raised the hackles of many Republicans is Morgan’s threat to go after members of his own party who opposed him, according to Rep. John Blust of Guilford County, one of Morgan’s chief critics.

‘Built on Trust’

Democratic leaders, likewise, say they won’t go after Republicans who supported the bipartisan coalition, according to Black.

“We really intend to keep the coalition going,” Black says. “We are not going to be taking out the people who supported this coalition.”

Black says the House will likely remain evenly divided for many years to come, which will require a power-sharing arrangement. He has no qualms about continuing to work side by side with Morgan.

“Our relationship is built on trust,” Black says. “He tells you right up front where you stand even though you may not like it. He won’t stab you in the back. That is certainly a valuable asset in the General Assembly. You can count on him being the same way every day. When he says something, I trust him.

“Not everything is partisan. We proved that. We moved the state forward. There are some things we do agree to disagree on. But we think we’ve found the right mix.”

Division to Continue?

Aneralla says many Mecklenburg Republicans were upset that Morgan pushed through a redistricting plan that pits a number of Morgan’s enemies within the party against other Republicans, including Rep. Ed McMahon of Mecklenburg County.

Rep. Frank Mitchell of Iredell County, who has called Morgan nothing more than “a playground bully,” wound up in the same district with Rep. George Holmes, who was the Republican caucus nominee for speaker last year. Mitchell says he plans to move his residency across a precinct line to a district in which he will oppose Rep. Julia Howard, a Morgan ally.

Morgan says claims by his critics that the redistricting plan enacted by the General Assembly pits more of his enemies against other Republicans is laughable. He says this plan pits eight Republicans against each other, compared to 16 in the 2002 interim plan.

“There is not going to be decisive majorities by either party,” he says. “We will need a coalition””

Rep. Bill Culpepper, a Democrat from Chowan County, says the redistricting plan that Morgan’s critics are complaining about won bipartisan support because it is fair to both parties.

“They (Morgan’s Republican enemies) want a plan that would give them 90 seats and us 30 seats,” he says. “That’s not going to happen.”

He believes the House will be closely divided for the next several elections.

“The elections will bear that out,” he says. “It will be close. The House will continue to be fairly evenly divided. Whether we will have co-speakers remains to be seen. I think we had one of the best sessions we have ever had since I have been in the House. I’d like to see that continue. I don’t know if that will require co-speakers, but it will require a coalition.”

Daughtry and other Republicans think the GOP would win even more seats if the state had a constitutional plan.

“All we want is a level playing field,” he says. “The way our state is trending, we’ll pick up more seats than they will. But they don’t want that.”

Howard points out that the nonpartisan group NC Free determined that the redistricting plan is fair for both parties. It also received approval from the U.S. Justice Department. She says the plan probably favors Republicans more than Democrats.

Ferrell Blount, chairman of the state Republican Party and one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the state over the redistricting plans, says he cannot predict how many more seats Republicans could win with what he calls a constitutional plan.

“Call me after Nov. 2,” he says.

‘His Own Path’

Bill Miller, chairman of the Forsyth County Republican Party, says Morgan is viewed as a “traitor.” Republicans in Forsyth County also approved the resolution calling for Morgan’s removal from the state party’s executive committee for disloyalty.

“He brought this on himself,” he says. “He’s vowed to defeat his political enemies within the party. That is not right.

Miller says Morgan and his consultant, Shoemaker, have been recruiting candidates for an open seat in Forsyth County. He says that is up to the county party, not Morgan.

“He wants someone who is aligned with his group,” Miller says. “He seems to be going along his own path to find people who will be loyal to him, not the party. He seems to be leaning more to the left than the right. We have to stand up and take a position. We have to face the facts.”

Morgan finds it amusing that others within the party are now grousing about his recruiting of candidates in other counties.

“They have been doing that to me for years,” Morgan says. “Isn’t that the pot calling the kettle black? They accuse me of disloyalty. They have been doing this for years in my district, these same people who are make these accusations.”

Shoemaker says Morgan has raised millions of dollars over the years to help elect Republicans to the General Assembly. He says Morgan has never raised less that $1 million. He says Morgan personally gave $192,000 several years ago, four times more than what was raised during the time people like Rep. Leo Daughtry were in charge

‘Matter of Strategy’

“It was all about what could be done for Leo Daughtry,” Shoemaker says. “When he ran for governor (in 2000), he spent his money on his campaign. When he was majority leader, he never had an issues agenda. Richard Morgan has a plan for what is needed.”

Morgan says he won’t discuss his political plans.

“What I do politically is a matter of strategy and I am not going to tell you what I am going to do,” he says. “What I would like to see is more competent, qualified representatives who have the vision to move our state ahead and out of these difficult economic times, not those who enhance their ineffectiveness. I am excited about some of the Republican candidates that will materialize for thee open seats.”

Morgan points out that his opponents within the party put up a candidate to oppose Rep. David Miner of Wake County, who is one of Morgan’s supporters. He says Miner won decisively.

“He is an integral part of the leadership team that is working with me to move North Carolina forward,” he says. “The same cannot be said of those tossing the grenades.

Morgan accuses Daughtry, his longtime political enemy, of being behind efforts to recruit candidates to run against him. Daughtry is one of the representatives Morgan banished to the back row in the House chamber, a member of the group calling itself the “Safari Club,” because they are so far from the action.

Daughtry says he had nothing to do with recruiting Crutchfield. He hopes she beats Morgan.

“Richard says he will spend his money to get rid of Republicans, purge the party, as he has said,” Daughtry says. “It is upsetting to so many people who have worked so hard in the vineyards to build up the party. We’ve been on the back row for so long. To see this kind of opportunity slip away is kind of a bitter pill. I am sorry that it has gotten to this point.”

Blust thinks many of the Republicans who supported Morgan and his power-sharing deal are afraid of Morgan.

“Some of them just went ahead and voted for him knowing the deal was going down,” he says. “They didn’t want to get on his bad side. He has said that loyalty to him is more important than competence. That is the only quality that matters. I could be winning his praise if I just went along with all of this. I can’t do that.”

‘The Voters Will Decide’

Howard, an ardent supporter of Morgan, agrees that loyalty is important, but that doesn’t mean you always have to agree with him. She says that she and Morgan have not always seen eye to eye.

“He is a good man who expects to be treated with a certain degree of respect,” she says. “If you give him that, you can tell him that you disagree with him. He’ll argue with you and maybe yell with you, but he will always back you up. He will stand by you forever.

“I don’t have a brother. But if I did, I would want him to be like Richard. We’ll always be friends. What you see is what you get.”

Blust says the ultimate goal for the anti-Morgan group would be for him to lose in a primary. If that doesn’t happen, he hopes Republicans can win enough seats to depose Morgan next year.

He thinks many people who publicly support Morgan out of fear of retaliation would be relieved if he loses.

“It’s a lot like that the scene in the end of ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ when the wicked witch sets the scarecrow on fire,” he says. “Dorothy throws water on the scarecrow, and some of it hits the witch, and she melts away. For a moment, Dorothy is scared because she doesn’t know how those flying monkeys, or whatever they are, will do. They celebrate.”

He says there is always going to be bad blood between members of the same team.

“Most mature and can put that aside for the team,” he says. “Morgan would not. What he has done has affected many other counties. If Republicans in Moore County know what he has done, they’ll make the right decision.”

Says Crutchfield, “The voters of Moore County will decide this. They will have the final say.”