Beasley is assembling a new team in preparation for a 2022 U.S. Senate bid and an announcement could come in days.
Sen. Kathy Harrington, R-Gaston, doesn’t seem impressed at becoming the first female majority leader of the N.C. Senate. She is one of the most powerful lawmakers in Raleigh. She sports a concealed-carry permit, and her daughter is a law enforcement officer. She listens more than she talks, and she doesn’t forget. She is not someone...
North Carolina’s lawmakers are moving to advance school choice. Republicans on Thursday, Jan. 28, introduced House Bill 32, Equity in Opportunity Act, to reform the Opportunity Scholarship program. The bill would expand low-income students’ access to scholarships, integrate state funding, streamline the program for students with special needs, and boost outreach to low-income families. The...
Gov. Roy Cooper’s office is creating a new position and filling it with a longtime staffer from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, one of the top philanthropic funders of left-wing causes in North Carolina. The position, called a philanthropy liaison, will be filled by Joy Vermillion Heinsohn. Heinsohn currently serves as assistant director for the...
Editor’s note: This story was updated 2:30 Thursday, Jan. 28, to include comments from panelists who took part in a discussion about the Civitas Poll. North Carolina voters don’t approve of the governor’s restrictive rules on school reopening, and they want their children to return to the classroom. A Civitas Poll released Thursday, Jan. 28,...
A N.C. State Board of Education meeting Wednesday, Jan. 27, became a flashpoint in the national debate over racism and American identity. Some Republicans complained proposed social studies standards were full of negativity, identity politics, and social agendas. Democrats argued that systemic racism exists, saying children should learn multiple perspectives on their country’s history. The...
A Democratic litigator predicted North Carolina will be among a handful of states to turn blue in upcoming elections due to increasing turnout among minority and college-educated voters. Election lawyer Marc Elias made the comments during a digital briefing Tuesday, Jan. 26, sponsored by Third Way, a progressive Washington, D.C.-based think tank. Elias, currently serving...
With President Biden in the White House and Democrats in control of both houses of Congress, conservatives are bracing for a flurry of policy changes on issues they care about. Already, the Biden administration has unleashed nearly two dozen executive orders related to immigration, climate change, and gender identity. When Congress comes back into session,...
The coronavirus pandemic has created a window of opportunity for school choice, says a panel of experts at a John Locke Foundation Shaftesbury. School choice advocates want to upend education funding. They hope to tie funding to students instead of public-school systems, and they believe historic levels of learning loss could fuel their reforms. They...
N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein wants lawmakers to use millions won from a settlement with Dish Network for violating telemarketing laws to expand internet access for students, but legislative leaders are so far non-committal on the proposal. In December, a federal appeals court agreed with a trial court’s judgment that held Dish Network accountable for...
As courthouses begin to reopen across North Carolina, the state’s judicial branch office is preparing to request millions of dollars in funding to help keep them open. The Administrative Office of the Courts is finalizing a budget request that would include more personal protective equipment, temporary staff, emergency judges, and more technology. “We have critical...
