Cumberland County, North Carolina – GOP state senator Wesley Meredith has been struck by what is termed in politics as an “October Surprise”. This is when the opposition candidate or his party minions release well-timed embarrassing information meant to discredit their opponent with voters.
Meredith has commanded a double-digit lead in his bid for reelection against Democrat Billy Richardson. Not coincidentally, Richardson released numerous documents about his opponent one of which indicates Meredith and his then wife Beth Longbottom Meredith applied for Medicaid benefits despite earning more than 5x the maximum allowable income of $19,800 to qualify for benefits.
For his part, Sen. Meredith denies he applied for the benefits. The state GOP is calling on him to repay the benefits if it proves true that he collected them despite being unqualified. His ex-wife has confirmed that he received the benefits, but it is entirely possible her comments are meant to punish him for leaving her.
What is certain is that Democrat candidate Billy Richardson is more concentrated on finding reasons for voters not to vote for Meredith than to find reasons to support him. It is as much an admission that he has failed to make the case for why he is qualified for office.
The political Left is reveling in the news of Sen. Meredith potentially being involved in welfare fraud. The Left also says the GOP is always trying to punish the poor by instituting welfare reform. It is curious that the Left deems working and paying taxes as a punishment. By the same token, it logically follows that they view welfare benefits as a reward for being poor. It is uncertain how well Richardson’s dirty political trick will work with voters.