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Oral History Interview with Robert W. (Bob) Scott, September 18, 1986. Interview C-0036. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007).
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  • Abstract
    Robert W. (Bob) Scott, former governor of North Carolina and the state's community college system president, describes his tenure as governor and discusses North Carolina politics. Neither Scott's political ideology nor his political goals make an appearance in this interview. However, his proudest accomplishments include helping rural schools and communities, an indication that his own background as a farmer may have led him to focus on constituents often overlooked by the political process. This focus on people, rather than polls, is what distinguishes Scott from his successors, he believes; he laments the decline of face-to-face politics. Finally, he seeks to explain the decline of the Democratic Party in North Carolina, citing internal squabbling and the leftward drift of the national party. This interview will be useful for students of North Carolina politics.
    Excerpts
  • Deciding to run for lieutenant governor
  • Connections ease the path to the governorship
  • Accomplishments as governor
  • Accomplishments in education, linked in part to taxation
  • North Carolina's transition to a Republican state
  • Lack of unity in North Carolina's Democratic Party
  • Decline of personal quality of politics and power of the governorship
  • Learn More
  • Finding aid to the Southern Oral History Program Collection
  • Database of all Southern Oral History Program Collection interviews
  • Subjects
  • North Carolina--Politics and government
  • Governors--North Carolina
  • Political parties--North Carolina
  • The Southern Oral History Program transcripts presented here on Documenting the American South undergo an editorial process to remove transcription errors. Texts may differ from the original transcripts held by the Southern Historical Collection.

    Funding from the Institute for Museum and Library Services supported the electronic publication of this title.