Wow. We starting to look like Nostradamus up in here.
We’ve been at this for fifteen years. Yet, we keep getting poo-pooed by the drive-bys as a silly tabloid blog. Unfortunately, for them – we keep ending up right on the money.
Check our archives. We’ve fed you sordid detail after sordid detail on folks like Mark Robinson, Robin Hayes, Thom Tillis, and Michael Whatley long before they imploded spectacularly on the political stage.
About a week before the 2026 election, we warned you that the state GOP was at risk of going from TEN Members of Congress down to TWO. Currently, we’re sitting at THREE but very much in danger of falling to TWO.
We’ve written extensively about former legislator Jason Saine, who went from sitting on unemployment to being one of the most powerful men in Raleigh. Saine, a guy who struggled to manage his personal finances as well as his campaign finances, was allowed to lord over all things financial in the General Assembly. *If you wanted taxpayer funds, you had to go through HIM.*
One of the more outrageous stories we found about Saine was his campaign report about spending nearly $20,000 in clothing. We consulted with numerous white-collar friends and associates on this and could not find a one who would admit to having $20,000 worth of clothing in their respective closets. The last Democrat to be speaker, Joe Hackney, ran one of his members OUT of the House for doing something somewhat similar. Yet, the Saine disclosure was met in the GOP controlled House with some eye-rolls, winks and nods, and requests to move on.
Well, it’s indictment time in Raleigh. And apparently, a grand jury has found some for the former Lincoln County legislator-turned lobbyist:
A former high-ranking Republican lawmaker now faces criminal charges in a public corruption probe that has rattled politicians and lobbyists alike since it began last year, Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman told WRAL Thursday.
Jason Saine, a Republican from Lincoln County, was indicted by a Wake County grand jury on charges of embezzlement and obtaining property by false pretense, Freeman said.
Saine was a former top state budget writer before his resignation from the legislature two years ago. He has close ties to a nonprofit group called Greater Carolina that’s at the heart of the investigation. It was founded by his former staffer and more recently run by his political ally David Coble.
Saine declined to be interviewed Thursday but in a written statement said he’s innocent of the charges. “I look forward to clearing my name,” he said.
Greater Carolina and similarly organized nonprofits are often called dark money groups, allowed to largely hide their donors and spending from the public eye. They’re also often heavily involved in state politics, and Freeman told WRAL this one went too far in its efforts to influence policy and legislation.
The group originally came under scrutiny for sending lobbyists and lawmakers on trips to Kentucky to tour bourbon distilleries. A subsequent criminal investigation revealed more details of its previously secret spending, including tens of thousands of dollars more spent on strip clubs, football and golf outings, a beach house and more.
Such groups “have become a pervasive part of the political landscape on both sides of the political aisle over the last decade,” Freeman said in a written statement.
She added: “While I do not anticipate that will change, this case serves as a reminder that the law places restrictions on the way they operate and sets forth that they should not be used as an end run around the statutory framework embodied in our state’s Ethics Act and lobbying regulations.” […]
Please remember, an indictment is not a conviction. Lots of folks get indicted and then acquitted. An indictment is merely an indication that a group of folks believes there is sufficient, credible evidence to take a matter to trial.
Democrats, poised to take over in January, are already out there promising NONE of this will happen under them. *Some of us are old enough to remember Jim Black, as well as a few others.*
The size of state government and the access to all that cash makes Raleigh a breeding ground for corruption. Changing parties won’t stop it, as we’ve seen. (Even Tim Moore ran for speaker promising to clean things up.)
The drive-by media is too busy bleeding money and fawning over pols and protecting on-site office space to actually get tough and hold leaders accountable. *Visions of better-paying press secretary jobs dancing in their heads.*
We, as voters and taxpayers, have to draw a line in the sand and hold some well pedicured feet to the fire. Raleigh needs to fear and respect us. Right now, they clearly don’t.
Please, no whining about this being a Democrat trick. Jim Black got caught. Unfortunately, a lot of people get away scot free. But party registration does not save or protect you – at least, for long.
We have to stay diligent and keep our eyes open if we want to avoid getting robbed absolutely blind. This – and the other indictments – is just a start in the effort to clean up our state government.
