GOP budget standoff: North Carolina House Republicans advance proposal that Senators say is too generous
Lynn Bonner
Republicans in the state Legislature came under attack from all sides on Wednesday as they tentatively approved a $31.7 billion budget proposal.
House Democrats have slammed the budget for proposing to spend about $500 million on private school vouchers, money they say would be better spent boosting public school teacher pay, providing more help to child care providers struggling as pandemic-era federal aid dried up and providing emergency funding for state employee health insurance.[Read more...]
Bonus reading: Republican state budget impasse: Votes but no breakthrough
North Carolina lawmakers, activists call for action to address Black maternal health crisis
Ahmed Jallow
When Charity Watkins found out she was pregnant in 2016, then a PhD student, she did all the right things, meticulously following all the recommended steps to ensure a smooth and healthy pregnancy.
“I started my prenatal care. My husband and I took childbirth classes, read books about what to expect during birth, and made sure I ate well and exercised during my pregnancy,” said Watkins, who is Black. [Read more…]
Governor Cooper vetoes bill to change campaign finance laws and target mask wearing
Clayton Henkel
Gov. Roy Cooper on Friday vetoed House Bill 237, a miscellaneous criminal and election law reform bill, saying the controversial bill would create a major loophole for secret and unlimited campaign financing.
“While voters are in the dark, this plan would allow anonymous out-of-state billionaires to flood North Carolina with campaign funds to bail out a far-right candidate that Republicans fear will lose,” Cooper said in a statement.
Good government groups widely criticized the bill, which initially only required wearing masks in public, but it was later amended to include language that would make sweeping changes to the state's campaign finance laws. [Read more...]
Medical marijuana passes first vote in North Carolina Senate with bipartisan support
Clayton Henkel
Late addition to cannabis bill sparks debate on family values, compassionate care
“We all have compassion and we all want to help those in need,” Jere Royal of the North Carolina Family Policy Council told members of the Senate Rules Committee Thursday morning, expressing disappointment with the latest version of House Bill 563. The day before, a lengthy amendment was added to a bill regulating hemp-derived consumer products in order to legalize medical marijuana in North Carolina. [Read more…]
Bonus reading: North Carolina medical marijuana bill gets new life as state moves to regulate hemp-derived consumer products
The North Carolina state legislative budget proposal calls for $135 million in child care stabilization grants.
Greg Childress
Despite the challenges, Habitat for Humanity of Durham will be donating three new homes this week.
Surrounded by friends and staff from Habitat for Humanity of Durham, Laura Phoenix was overcome with emotion during the dedication of her new home in East Durham on Thursday.
Just a year ago, the 43-year-old yoga instructor found herself without a permanent home after a bad breakup, for only the second time in her adult life. [Read more…]
Vice President Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff, and Democratic Party leaders celebrate Juneteenth at campaign event in Raleigh
Rob Scofield
The Second Gentleman calls on the audience to “save our democracy, our world and our very way of life.”
The second gentleman.
The official title held by Doug Emhoff, husband of America's first female Vice President, Kamala Harris, is unique and rather awkward — but he seemed to have some fun with it as he campaigned in Raleigh on Tuesday with his wife for President Biden's reelection in November.
Emhoff appeared relaxed and at ease as he spoke to a crowd of about 200 people in the stuffy back parking lot of Word of God Church in southeast Raleigh during an informal Juneteenth celebration that featured food trucks, concessions, children's games and an elementary school choir performance.[Read more.…]
Juneteenth: A Pivotal Moment for Our Nation's Past and Present (Explanation)
Rob Scofield
What on earth were they thinking?
This is one of the questions most white Americans ask themselves regularly (at least we hope so) when contemplating the evil of human slavery, the institution that underpins much of our modern privilege and wealth: How can humans ever think they have the right to own other people because of the color of their skin? [Read more…]
