Crappy PR
When you’ve got bad news, get it out. It only gets worse with age. Pat McCrory’s new-look DENR failed that test last week, at a time when people were watching closely how the administration... Read More
NC Spin Articles
GOP focuses on Barber
One of the more noteworthy developments of a new election year is the decision by the North Carolina Republican Party to try to use the Rev. William Barber, the state NAACP head, as a cudgel to beat... Read More
HPU poll: Obama at 40 percent approval, McCrory at 37 percent
A new HPU Poll finds that 40 percent of North Carolina residents approve of President Barack Obama’s job performance while 37 percent approve of Gov. Pat McCrory’s job performance. Fifty-four... Read More
State government needs to be run, not reviewed
Editorial by News and Observer, February 3, 2014. The McCrory administration is about to undertake an effort to review and assess state government with an eye toward reducing waste or wrongheaded... Read More
NC group urges teachers to reject contract offers
A group representing North Carolina teachers said Monday it is expanding efforts to fight a state law that phases out job protections in place for more than 40 years in favor of employment contracts... Read More
Survey data rebut claims about teacher dissatisfaction
We have heard it time and time again. Teachers are demoralized, depressed, and dissatisfied. If lawmakers do not do something fast, then thousands of teachers will leave the state or the profession. A... Read More
NC universities lead in affordability
Editorial by News and Observer, February 2, 2014. Amid all the turmoil of the last several years involving academic scandal and athletics, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has... Read More
NC reading law needs fix
Editorial by News and Observer, February 2, 2014. State Sen. Phil Berger, the chamber’s president pro tem and one of the state’s most powerful politicians, made great show of backing a law to... Read More
Online tax collections
The writing may well be on the proverbial wall when it comes to the collection of state and local sales tax from online sales. If so, it comes as no surprise that Congress will have put very few of... Read More
If they only knew
I’ve devoted several recent columns to the subject of unemployment insurance (UI) and North Carolina’s labor market. That’s because the topic is an important and timely one, both within... Read More
