Sen. Vaughan has been effective in Raleigh, respected in his district, and would bring many great qualities to the position. However, he would also be a grievously flawed choice to lead the state party.
One of the chief duties of the party chief is to recruit good candidates to run for state offices, sometimes against long odds. Or as Sen. Vaughan has written in his self-nomination message
We need to fight the Republicans in every county and in every city from Murphy to Manteo. After redistricting the Republicans are willing to claim victory before votes are even cast. I’ll make sure that we are a 100 county competitive force and remind them why voters in our state have time and time again chosen Democrats.
Sen. Vaughan recently had the opportunity to compete in such a race, when he was re-districted into the same district as Sen. Republican leader Phil Berger.
What did Sen. Vaughan do for his constituents and party in this instance?
Well, let's put it this way...
Senator Vaughan ran away
Bravely, ran away...away...
When Phil Berger reared his ugly head
Don Vaughan turned his tail and fled
Yes, Don Vaughan bravely turned about
And gallantly he chickened out
Bravely talking to his feet
He beat a very brave retreat
Bravest of the brave, Senator Vaughan
If North Carolina Democrats need a party member to organize occasional candidate retreats, Sen. Vaughan fits the bill.
But a courageous leader to restore Democrats to electoral competitiveness, not so much.
North Carolina Democrats need a leader who will reverse the party's recent electoral slide, not someone who simply goes in reverse.
