Pope: Freedom to criticize protected
by Art Pope, State Budget Director, published in News and Observer, June 21, 2014. In regard to Ned Barnett’s June 15 column, “ McKissick’s testimony irks Art Pope”: I was not simply irked... Read More
NC Spin Articles
2016 close in North Carolina
PPP’s newest North Carolina poll previews what could be a pair of very competitive races come 2016. Hillary Clinton has slight leads over potential Republican presidential opponents while Governor... Read More
It wasn't 12,000 people....
The Old Bull Mooses in the State Senate had seen enough so they went on a rampage to repair Medicaid and, before they were done, they’d gored hospitals, doctors, the Governor and just about... Read More
Repealing tax cuts makes a moral budget possible for North Carolina
by Rev. William Barber, president NC NAACP, published in News and Observer, June 20, 2014. A budget is a moral document. Through it, we can measure a state’s values and its vision for the common... Read More
Stewardship, not just spending should be lawmaker focus
Last September Rep. David Price wrote a national column warning that “the appropriations process – that hallmark of Congress’ constitutional authority and wellspring of our power to conduct... Read More
A tangled web of lottery deception
by John Drescher, Executive Editor, News and Observer, June 20, 2014. Sir Walter Scott, the Scottish poet, was writing 200 years ago about the Battle of Flodden Field when he described a “tangled... Read More
NC Jobless rate rises in May as 19,000 enter job market
North Carolina’s jobless rate inched up to 6.4 percent in May as nearly 19,000 job seekers entered the job market in search of work. The uptick in the state’s jobless rate, from 6.2 percent in... Read More
House of cards?
It turns out there’s a three member state commission (named the ‘Board of Review’) – where each Board member is paid $120,000 – for working part-time. Of course, three appointments of... Read More
A subpoena for the state budget director?
The negotiations between House and Senate leaders trying to reach a final budget agreement don’t seem to be going very well as the week comes to an end. The News & Observer reports that State Budget... Read More
Tale of red tape familiar, shameful
Editorial by Jacksonville Daily News, June 19, 2014. Despite what you may have heard, the term “red tape” did not originate with Civil War veterans. Historians point out that red tape was used to... Read More
