Thursday Wrap: Fighting a losing cause

Democrats fought the good fight Thursday in trying to make changes to the Senate budget before the the Republican majority in the chamber gave preliminary approval to the $23.9 billion spending plan.

Posted 12:22 a.m. May 31, 2019 — Updated 12:22 a.m. May 31, 2019

RALEIGH, N.C. — Democrats fought the good fight Thursday in trying to make changes to the Senate budget before the the Republican majority in the chamber gave preliminary approval to the $23.9 billion spending plan.

Sen. Don David, D-Pitt, angrily accused Republicans of "attacking" eastern North Carolina because of budget language that would cost a Greenville hospital $35 million next year as part of a dispute between the hospital and the UNC Board of Governors.

Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger cut the mic for Sen. Terry Van Dyne, D-Buncombe, when she continued arguing for Medicaid expansion after he ruled her amendment out of order.

Before the budget debate, a Senate committee heard public comments on the annual farm bill and got an earful from critics:

Law enforcement officials worry about the push to expand the hemp industry would essentially decriminalize marijuana.
Environmentalists said provisions on hog waste lagoons fly in the face of the state's long-standing moratorium on expanding waste lagoons.
Rural residents complained that exempting shooting ranges from local zoning rules as "agritourism" harms their property values and quality of life.

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