Want to know where NC is heading? Look at SC, circa 1995

by Thomas Mills, Politics North Carolina, July 7, 2015.

For the past 50 years or so, most of the country looked at the two Carolinas and saw two distinctly different states. North Carolina was a beacon of progress in an otherwise backward South. Its business-friendly Democrats supported public education, invested in infrastructure that attracted businesses and navigated the Civil Rights Era better than its neighbors. In contrast, South Carolina was seen as a backward little state stuck in the past with poor schools and a lousy record on Civil Rights. 

Today, the Carolinas are flipping the script. The Republicans who control South Carolina bear a striking resemblance to the Democrats who used to run North Carolina. And the Republicans running North Carolina are embarrassing their state as badly as South Carolina used to embarrass itself. 

In the wake of the Charleston massacre, South Carolina leaders, both Republican and Democrat, came together to support removing the Confederate battle flagfrom the Capitol grounds. Republican Governor Nikki Haley called for it to come down almost immediately after the shooting. Republican Sen. Paul Thurmond, son of the late Senator and Dixiecrat Strom Thurmond, gave a powerful speech calling for its removal. And yesterday, the Republican dominated Senate supported its removal by a vote of 37-3. It needs to pass on third reading today by at least two-thirds majority and most expect it will pass easily. 

In North Carolina, Governor Pat McCrory tried to get into the anti-flag game. He called on the legislature to stop allowing the flags on license plates. However, he got pushback from Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger who basically said, “Do it yourself.” In reality, Berger knows that he couldn’t get his caucus to go along. Too many Republicans are doubling down on their white heritage arguments. McCrory, for his part, seems to have let the matter drop since bringing it up might blow up in his face, exposing both his weakness and an ugly side of the GOP base that Republicans don’t want people to see. 

And it’s not just cultural issues. In public education, South Carolina surpassed North Carolina in per pupil spending and has higher average teacher salaries. They’re investing in community colleges and job training, one of the reasons Volvo stated for choosing South Carolina. And they’re adopting the historic preservation tax credit that North Carolina is scrapping because South Carolina knows that it creates jobs and attracts businesses.

South Carolina is copying much of the model that made North Carolina a national destination. They’ve reeled in their crazies and business moderates are running the state. They’re attracting businesses and investing in their people and infrastructure. 

In contrast, North Carolina Republicans are taking the state down the free-market rabbit hole. They’ve ended programs that are working and slashed funding for education while giving tax breaks to the wealthy. Their gerrymandering has ensured cultural conservatives have enough power and influence to embarrass the state on a regular basis. 

If you really want to know where North Carolina is heading, look at South Carolina, circa 1995.