This is a weekly feature of North Carolina Blue. We hope this regular platform will give readers interested in North Carolina politics a place to share their knowledge, insight and inspiration as we work on taking back our state from some of the most extreme Republicans in the nation. Please join us every week as we try to Connect, Unite and Act with our community of North Carolina Daily Kos members. You can also join the discussion in five other weekly State Open Threads.
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Please jump the fold for interesting stories on North Carolina politics you might have missed.
North Carolinians Overwhelmingly Agree: No "Carolina Comeback"
McCrory's campaign focuses on the "Carolina Comeback," however new polling shows that only a small minority of North Carolinians are feeling a comeback. Only 25% of voters claim that North Carolina's economy is stronger than it was four years ago when McCrory took office. While there might have been a comeback for big corporations and the wealthy, average NCians aren't feeling it.
Too Little, Too Late for McCrory and State Employees
Monday, it was announced that state employees will receive a bonus added to their October checks, just two weeks shy of Election Day. The coincidental timing of the bonuses and Election Day leaves little room for debate that this is a political strategy for McCrory to get the over 62,000 state employees out to vote for him. Unfortunately for him, 4 years of neglect won't be forgotten with one minuscule raise.
McCrory's Chief of Staff Accuses Scientist of Perjury Without Reading Deposition
A few months ago, in response to a leaked deposition by Dr. Ken Rudo, McCrory's chief of staff, Thomas Stith, rushed out with a late night press conference in which he accused Rudo of perjury. Now it turns out that Stith hadn't even read the deposition when he held his press conference. Stith had very little information regarding this case, only knowing what others in the McCrory administration told him. He also refused to answer any direct questions about coal ash pollution in his deposition, leading us to wonder what exactly the McCrory administration is hiding.
Five Questions with Henry Rollins
When Gov. Pat McCrory signed HB2 into law in March, huge music acts like Bruce Springsteen and Pearl Jam cancelled shows, boycotting the state to protest the discriminatory law. Other acts, like comedian Louis C.K., booked extra shows in the state and donated the money to pro-LGBT groups. Henry Rollins, the Grammy-winning author, singer, actor and activist had no intention of canceling his three spoken-word shows in North Carolina – Oct. 15 in Asheville, Oct. 16 in Durham and Charlotte on October 18.And he didn’t wait to hit the stage to air his views on HB2.
In a scathing L.A. Weekly column, the former Black Flag frontman took on McCrory and U.S. Rep. Mark Walker, who defended HB2 and criticized Springsteen’s boycott.
Using Legislative "Privilege" to obscure racial gerrymandering
Trudy Wade & Company defy judges order: Webster gave the legislators 30 days to create a list of documents they want to keep private — and to describe the documents and explain why they should be withheld. He said he would look at the privilege log privately, then decide whether to make legislators comply with the subpoenas.
But creating such a list — even for a judge’s eyes only — would create a “chilling effect” on confidential communication between lawmakers and staff members, attorneys for the legislators said in Thursday’s filing.
If those communications had any impact on how legislation would be written or implemented, it should not be confidential. It's called "public policy" for a reason. And since this particular piece of legislation deals directly with the voting process, the need for transparency is doubled. And it's the height of arrogance the GOP thinks this is a sound argument.
Greenwashing comes to the Burr/Ross race
Taking their cue from Jay Faison:
Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions says it is spending $120,000 on the buy, which will air commercials in Raleigh and Charlotte.
“Senator Richard Burr deserves to be commended for his record of supporting renewable energy, promote conservation, and place the economic needs and health of North Carolinians before partisanship,” said CRES Chairman and Executive Director James Dozier. And just like Faison's group, peel a few layers of this onion and you find a focus on natural gas and nukes: Congressman Kinzinger has actively promoted the diversity of energy sources that are powering the 16th District and the solutions at work that could be developed across the country. Responding to a question about how we secure America’s energy future, the congressman said, “If we want to be wealthy in terms of energy, and we want to have green energy, and we want to be able to have a clean environment and a strong economy, these are decisions we have to make today. And so it’s a conversation that I think needs to happen more.”
Saturday News: You've been served, Governor
OBSERVER FILES SUIT AGAINST MCCRORY OVER HB2 EMAILS (Charlotte Observer) -- Five months after failing to provide public documents requested by the Charlotte Observer, the newspaper filed a lawsuit against Gov. Pat McCrory seeking a court order for release of the requested emails related to House Bill 2. The newspaper first requested the e-mails on April 5. On April 7, Graham Wilson of the governor’s press office acknowledged the request, but the Observer has yet to receive the requested documents.
Will today be the day?
Will today be the day that Richard Burr and Pat McCrory finally try to distance themselves from their pal, from the sexual predator that is Donald Trump? Their judgment about the character of Mr. Trump is even worse than their judgment about public policy, and that's pretty damn bad.
Victory for Dukeville: Coal ash to be removed
Of course it took a lawsuit to make it happen: On Tuesday the Yadkin Riverkeeper and Waterkeeper Alliance, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center, reached a settlement with Duke Energy that requires the removal of all the coal ash from the unlined, leaking coal ash pits at Duke Energy’s Buck Steam Station facility on the Yadkin River in Salisbury, North Carolina. This is good news for the people who live near the plant.
Duke Energy, in a dig to the human beings who live near the Buck plant and have been vigorously advocating for clean water, issued a statement claiming that the decision was “Just business” and that coal ash is “safe”. They made no mention of the human cost of their profits.
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