North Carolina – Democrats
Dems Get Clout
With two strokes of the pen – Governor McCrory’s vetoes – Democrats in the legislature suddenly got leverage. McCrory has split Republicans in the legislature. Now Democrats may have the balance of power when the legislature tries to override. The clout goes beyond the two bills the Governor vetoed. Democrats can use their leverage there…
Read MoreHagan Up to Bat Again?
There are about 100 million reasons why Kay Hagan may be Democrats’ Senate candidate again next year. You see, $100 million is what the race cost last year. And it’s hard to imagine another candidate playing in that league. In a National Journal story, an anonymous Hagan donor from North Carolina made an apt seasonal…
Read MoreHoodoo
MCOs (Managed Care Companies) are a species of corporate locust but a cohort of silver-tongued Super PAC Managers and I.E. Campaign Managers are hard at work to convince legislators MCOs can heal by touch and walk on water – and save the state a billion dollars on Medicaid. But here’re two facts from the General…
Read MoreSchooling Democrats
On Monday, I wondered (“Why is School Out?”) whether Democrats in the legislature have retreated from the education battlefield. On Tuesday – coincidentally, I’m sure – the NC Democratic Party put out a news release: “Teacher Appreciation Week draws attention to consequences of McCrory education cuts: NC approaches massive teacher shortage as class sizes rise,…
Read MoreA Misunderstanding, Chapter 1
The Governor’s biggest challenge, a Republican consultant explained to the newspaper, is coming up with a way to overhaul Medicaid and stopping its persistent cost overruns – if the Governor can do that, the consultant said, it “practically will insure his reelection.” Which sounds fine – except for a misunderstanding. Six years ago, back in…
Read MoreWhy is School Out?
Republican legislators keep undermining public schools. Education goes all but unmentioned in Governor McCrory’s agenda. But Democrats seem to have retreated from the battlefield. In the 2014 campaign, education was the top issue for North Carolina Democrats – in races for county commissioner, the legislature and even U.S. Senate. National issues and President Obama’s…
Read MoreWake Effect
First the legislature retreated on RFRA. Then on Dix. Take a bow, Wake County. And take note of what this portends for 2016. The Republican juggernaut slowed, if only briefly, because Republicans realized they better not push Wake County much farther. Education cuts, tax increases and commissioner-gerrymandering have mobilized Democrats in the county and alienated…
Read MoreAlvin York
I didn’t see much sense in making a lady in Indiana (or anywhere else) cater a gay wedding if she didn’t want to, so I said the Religious Freedom Act sounded like a fine idea – which turned out to be like lighting the fuse to a stick of dynamite. Before I knew it I’d…
Read MoreJim Hunt Documentary on WRAL
Here’s a TV viewing tip for those who want to see the right way to do politics and public service. Wednesday at 7 pm, WRAL will air a one-hour documentary, “State of Mine: The Jim Hunt Story.” It’s narrated by WRAL News anchor David Crabtree and was produced by WRAL News Documentary Producer Clay…
Read MoreCrazy Train
The “religious freedom” train ran off the rails on Jones Street yesterday. House Republicans realized the state would lose business and some of them would lose elections. It was a telling turnaround for a body that had pushed through a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages just a few years back. If you ever doubted…
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