nc senate

According to new polls conducted by Public Policy Polling for Progress North Carolina, two Cumberland County legislative seats could be very competitive this fall. (These polls are part of a series of surveys designed to answer the question: “Can progressives retake the NC General Assembly?”)

In Senate District 19, incumbent Republican Sen. Wesley Meredith trails potential Democratic challenger and NC House Rep. Diane Parfitt, 37%-40%. Download the complete results for Senate District 19.

In House District 45, a potential matchup between former Republican county commissioner Diane Wheatley and Democratic school board member Kim Fisher is also close. Wheatley leads Fisher, 38%-36%. Download the complete results for House District 45.

It looks like the Legislative mini-session just ended.

During the session, the NC House voted for the gas tax cap, but the Senate said “Screw it. We’re worrying about that in May.” So it looks like the NC Senate has packed their bags and gone home after only really passing one important thing: the repeal of the Racial Justice Act, which now sits on Perdue’s desk.

Only a professor from the Art Pope School of Fuzzy Math would say that cutting taxes at a time of record deficits and firing 20,000 public employees is good for what ails us. The Wilmington Star News has all the sad details.

The Senate budget that emerged this morning is akin to a white flag of surrender, a retreat from all that we have done to make our state so desirable for families and businesses. The proposed cuts will be felt in every community In North Carolina.

If you thought the House's budget was bad:

Under the Senate plan, cuts to K-12 education would be $800 million. That's about a 15% deeper cut than the House proposal, and more than twice the cut included in Perdue's budget.

Cuts to the community college system would be about 19% deeper than the House plan: $132 million, compared to the House's $111 million.

So, all those job loss numbers that both sides have been tossing around now need to be revised, and not "to the good", either. These backwards idiots are going to ruin this state before they're through.

He who makes the rules rules the kingdom:

If an agency wants a new regulation that doesn't fit into those categories, it would have to come before the legislature, which would assess its relative costs and benefits.

The power of government doesn't rest in oratory or documents, it is manifested in the implementation of such. The Roman Senate knew this, and so does the North Carolina Senate. When Senate Republicans ponder this rulemaking ban, they don't have efficiency or economic growth in mind; for them, this represents the disarming of an opponent's troops.

On Monday, both the North Carolina House and Senate adopted resolutions honoring the Boy Scouts of America in recognition of their 101st anniversary yesterday.

Unsurprisingly, neither resolution (House, Senate) mentions the Scouts' anti-gay and religious discrimination against youth members and adult leaders. And, unsurprisingly yet again, not a single member of the legislature had the courage or conviction to vote against the resolution.

Dear state lawmakers, do you actually care about children -- all children -- or just the straight and religious ones?

(Crossposted from InterstateQ.com)

Also file under: Useless Fights, Wasting Time, and Bad Politics

Those following opening day at the NC General Assembly will have noticed that the new GOP leadership of the Senate is rewriting a few chamber rules. Big whoop. Happens every session.

However, this time the GOP is said to be creating a new position called "parliamentarian" basically to override the Lt Gov's rulings from the chair if they don't like a given ruling.

... and there's a god reason for that!

Courage and Clean Elections

(See what happens when you make me mad?!)

... to slap the Senate Dems this morning after getting a look at the weekend's editorials. Yes, once again, in the face of the reality of the ethics scandals, and the coming indictment of Easley (you know it's going to happen, sooner or later) Dem Senate reps talked a big game and then folded, letting the chance to take the lead on ethics reform slip through their hands. Now they're just standing there, like deer caught in the headlights, waiting for the potshots being lobbied their way to hit them and praying they get out of Raleigh before the Easley mess hits the fan.