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NC Democratic governor candidates debate RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) _ The two leading Democratic candidates for governor questioned each other's record in office during a debate Tuesday night in which Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue found herself somewhat handcuffed by her promise to run a positive campaign against State Treasurer Richard Moore. Perdue chided Moore for his critique of budget votes Perdue made to raise tuition at University of North Carolina schools during the 1990s. This is just one more example of the politics of yesteryear, Perdue said, mentioning that Moore also voted for a similar increase during his one term in the Legislature. You can nitpick one or two votes or 10 or 15 votes ... I really do hope that we can focus on the issue, not the kind of rhetoric like the stuff we're talking about here. Moore responded You can say that that's yesteryear, but this is a long job interview that we're on. And just like any job interview, if you want to be the governor of this state, you're going to have to be prepared to have your record looked into. Moore and Perdue agreed on several issues in their much-anticipated hourlong debate, which aired in Raleigh-Durham, Wilmington and Charlotte television markets two weeks before the May 6 primary. But they each tried to find openings upon which to lay out differences. Perdue later said the state treasurer shouldn't be the sole fiduciary of the roughly $78 billion in public employee pension funds. But she was quick to mention she wasn't suggesting that Moore had done anything questionable, even though her campaign has made an issue about the pension's investment performance for months. ___ Charlotte-Mecklenburg police cite significant jump in crime CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) _ Charlotte-Mecklenburg police announced significant jumps in the number of violent and property crimes during the first three months of this year compared to the same period last year. The Charlotte Observer reported Tuesday that Deputy Chief David Graham told a media briefing on Tuesday that March was a bad month for the city, and that no one is more frustrated than the police department. Compared to the first three months of 2007, statistics show robbery increased 15.1 percent, aggravated assaults jumped 16.8 percent, and burglary was up 8.3 percent, including a 17.8 percent increase in home burglaries. Thefts from automobiles, which comprised a third of all crimes, rose 27 percent. Police have also arrested 9.5 percent more people than this time in 2007. ___ ___ Hillary Clinton to campaign in 3 NC cities RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) _ Hillary Rodham Clinton is ramping up her campaign in North Carolina for the Democratic presidential nomination. Her daughter, Chelsea, campaigned Tuesday in Durham. Her husband, former President Bill Clinton, is scheduled to campaign Wednesday in five cities and towns across the state. Hillary Clinton is scheduled to campaign Thursday in Jacksonville, Fayetteville and Asheville. Clinton will be accompanied by Gen. Hugh Shelton, the retired chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and a former Fort Bragg commander. Shelton is a North Carolina native. In Fayetteville, she will campaign at Methodist University, while in Asheville, she will attend an event at the civic center. No details of the Jacksonville visit have been released. ___ Team USA ready to fine-tune play with three exhibitions CARY, N.C. (AP) _ Heather O'Reilly took one look at this town's intimate soccer stadium, and all those warm, fuzzy memories of college came washing back. The forward won two national titles here with North Carolina, starred as the national player of the year and always felt comfortably at home. Now she's back, hoping to make even more memories while keeping the U.S. national team humming along on its way toward the Olympics. The Americans are here to tune up for the Beijing Games, opening practice Tuesday night in the Raleigh suburb where they'll begin a three-city tour that includes a series of exhibition matches against international opponents. And O'Reilly is counting on a home-pitch advantage at the venue where she capped her college career in 2006 by leading the Tar Heels to the most recent of their 18 national championships. The stadium, I can just imagine how everything looked, especially my senior year because that was such a special season for me, O'Reilly said after working out at an adjacent practice field. I look over at that stadium and it stirs up a lot of memories. It's her teammates' first chance of the year to play on American soil and another opportunity to perfect the new style preferred by new coach Pia Sundhage, who replaced Greg Ryan and has implemented a deliberate, tactical approach to the sport while placing a premium on ball possession. On the most basic level, it's about feeling the game rather than doing X, Y and Z, forward Abby Wambach said. Obviously, there's a time and a place for doing X, Y and Z, but (Sundhage) always felt that feeling the game and learning how to feel the game and seeing how that will play out, there's something to be said about going inside and seeing what goes on inside you on the pitch, and on the most basic level, that's the thing that she's brought to this team. Copyright © 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Published on Wednesday, April 23, 2008

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