Opinion
Opinion Roundup: Wake County redistricting, Republican tax package, heath care pricing and more
Friday, May 17, 2019 -- A round up of opinion, commentary and analysis on: Trump tweets 'Complete and Total Endorsement' for Dan Bishop in District 9, court-ordered redrawing underway for Wake County legislative districts, Republican tax package gets initial state Senate OK, treasurer moves forward with health care pricing plan and more.
Posted — UpdatedFriday, May 17, 2019 -- A round up of opinion, commentary and analysis on: Trump tweets 'Complete and Total Endorsement' for Dan Bishop in District 9, court-ordered redrawing underway for Wake County legislative districts, Republican tax package gets initial state Senate OK, treasurer moves forward with health care pricing plan and more.
SPECIAL CAMPAIGNS & ELECTIONS 2019
JOE MARUSAK: Trump tweets ‘Complete and Total Endorsement’ for Dan Bishop in District 9 (Charlotte Observer reports) -- President Donald Trump tweeted his support Thursday for fellow Republican Dan Bishop in the 9th Congressional District race, saying Bishop has “my Complete and Total Endorsement!” “Congratulations to Dan Bishop on his big Republican Primary victory in the 9th Congressional District of North Carolina,” the president tweeted. “Dan is strong on Crime, Loves our Military, Vets, 2A, and great Healthcare.” In six hours, the president’s tweet received 44,000 likes and 10,000 retweets.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2019
KIRK ROSS: Court-ordered redrawing underway for Wake County legislative districts (Carolina Public Press reports) -- With a court imposed deadline less than six weeks away for House elections, state officials have started the process of redrawing seven Wake County legislative districts that a state court last year ruled were unconstitutional. The General Assembly did not appeal the ruling by a special three-judge panel, but it came too late in the year for the court to order new districts in last year’s elections. Democrats swept Wake County’s 11 House districts in 2018, ousting three GOP legislators. At a meeting Thursday, Rep. David Lewis, R-Harnett, N.C. House Redistricting Committee chairman, said the new process would only involve redrawing seven of the 11 districts and move on a somewhat faster track than the statewide redraw in 2017. Four House districts, 36, 37, 40 and 41, are to revert to the boundaries they had from 2012-16, according to the court order.
After another court ruling, NC House back to redistricting (AP reports) -- legislative panel has a narrow task — redraw lines for seven House districts in and around the state capital. The House Redistricting Committee met to discuss rules and parameters for passing legislation needed to comply with a state court's ruling last year. Judges declared Republican mapmakers went too far in its 2017 House redistricting by redrawing four Wake County districts that hadn't been struck down in previous litigation. Those districts will now return to their 2011 shapes, but that means the other seven in Wake must be readjusted. State courts told the General Assembly to finish by June 30. Committee senior chairman Rep. David Lewis says colleagues can offer their own remapping proposals, and the committee will meet June 6 to vote on a plan.
KEN CUCCINELLI: N.C. should block this Duke Energy power grab (Wilmington Star-News column) -- As the former Attorney General in Virginia, I’ve been following with interest the progress of a bill that, as the StarNews correctly noted in an April 29 editorial, would be “extremely convenient for the power company.” Key provisions to extend the period of time between utility company rate cases are embedded within N.C. Senate Bill 559, being debated at the N.C. General Assembly. Similar provisions hurt Virginia customers, and will hurt North Carolina customers, too.
GARY ROBERTSON: Republican tax package gets initial state Senate OK (AP reports) -- This year's favored tax package for Republicans at the General Assembly has received preliminary Senate approval.
TRAVIS FAIN: A thumbs up for major business tax cut in Senate (WRAL-TV reports) -- Republicans are pushing to phase out the state's franchise tax, but a veto possibility looms.
More sales tax options for NC counties get House support (AP reports) -- All counties would have more choices on how to spend additional sales tax revenues that local voters approve in legislation advancing at the General Assembly.
LAURA LESLIE: Lawmakers may give counties more flexibility on using local sales tax revenue (WRAL-TV reports) -- Counties around the state may soon be asking voters to raise the local sales tax.
COLIN CAMPBELL: Consumer committee (The Insider reports) -- Medicaid expansion is a top priority for members of the state's Consumer and Family Advisory Committee, an advisory board within the Department of Health and Human Services that addresses issues related to mental health, developmental disabilities and substance abuse. The board, known as CFAC, held its annual advocacy day Thursday at the legislature.
POLICY & POLITICS
'Buy now,' NCSU economist advises consumers before Trump’s tariffs bring higher prices (WRAL-TV reports) -- American consumers could be hit the hardest by the U.S. trade war with China, as higher tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump translate into higher prices.
Sanders makes 2 N.C. stops during Southern swing (AP reports) -- Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is making his first public appearances in N.C. for his 2020 presidential bid as part of a long weekend traveling through the South.
ADAM OWENS: Chatham County group claims probation officer has Confederate ties (WRAL-TV reports) -- A group of citizens in Chatham County is asking for a probation officer to be removed from his job because of ties he has to a Confederate heritage group.
AMANDA LAMB: Wake DA taking harder stand against 'STAYUMBL' driver with history of traffic offenses (WRAL-TV reports) -- A Durham woman who was cited last month in connection with an incident involving a school bus now has a warrant out for her arrest in Wake County.
TYLER DUKES: NC public safety agency gave $1.7M in raises to senior officers, staff (WRAL-TV reports) -- The state Department of Public Safety raised salaries for more than 300 senior leaders and law enforcement officers in April, totaling about $1.7 million annually.
GAVIN OFF: Department leader gets a $23,000 raise as prison officers flee because of low pay (Charlotte Observer reports) -- When Aaron Parson left his job as a prison officer last year, he was making $32,000. The income, he said, barely helped to support a wife and two kids. So when N.C. Department of Public Safety Secretary Erik Hooks received a $23,400 pay raise last month, Parson’s thought: “The people who run the prisons in Raleigh only look out for themselves,” he said.
Company announces $2.3M investment, 60 jobs for Cumberland County (Fayetteville Observer reports) -- E-N-G Mobile Systems LLC, a designer and manufacturer of specialized vehicles, is investing $2.3 million in a new facility in Cumberland County and creating 60 jobs, officials announced Thursday. The company, with headquarters in Concord, California, will be locating its first East Coast design and manufacturing operations in Fayetteville.
Sacking of N.C. elections director is ugly politics (Fayetteville Observer) -- If it ain’t broke, the old adage warns us, don’t fix it. That does not apply to politics and especially to political appointees. Even if appointed civil servants are doing a brilliant job, if they’re from the wrong party, they’re history. So it goes for Kim Strach, the Republican-appointed executive director of the State Board of Elections, who was ousted by the board this week on a party-line vote. And never mind that even the Democrats on the board couldn’t find a bad thing to say about her.
JEFF SINER: Big break for taxpayers: Mecklenburg reduced property values by $1 billion so far (Charlotte Observer reports) -- There’s good news for property owners looking to lower their tax bills after the latest revaluation: the county has reduced more than $1 billion in property values through the appeals process. The deadline to file a formal appeal for the 2019 property revaluation is Monday.
EDUCATION
ALEX GUARINO: UNC BOG member Tom Fetzer’s ‘sexist’ comments anger UNC-W graduation audience (WECT-TV reports) -- Not everyone in the audience was happy with comments delivered at UNC-Wilmington's graduation. Thomas Fetzer, a member of the UNC Board of Governors, former Raleigh mayor and state GOP chair, did not read the comments prepared for him by the UNCW Office of University Relations. Instead, he spoke for several minutes on topics including continuing education and personal finance. On the subject of debt, he advised graduates to stay out of it, but told the young men in the audience they might want to borrow when buying engagement jewelry. "Because it will appreciate, and so will she," Fetzer said. Christina Logan, director of UNCW Transition Programs, said she received several faculty emails about Fetzer's comments, including one describing them as sexist.
FERREL GUILLORY: Schools pave a pathway to the American Dream (EdNC column) -- Five years ago, a team of scholars published an illuminating study with an astonishing map that caught the attention of many of us in North Carolina. The map raised an unsettling question: Why does the American Dream appear elusive for so many young North Carolinians? In its color-coding, the map showed much of North Carolina — and a large swath of the South — in the darkest hue, indicating places of weakest upward mobility. “The fact that children who grow up in low-income families in Atlanta and Raleigh fare poorly is perhaps especially striking because these cities are generally considered to be booming cities in the South with relatively high rates of job growth,” wrote the Harvard-Berkeley scholars led by economist Raj Chetty.
Some don't want superintendent at N Carolina PTA convention (AP reports) -- North Carolina's PTA is holding its annual convention and the group's welcome for the state's schools superintendent is getting some opposition from some members.
NC no longer requires proctors. But some schools still want them for test ‘security.’ (Durham Herald-Sun reports) -- Some schools are still requiring test proctors even though it’s no a longer a state requirement.
MARK PRICE: Franklin Graham bashes PBS cartoon ‘Arthur’ after character’s gay marriage (Charlotte Observer reports) -- Evangelist Franklin Graham is asking his nearly 2 million Twitter followers to challenge federal funding for PBS, after a character on one of the network’s cartoons came out as gay and got married. Graham says the same-sex marriage of Mr. Ratburn, a third grade teacher on the long-running children’s cartoon “Arthur,” is “promoting the LGBTQ agenda.”
HEALTH
ROSE HOBAN: Treasurer moves forward with health care pricing plan despite uncertainty (N.C. Health News reports) -- The state House of Representatives wants to slow down plans for changing how the state health plan pays for employee health care. But the Senate has yet to act.
Norovirus possibly to blame after about 60 fall ill at event (AP reports) -- Health officials on the NC coast say norovirus may be what caused nearly 60 people to get sick at a recent charity event. The Dare County Department of Health and Human Services says on its webpage that there were about 250 people at the event in Manteo on May 3.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
National seashore on Hatteras Island gets new beach access (AP reports) -- A new beach access and parking area is opening along Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
JENNIFER ALLEN: Cape Lookout Rolls Out Summer Programs (Coastal Review reports) -- The staff at Cape Lookout National Seashore recently announced activities and schedules for the 2019 season to help visitors plan their escape to the park’s 56 miles of undeveloped beach.
VINCE WINKEL: More PFAS Well Testing Coming In New Hanover County (WUNC reports) -- This week in Washington, the House Committee on Energy & Commerce held hearings on 13 PFAS bills introduced in Congress. PFAS are toxic fluorinated chemicals, found in the Cape Fear River and across much of the country.
…AND MORE
LAINE HIGGINS: The NHL Team That Acts Like a Pro Football Franchise (Wall Street Journal reports) With choreographed dance celebrations and rowdy tailgates, the Carolina Hurricanes have built a loyal fan base using tactics adopted from the gridiron.
TOM FOREMAN: A separate war - Pioneering black Marines endured, prevailed (AP reports) -- It was the dress blue uniforms that drew John Thompson to join the U.S. Marines, where black men were not welcome, so he could defend a country that denied him the rights he wanted to fight for.
CASS HERRINGTON: A Region Talks Back: Linguists Record Diverse Dialects of Appalachia (WUNC reports) -- Appalachian English is a term linguists use to describe the speech patterns of people in Appalachia. It’s also referred to as “mountain talk.” But there’s variation within the dialect, just as there is among the nearly 26 million people who populate the diverse region, which covers 13 states.
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