(Yikes!) NCDPI’s Truitt shouts down, heckles school board member at Johnston County forum ???
You can tell the pressure of campaigning is starting to get to NC Department of Public Instruction 
superintendent Catherine Truitt. Truitt, a registered Republican, has drawn a spirited primary challenge from conservative Michele Morrow. Truitt is losing all kinds of straw polls at local Republican events from Murphy to Manteo. Experienced political observers are starting to label Truitt as “THE Council of State incumbent most likely to lose their reelection bid.”
Thursday night in Johnston County was an occasion Team Truitt would surely like to forget. Truitt had finished speaking at a public forum when Johnston County school board member Michelle Antoine took the floor. Here’s the video:
Sources in the room that night confirm that this is Mrs. Antoine speaking and that the voice shouting at her and interrupting her is that of Mrs. Truitt. Our sources tell us Truitt and her entourage “stormed out of the room” following Antoine’s presentation.
Some may suggest that Antoine was a supporter of or operative for the challenger Morrow’s campaign. But Antoine is a well-known critic of Michele Morrow going back years.
Know what else is interesting? Truitt has ties to Johnston County. She taught there for a number of years prior to joining state government.
Nevertheless, a straw poll was held following this episode, and Michele Morrow won.
The primary election for DPI superintendent and many other races is slated for March 5.
When Truitt was first elected, she hired a liberal Democrat as her chief deputy. That tells you all you need to know about Truitt. She is not a conservative even if she may play one in political ads. North Carolina Republicans can do better.