Opinion Roundup: Unanswered questions in 9th District investigation, overtime pay for N.C. prison workers, marine debris cleanup and more

Monday, Feb. 25, 2019 -- A round up of opinion, commentary and analysis on: Six unanswered questions in 9th Congressional District investigation, candidates line up to run for vacant Congressional seat, Gov. Cooper ready to give State of the State address, legislature makes another attempt at creating association health plans, overtime pay for N.C. prison workers skyrockets and more.

TRAVIS FAIN: Six unanswered questions in 9th Congressional District investigation (WRAL-TV reports) -- After four and a half days of testimony and hundreds of exhibits, questions remain in the 9th Congressional District investigation. Among them: Who knew what when? And how deep did it go?

Voters in N.C.’s 9th District were cheated out of a fair election. It shouldn’t go unpunished (Washington Post) -- It seems pretty clear that until Mark Harris had to reckon with his son’s testimony about warning him to stay clear of the dubious McRae Dowless, he was willing to ride his shaky 905-vote lead over Democratic candidate Dan McCready to a seat in Congress. Going along on that ride was a Republican Party establishment willing to look the other way at voter fraud as long as it worked to the party’s political advantage. It’s fortunate that election officials — with the help of on-the-ground reporting from local media — uncovered a scheme that was a blatant offense to democracy.

A dramatic reversal, and a new election (Greensboro News & Record) -- In a dramatic turn last week, the testimony of the son of Republican candidate Mark Harris helped to prompt a unanimous vote by the state elections board to order a new election for North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District. This was the right and proper decision. The mounting evidence of fraud in the November election made that obvious.

MICHAEL BITZER: Three lessons from N.C.’s tainted election -- and what comes next (Washington Post column) -- When the North Carolina State Board of Elections’ investigation of the 9th Congressional District ended with a call for a new election, the nation witnessed what is probably the first federal election overturned because of fraud. As a new campaign begins, three key lessons can be learned from 2018’s tainted contest.

E.J. DIONNE: History will mark how many Republicans shy from Trump’s extremism (Washington Post column) -- There was a delicious irony to last week’s unanimous ruling by the N.C. Board of Elections that it was a Republican candidate for Congress, Mark Harris, who found himself accused of massive voter fraud. As a result, the board threw out the district’s 2018 election results and called a new election.

BRIAN MURPHY: Harris took ‘step of faith.’ Now his election must be redone and future is uncertain (Charlotte Observer reports) -- How Mark Harris of Charlotte went from pastor to a politician, whose apparent win in 9th Congressional District became part of an election fraud investigation. State Board of Elections called for a new election.

A new 9th District election (Winston-Salem Journal) -- In a dramatic stunner, the testimony of the son of Republican candidate Mark Harris helped to prompt a unanimous vote by the state elections board to order a new election for North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District.

9th Dist. election misconduct an assault on our first principles (Wilmington Star-News) -- Voters having confidence that elections are fair and accurate lies at the very heart of our system of governance

New 9th District election is just the beginning (Fayetteville Observer) -- The State Board of Elections hearings have ended and there will be a new election for the 9th Congressional District. It’s been clear for some time now that apparent wrongdoing in the last election made a new one necessary. But that is just the beginning of the repair work that needs to be done, an urgent first step but many more to come. The elections board has much work ahead, beginning with coordination a new congressional election in the 9th, as well as a repeat of several smaller races

JANNETT PIPPIN: Candidates line up to run for vacant Congressional seat (Jacksonville Daily News reports) -- As the wait continues for a decision on a special election following the death of Congressman Walter Jones, the number of candidates planning to run for North Carolina’s 3rd District Congressional seat continues to grow.

JIM MORRILL: Former NC Gov. Pat McCrory says he won’t run for 9th District Congressional seat (Charlotte Observer reports) -- Former North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory said Monday that he will not run for Congress in the state’s 9th District, hours after a tweet that suggested he might.

JESSICA PATRICK: Former Gov. Pat McCrory says he won't seek District 9 seat (WRAL reports) -- Former North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory ruled out a bid for the District 9 seat but announced that he will "keep his options open" for other positions. McCrory added that his current passion is teaching political sciences classes at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Gov. Cooper ready to give State of the State address (AP reports) -- Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper is ready to share his agenda to a North Carolina legislature that became more Democratic after November election results and to the public.

COLIN CAMPBELL: Pipeline Probe (The Insider reports) -- Republican legislators are demanding assurances from the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality that DEQ employees won't face retribution if they speak to private investigators probing the Atlantic Coast Pipeline approval process. Employees in Gov. Roy Cooper's administration were told not to speak with the investigators, who are working for a legislative oversight committee questioning whether the pipeline permits were inappropriately tied to other matters. Cooper's chief of staff has offered to make employees available for questioning in a public committee hearing, but no such hearing has yet been scheduled as the investigators' work continues.

Flexibility benefits students (Winston-Salem Journal) -- A flurry of bills introduced in the state House seeks to provide more flexibility for public school districts’ calendars. They deserve to pass despite resistance from members of the legislature who would like to keep that power in state hands.

DAVID SINCLAIR: Bill Aims to Legalize ‘Casino Night’ Events for Nonprofits (Southern Pines Pilot reports) -- State Rep. Jamie Boles has again filed legislation that would allow nonprofit fundraising events featuring casino-style games and alcohol.

ROSE HOBAN: Legislature makes another attempt at creating association health plans (NC Health News reports) -- After failing to create alternative health insurance plans for small businesses last year, General Assembly members propose a new bill to make them legal in NC.

MARTHA WAGGONER: Poor People's Campaign to hold bus tours of poverty areas (AP reports) -- The Poor People's Campaign will hold bus tours of poverty-stricken areas in more than 20 states to call attention to "what the national emergencies really are" in the wake of President Donald Trump's emergency declaration over the U.S.-Mexico border, a leader of the campaign says. The tours will begin in late March and continue through April, said the Rev. William Barber of North Carolina. Participants will include poor people, religious and political leaders and other advocates, he said.

AMES ALEXANDER: ‘It could be you’: Anti-violence group decries surge in Charlotte murders (Charlotte Observer reports) — Twenty-two homicides. Fifty-four days. Members of the anti-violence group Mothers of Murdered Offspring recited that grim statistic Sunday afternoon as they turned out to an east Charlotte cemetery to protest the surge in Charlotte’s murder rate this year.

SCOTT SEXTON: Measure of true justice in trooper's death handed down by unlikeliest court (Winston-Salem Journal column) -- The words “deadbeat dad” do not appear anywhere in the official, 13-page summary of a litigious settlement over death benefits the state must pay to the legal next-of-kin of a trooper killed in the line of duty. There’s no need to spell it out. The document meticulously outlines it in great detail using records of missed — blown off, actually — child support payments and judicial orders.

EASTER MAYNARD: Stronger kids and families make a stronger NC (Fayetteville Observer column) -- We need to strengthen families to build a strong community. It all starts with smart infant and toddler programs and services. By participating in the ” Think Babies NC” campaign private and public organizations are working to create healthy beginnings for our children, provide high-quality early care and education and support families.

CELIA RIVENBARK: Too many donkeys on 2020 trail (Wilmington Star-News column) -- Forget the measles epidemic. Let’s concentrate instead on developing a vaccine that we could use to fill a syringe and plunge into the necks of the next well-intentioned Democrat who announces he or she is running for president. It may be our only hope or they’ll just keep spreading, clogging up the coffee shops in New Hampshire and the VFW halls in South Carolina.

Frank Balance, ex-state lawmaker and congressman dies (WITN-TV reports) -- Frank Balance Jr., a former state representative, senator and eastern NC Congressman has died, according to Congressman G.K. Butterfield. Ballance plead guilty in 2004 and served a 4-year sentence for using a nonprofit to divert taxpayer money to his family. He maintained his innocence and said he was unfairly targeted by federal prosecutors.

Fort Fisher renovations long overdue (Wilmington Star-News) -- Who says bipartisanship is dead? Congratulations to state Reps. Ted Davis (R-New Hanover) and Deb Butler (D-New Hanover) for teaming up to try to get $7.5 million for the Fort Fisher State Historic Site. It’s a worthy goal. We have to hope that Davis’ increasing House seniority offers some leverage.

ANTHONY MOODY: Despite evidence, vaccine protests continue (Durham-Herald Sun column) — Sixty-five years ago, the polio vaccine developed by Jonas Salk was tested in a landmark efficacy trial. Participants in the trial were called “Polio Pioneers,” and families lined up to receive a vaccine they hoped would prevent their children from contracting this terrifying disease that can cause paralysis and death.

GAVIN OFF: Overtime pay for N.C. prison workers skyrockets, raising safety concerns (Charlotte Observer reports) — NC paid prison officers more than $45 million in overtime last year, about 10 times more than it did in 2011, data show. The increase comes as the state struggles to hire and retain prison workers, men and women who supervise some 36,400 inmates. Records show the vacancy rate for officer positions doubled since January 2016, increasing from 9 percent to about 18 percent last December.

WESLEY YOUNG: Work to move Confederate statue begins in Winston-Salem (Winston-Salem Journal reports) — Workers used a lift to examine the structure of the Confederate statue in downtown Winston-Salem this morning in preparation for the removal of the statue at a date that has not yet been revealed by the city.

ANTONETTE KERR: Criminal Justice Experts Say NC's Death Penalty Should Be Abolished (Public News Service reports) — Criminal justice experts in NC are calling the death penalty part of a "sordid history" of racial terror. A brief filed in a NC case by the nonprofit Promise of Justice Initiative argues that capital punishment now is used so rarely that it should be considered "cruel or unusual" under the state Constitution.

GARY ROBERTSON: School construction brings together Gov. Cooper, GOP speaker (AP reports) -- Political adversaries for the past two years, Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper and a top Republican legislative leader are now rare allies on whittling down North Carolina public schools' construction and repair needs.

SCOTT JASCHIK: Yearbook Review Finds Dean With Confederate Flag (Inside Higher Ed reports) -- Wake Forest stands behind admissions dean and notes her work to promote diversity. Not everyone agrees with the university's decision. Associate dean of admissions found in separate photos with Confederate flag.

More SROs needed? (Greensboro News & Record) -- Placing police officers in more of North Carolina’s public schools could be a positive step toward increasing school safety — if it’s done the right way.

ADAM OWENS & SARAH KRUEGER: Dueling groups rally at UNC after removal of more monuments (WRAL-TV reports) -- Two dueling groups rallied in the rain at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on Saturday afternoon.

Duke undergrad tuition to increase to more than $55k (AP reports) -- Parents of undergrad students at Duke University will have to dig a little deeper into their pockets next year.

ECSU to build drone facility (Elizbeth City Daily Advance reports) -- Elizabeth City State University plans to build a new drone flight training facility this year, and it's recruiting the city of Elizabeth City to help build it. ECSU is looking to invest $240,000 to build a new Outdoor Unmanned Aircraft Systems Pavilion.

Lawmakers hypocritical on school calendar control (Elizabeth City Daily Advance) -- Politicians take positions or votes all the time at variance to what they purport are their core beliefs. But we continue to be confounded by one particular example of hypocrisy.

MARTHA QUILLIN: Silent Sam is gone, but pro-Confederacy and anti-racist groups still clash at UNC (Durham-Herald Sun reports) — Six months after the toppling of Silent Sam and a month after the erasure of the Confederate statue’s stone base from the UNC campus, pro-monument and anti-racist protesters battled again Saturday at the site with banners, bull horns and Bluetooth speakers.

LIZ BELL: Literacy summit brings universities and districts together to delve into teaching kids to read (EdNC reports) — As policymakers push for higher third-grade reading proficiency and programs like Read to Achieve struggle to make a difference, colleges of education are finding ways to better prepare and support teachers and teachers are finding ways to improve literacy instruction.

Man finds pile of 70 dead coyotes near Charlotte neighborhood (CNN reports) -- A group of people made a startling discovery near a Charlotte neighborhood, saying someone dumped the carcasses of dozens of coyotes in a nearby wooded area.

KATHERINE KOLLINS: Amazon facility shows wind's benefit to economy (Elizabeth City Daily Advance column) -- This month, the Amazon Wind Farm marks two years of commercial operation and generating clean, renewable energy — and over three years of delivering benefits to Pasquotank and Perquimans counties. There is much to celebrate and more opportunities on the horizon. The wind farm has brought lasting economic benefits to northeastern North Carolina that will continue to have positive impacts for many years to come.

JENNIFER ALLEN: Watermen Continue Marine Debris Cleanup (Coastal Review Online reports) — After pulling up to one of the many small, uninhabited islands dotting the waters near downtown on Valentine’s Day, a crew of around half-dozen men carrying 42-gallon black contractor trash bags hopped off one of two boats at the shore.

JANINE BOWEN: Mayor says beavers may be to blame for damage to Cary road (WRAL-TV reports) -- Beavers may be behind a dip that has recently developed on Green Level Church Road in Cary, according to Mayor Harold Weinbrecht.

Liquidlogic shows off kayak-making in Fletcher (Hendersonville Times-News reports) -- Liquidlogic’s Fletcher factory is bursting at the seams now that winter is turning toward spring, and the kayak manufacturer is busy readying for what co-founder Shane Benedict compares to a farmer’s spring harvest.