“Pat Timmons-Goodson’s reputation and record are the perfect foil to a proud member of the Washington swamp, Richard Hudson, in this newly drawn district. Pat has a history of winning elections and earning respect on both sides of the aisle. Meanwhile, in the first competitive election of his career, Hudson will have to answer for his shameful record in Washington that has made North Carolinians’ health care more expensive and put affordable prescription drugs even further out of reach.” – DCCC Chairwoman Cheri Bustos
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To: Interested Parties
From: Sarah Guggenheimer, DCCC Regional Press Secretary
Date: March 3, 2020
Subject: Case Against Richard Hudson
As a former North Carolina Republican Party Communications Director, GOP Campaign Manager, District Director for soon-to-be sentenced former Rep. Robin Hayes, and current NRCC Finance Chair, Congressman Richard Hudson has spent his career climbing the Washington-insider ladder and luxuriating in the Washington swamp, and he has the voting record to prove it.
Between his votes to hike health care costs from North Carolinians, his support of a tax scam that gave corporations a tax handout at the expense of hard working families, and his votes opposing lowering prescription drug costs, it seems that at no point has Hudson considered putting everyday North Carolinians first.
That stands in stark contrast to the public service-driven and community-based background of Patricia Timmons-Goodson. Pat’s life mission has been to help those around her.
Pat was the first African American woman on North Carolina Supreme Court and was the first African American woman elected to the North Carolina Court of Appeals. She was also the Vice Chair on the US Commission on Civil Rights and on top of that, she has lived in Fayetteville since she was in the 10th grade. Her sterling reputation cleared the field when she announced her candidacy, paving the way to her nomination.
But, the story of this district can’t be told without first acknowledging how redistricting will shape this race. The new lines, redrawn after the courts struck down previous maps for illegal partisan gerrymandering, mean that 25.9% of Hudson’s district is new to him, effectively erasing his advantages as a true incumbent.
Now Hudson will have to defend a record of selling out his constituents’ interests as he runs against a former statewide elected official with deep and longstanding ties to a community ready to mobilize.
This race is one to watch.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
Fayetteville Observer: “…the numbers are close enough that Timmons-Goodson could beat [Hudson] and Fayetteville could have its first hometown member of Congress since the 1990s.” [Fayetteville Observer, 1/5/20]
Charlotte Observer: “Though long held by the GOP Rep. Richard Hudson, analysts at the University of Virginia suggest it could be more favorable to Democrats.” [Charlotte Observer, 1/3/20]
Fayetteville Observer: “U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson wrote a letter of support for Republican former U.S. Rep. Chris Collins of New York, who was sentenced this month to more than two years in prison for insider trading.
“Collins had hoped to get probation and no active prison time, The Hill reported… The Democrats may also attack Hudson because Hudson worked for former Republican Party Chairman Robin Hayes when Hayes was the 8th District Congressman… Hudson declined to discuss Hayes, who pleaded guilty in federal court in October to lying to federal investigators and is awaiting sentencing.
“Hayes had been accused of trying to help high-dollar political donor Greg Lindberg and two other men bribe Republican state Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey.” [Fayetteville Observer, 1/26/20]
Fayetteville Observer: “…[Timmons-Goodson] found her voice on the bench, devoting 28 years of her life to judiciary service before retiring in 2012… Her judicial career also was marked by distinguished work on the North Carolina Court of Appeals and the state Supreme Court. [Fayetteville Observer, 2/9/19]
Raleigh News & Observer Headline: Patricia Timmons-Goodson, the Tar Heel of the Month, blazes a trail to lift up future generations [Raleigh News & Observer, 3/30/19]
Hudson is a lifelong Washington insider unprepared to defend his record in a general election
HUDSON’S HEALTH CARE MAKES NORTH CAROLINIANS SICK
Congressman Hudson’s new constituents are about to learn a whole lot about this career politician’s votes that have consistently sided with corporate special interests at their expense.
Because the truth is, there hasn’t been one issue where he’s stood up for them.
Hudson didn’t only vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act, per his own office he led on the issue. Not only that but he has repeatedly voted in support of a lawsuit to repeal the law, which would raise costs and force tens of thousands of North Carolinians to lose coverage, as well as undermine protections for North Carolinians living with pre-existing conditions.
On top of that, Hudson also opposed recent legislation to lower prescription drug costs of North Carolinians.
His record poses a huge problem in his re-election bid at a time when voters overwhelmingly viewing health care as a top issue this cycle and trust Democrats over Republicans on this issue by a large margin.
HUDSON’S SWAMPY RELATIONSHIPS
Given his background as a hyper-partisan insider, it’s really no surprise that Hudson has developed an affinity for corruption and self-enrichment and done everything he can to ensure those willing to commit crimes can get ahead. It is certainly notable how closely he holds those relationships even now.
Richard Hudson is a former staffer of Robin Hayes and was named his District Director when Hayes represented a previous iteration of the 8th Congressional District. In fact, Hudson called Hayes his “friend & mentor.” But now Hayes has pled guilty to bribery-related charges and awaits sentencing for his part in a scheme to illegally funnel $2 million through the state party. Hayes’ well-deserved sentencing is a sore subject for Hudson and now that his “friend & mentor” is going to jail, Hudson refused to answer questions on the matter when asked.
But that’s not Hudson’s only friend in trouble with the law.
Before Chris Collins was sentenced to over 2 years for insider trading related charges, Hudson sent a letter to the judge as a part of Collin’s lawyers’ bid to have the disgraced former-Congressman serve no jail time. In the letter, Hudson notably remarked on how good of a father Collins was.
As a reminder, Collins committed insider trading when he divulged confidential insider information to his son. And when confronted with the letter, Hudson doubled down on his defense.
These relationships show a troubling affinity for the corrupt and illegal behavior that lead everyday Americans to dislike Washington politics. Additionally, Hudson’s behavior provides a clear and remarkable contrast to Timmons-Goodson who quite literally spent her career imparting justice on those who broke the law.
HUDSON LACKS GRASSROOTS SUPPORT
Given Hudson’s career and voting record it surely comes as no surprise that Richard Hudson has little if any grassroots support in his district. In his pre-primary FEC report, only .5% of his donations came from small donors. Which is astonishingly even worse than his Q4 report where a mere .6% of his donations were from small donors. Instead, Hudson relies entirely on donations from corporate PACs and special interests to fund his campaign.
With this level of corporate special interest donors, his voting record finally makes sense. Every day, Hudson is working hard to represent the interest of his donors – even if they happen to come at the expense of North Carolinians.
PATH TO VICTORY
The new 8th congressional district consolidates Cumberland County for the first time since 1992, meaning all of Fayetteville and its suburbs are now voting in one district. Per the Fayetteville Observer, “With all of Cumberland County’s voters in one district instead of two (or three), the odds increase that someone who lives in Cumberland County can win a seat in Congress.”
As a Cumberland Country resident since she was in the 10th grade, Timmons-Goodson has the local roots to consolidate the vote, increasing turnout particularly among African American voters who make up 28.1% of eligible voters in the district.
NC-08 is now a majority suburban with the addition of Cabarrus County in the west, a voting bloc Republicans have seen shift away from them at an astonishing rate across the country.
With these new lines, this district went from a district President Trump carried by 14.8 points to a district he carried by 9.3 points overnight. That spells trouble for Hudson because this district now strongly resembles the former 9th Congressional district where Dan McCready overperformed Trump by 10 points in the district’s special election just last year.
Hudson will now be forced to defend his record to North Carolinians that have strongly and consistently opposed the very policies Hudson has championed. His votes on health care, tax reform, and prescription drugs will hang over his head throughout the election while his friendships with those in legal trouble will continue to make headlines in the coming months. Pat Timmons-Goodson has the background, record, and ability to inspire and turn out the vote in key areas of the district, making this race highly competitive.