The canary in the coal mine
If budgets reflect priorities, it’s clear that higher education is a low one for Pat McCrory and the Republican legislature. McCrory’s budget would have cut the UNC system by $50 million. The House brought some relief and only cut it by $26 million. These cuts come...
The lure of auto plants
The lure of an auto manufacturer to states, especially those with struggling economies, is huge. It’s not just the jobs they offer and their high paying salaries. It’s also the collateral impact on the economy. Suppliers and services emerge that create even more jobs....
North Carolina’s own bailout
So Pat McCrory and the GOP legislature are celebrating paying off the unemployment insurance debt early. To hear them tell it, the state had been spending so recklessly on unemployment benefits for people who wouldn’t get off the couch and go look for a job that North...
Finger pointing
Well, Pat McCrory lost his auto plant and the finger pointing has begun. Volvo announced yesterday that it will build its first American plant in South Carolina. Almost immediately, Commerce Secretary John Skvarla blamed the legislature for its inaction on legislation...
A budget surplus with a values deficit
Republicans are crowing about the $400 million surplus while progressives are griping. The GOP should be given credit. They used conservative estimates in their budget projections because of the uncertainty of tax reform. To their benefit, the numbers came in better...
Building the Republican narrative
Republicans have had a good week. First, they announced that the state had paid back its debt to the federal government for unemployment insurance. Then yesterday, the Fiscal Research Division of the legislature announced the state would see a $400 million surplus...
Hillary’s hurdle in North Carolina
In 2014, incumbent Senator Kay Hagan led state House Speaker Thom Tillis throughout the year only to lose the election in the final days. A week or so before the election, an astute friend pointed out that Hagan seemed to be stuck at about 46 or 47 percent in the...
A salient issue
In his blog yesterday, Gary Pearce wonders why North Carolina Democrats have backed off promoting education in favor of issues like income equality. An op-ed in today’s News & Observer offers a cautionary tale about cutting taxes at the expense of public...
Hang your ideological purity at the door
My friend Jason Stanford has a wonderful piece in the Austin American-Statesmen today. Jason correctly points out that liberals waiting for things to get so bad that people will eventually vote out hard-right Republicans is a doomed strategy. He’s talking about the...
Who will challenge Burr?
North Carolina Democrats are starting to get a bit nervous about the lack of a US Senate candidate. 2016 could be a good year for Democrats, the first in awhile. The Republican-led legislature and Congress are unpopular, Attorney General Roy Cooper will be a...
