Author Topic: North Carolina  (Read 37646 times)

Crafty_Dog

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North Carolina NPV bill
« Reply #100 on: March 11, 2023, 07:02:30 PM »
A National Popular Vote bill (HB-191) was filed yesterday in NC. If you live in NC please contact your State Representatives and urge your Representatives to deny the National Popular Vote scheme in your state!

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NC: Police use drone to catch 5 teens throwing rocks at trucks
« Reply #101 on: March 12, 2023, 06:30:41 PM »



Drone tracks down 5 teens caught throwing ‘large’ rocks onto highway: sheriff
by: Rodney Overton

Posted: Feb 26, 2023 / 09:22 AM CST

MONROE, N.C. (WNCN) — Deputies in North Carolina used a drone Friday night to track down suspects they say were throwing rocks from an overpass onto the toll highway below it.

There were several reports of at least two people throwing “large rocks off a bridge” onto the expressway, U.S. 74, below, according to the Union County Sheriff’s Office.

“Deputies arrived and located a semi-truck and trailer that had been struck by one of the rocks causing significant damage to the roof of the truck and the front side of the trailer,” deputies said in a news release.

Deputies then launched a drone with infrared technology to search the area.

During the drone’s flight, deputies “located several distinct heat signatures hiding near the on-ramp to the expressway,” the news release said.

Two suspects were initially caught before a perimeter was set up and three more were captured.


The five suspects range from 13 to 15 years old, deputies said.

Mexican president posts photo of what he claims is an elf
All five suspects will now face criminal charges for their actions via petitions issued by the North Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice.

“Throwing large rocks off of a bridge at commercial motor vehicles traveling on the Monroe Expressway could have seriously injured or killed one of the drivers who were just trying to work hard and provide for their families,” Union County Sheriff Eddie Cathey said in the release.

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North Carolina: Permit to buy a handgun no longer required
« Reply #104 on: March 29, 2023, 01:35:12 PM »
Permit to buy handgun no longer required in North Carolina
By HANNAH SCHOENBAUM
March 29, 2023 GMT
1 of 2
FILE - North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore speaks in front of the Supreme Court in Washington, Dec. 7, 2022. North Carolina legislators repealed on Wednesday, March 29, 2023, the state’s requirement that someone obtain a permit from a local sheriff before buying a pistol, as the Republican-controlled legislature overrode successfully one of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s vetoes for the first time since 2018. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina residents can now buy a handgun without getting a permit from a local sheriff, after the Republican-controlled legislature on Wednesday overrode the Democratic governor’s veto — a first since 2018.

The House voted 71-46 to enact the bill, which eliminates the longstanding permit system requiring sheriffs to perform character evaluations and criminal history checks of pistol applicants. The Senate overrode Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto in a party-line vote on Tuesday.

The permit repeal takes effect immediately. Cooper and Democratic lawmakers warned it allows a greater number of dangerous people to obtain weapons through private sales, which do not require a background check, and limits law enforcement’s ability to prevent them from committing violent crimes.

Those who purchase pistols from a gun store or a federally licensed dealer are still subject to a national background check, and concealed weapons permits are still required.

Bill supporters say the sheriff screening process for handguns was no longer necessary in light of significant updates to the national background check system. They also argue the permit system wasn’t very effective at preventing criminals from obtaining guns.

The North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association supports the repeal in light of national system updates, but its current president does not.

Although Republican seat gains in the midterm elections gave them veto-proof margins in the Senate, they were one seat shy of a similar majority in the House.

Wednesday’s House vote tally showed three Democrats — Reps. Tricia Cotham of Mecklenburg County, Cecil Brockman of Guilford County and Michael Wray of Northampton County — failed to vote on the override, creating enough of a margin to meet the constitutional requirement. Republicans needed at least one Democratic member to join them, or as few as two Democrats not to vote.

Brockman was in urgent care Wednesday morning, according to a statement released by his office. Cotham said in a statement that she was receiving scheduled hospital treatment and had informed both parties that she would be absent. She said she does not support the permit repeal.

A phone message left at Wray’s legislative office wasn’t immediately returned Wednesday. Republicans gave Wray and Cotham key committee chairmanships this year — a rarity for the majority party in power.

A liberal-leaning group called Carolina Forward put out a fundraising tweet soon after the vote targeting the three representatives, vowing to “hold them accountable.”

House Speaker Tim Moore, a Cleveland County Republican presiding over the chamber during the override vote, said the provisions contained within the bill “have been long-standing goals of Second Amendment advocates in our state, and we have finally brought this legislation over the finish line.”

Moore used parliamentary maneuvers Wednesday to block floor debate before the vote, causing frustration among Democrats.

Cooper, who is term-limited from seeking reelection next year, criticized the the move by House leadership, saying in a tweet that arguments to uphold his veto would have been “too compelling for them to hear.”

Before the Senate vote Tuesday, some Democrats urged against loosening gun access in the immediate aftermath of Monday’s mass shooting at a private Christian school in Nashville, despite Republicans’ insistence that lawmakers refrain from politicizing the shooting.

“For us to come in this tone deaf about what happened in Nashville and to pretend that it doesn’t matter, to pretend that that might not be an issue that we’ve got to bring up, is disturbing — with a bunch of kids sitting up here,” said House Minority Leader Robert Reives, referring to the school group watching from the gallery.

While Reives said he asked all Democratic caucus members to be present, he refused to criticize those who were absent or didn’t vote. The Chatham County Democrat told reporters the permit repeal could allow domestic abusers and mentally ill people at risk of suicide to obtain guns.

The enacted bill also will allow guns on some school properties where religious services are held, effective Dec. 1. The new law also creates and funds a two-year awareness campaign on the safe storage of firearms, which will distribute free gun locks.

In 2021, Cooper successfully blocked standalone versions of the pistol permit repeal and another provision allowing people with concealed weapons permits to carry openly or under clothing at houses of worship where private or charter schools also meet. At the time, Democrats had enough seats to block any override attempt if they stayed united.

Guns will not be permitted on campus during school hours or when students are present for extracurricular activities, and houses of worship can opt out by posting signs.

Gun-rights advocates celebrated the override after trying for years to pass the pistol permit repeal.

“Second Amendment supporters made history today,” said Paul Valone, executive director of Grass Roots North Carolina, which campaigned last year for candidates so that Republican majorities could override Cooper’s gun-related vetoes.

Gun-control advocates lamented the override, saying the handgun permit elimination would imperil more people’s lives in the nation’s ninth-largest state.

“We will wake up five or 10 years from now and see that our gun homicide and gun suicide rates have risen,” Becky Ceartas with North Carolinians Against Gun Violence said in a news release.

___

Hannah Schoenbaum is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

___

Associated Press writer Gary Robertson contributed from Raleigh.

Crafty_Dog

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Re: North Carolina
« Reply #105 on: April 07, 2023, 08:47:40 AM »
The Honorable Tim Moore, Speaker
16 West Jones Street, Room 2304
Raleigh, NC 27601
Dear Speaker Moore:

On behalf of Grass Roots North Carolina and its many supporters, please accept my thanks for the outstanding work done by you and House Republicans in passing Senate Bill 41, “Guarantee 2nd Amend Freedom and Protections.” Congratulations on the historic override of anti-freedom Governor Roy Cooper’s veto, the first such override since 2019 and, in North Carolina, the first-ever override of a vetoed gun bill.

Indeed, the effort continues to bear fruit, most recently when Representative Tricia Cotham – one of the Democrats who chose not to vote on SB 41 – changed her party affiliation to Republican, giving Republicans truly veto-proof supermajorities in both the Senate and House.

I would be remiss if I failed to note the role played by gun voters in securing that supermajority. Had Second Amendment supporters not directed thousands of phone calls and emails to legislators, the critical three Democrats might have voted against SB 41, thereby eluding the chain of events which ultimately led to a Republican supermajority in the House.

Accordingly, I implore you to complete the task of strengthening the right of North Carolinians to keep and bear arms by passing House Bill 189, “NC Constitutional Carry Act.” With the May 4 crossover deadline looming, please give the bill an expeditious hearing.

With Florida recently becoming the 26th state to adopt some form of constitutional carry, and Nebraska likely to be the 27th, North Carolina is now part of a disadvantaged minority of states in which permission slips are required to exercise a basic civil right.

As the Latin proverb says, Mr. Speaker, fortune favors the bold. I hope you will leverage our success by passing HB 189.

Armatissimi e liberissimi,*










F. Paul Valone
President, Grass Roots North Carolina
Executive Director, Rights Watch International
Host, Guns, Politics and Freedom

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North Carolina Supremes rule on gerrymandering NRO
« Reply #109 on: April 28, 2023, 06:25:04 PM »
N.C. Supreme Court Hands Republicans Election-Law Victories, Citing Judicial Restraint

Demonstrators rally in front of the Supreme court in opposition of partisan gerrymandering, in Washington, D.C., March 28, 2018. (Joshua Roberts/Reuters)
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By JEFF ZYMERI
April 28, 2023 4:46 PM
The North Carolina supreme court released a trio of opinions Friday that defer to the state’s general assembly on matters of election law, handing Republicans a victory prior to the 2024 election cycle.

At the turn of this year, two new justices joined the state’s high court, flipping the balance of power to a majority of Republican-appointed justices. In February, the court decided to rehear gerrymandering and voter-identification cases decided by the court’s previous iteration in December. The two Democratic justices lamented the decision to reopen the cases, saying it stood against more than 200 years of court history in which rehearings have been exceedingly rare.

The redistricting case, in particular, will give state Republicans the opportunity to rework the congressional map for next year’s election. Last year’s map saw North Carolina send a split delegation to Washington: seven Republicans and seven Democrats.

In that case, Harper v. Hall, Chief Justice Paul Newby wrote for the five-justice majority, explaining that the North Carolina Constitution expressly assigns redistricting authority to the general assembly subject to specific limitations, of which partisan gerrymandering is not one.

“There is no judicially manageable standard by which to adjudicate partisan gerrymandering claims. Courts are not intended to meddle in policy matters,” wrote Newby. “In its decision today, the Court returns to its tradition of honoring the constitutional roles assigned to each branch.”

“The people have the authority to alter their foundational document, not this Court. The people alone have the final say,” Newby added, referring to the assembly’s accountability to voters.

Justice Anita Earls, joined by Justice Michael Morgan, dissented, writing that “the majority strips millions of voters of this state of their fundamental, constitutional rights and delivers on the threat that ‘our decisions are fleeting, and our precedent is only as enduring as the terms of the justices who sit on the bench.'”

In Holmes v. Moore, the second case decided 5-2, Justice Phil Berger Jr. once again deferred to the acts of the legislature on behalf of North Carolinians.

“The people of North Carolina overwhelmingly support voter identification and other efforts to promote greater integrity and confidence in our elections. Subjective tests and judicial sleight of hand have systematically thwarted the will of the people and the intent of the legislature. But no court exists for the vindication of political interests, and judges exceed constitutional boundaries when they act as a super-legislature,” wrote Berger. “We recommit to that fundamental principle and begin the process of returning the judiciary to its rightful place as ‘the least dangerous’ branch.”

Berger explained that the plaintiffs failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the voter-identification law was enacted with discriminatory intent or that it produced a meaningfully disparate impact along racial lines.

In December, the court’s 4-3 majority struck down the voter-ID law for “being infected with racial bias.” Morgan wrote in dissent on Friday, joined by Earls, that the majority is acting to shield “the state legislature from scrutiny for invidious discriminatory intent.”

Finally, in Community Success Initiative v. Moore, Justice Trey Allen writing for the majority overruled a trial court decision on when the voting rights of convicted felons can be restored.

“It is not unconstitutional to insist that felons pay their debt to society as a condition of participating in the electoral process,” wrote Allen. “The General Assembly did not engage in racial discrimination or otherwise violate the North Carolina Constitution by requiring individuals with felony convictions to complete their sentences — including probation, parole, or post-release supervision — before they regain the right to vote.”

Morgan and Earls dissented once more.

The decision in the redistricting case also calls into question the future of a gerrymandering case pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, Moore v. Harper, in which the “independent state legislature theory” is being assessed. The high court was using the North Carolina case as the basis for its review, but Friday’s ruling from the state court saw that decision vacated.

“If the North Carolina Supreme Court decides that the state constitution contains no such limits, its decision would effectively moot the federal Elections Clause issue in this case: There would be no need to decide whether the Elections Clause prevents state courts from enforcing particular types of state-law requirements in a case where the state courts have found that no such state-law requirements exist,” explained Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar in guidance to the high court in March, asserting the Supreme Court would no longer have a role to play.

On the other hand, counsel for the petitioners David Thompson wrote that “nothing the North Carolina Supreme Court does on rehearing can turn back time and rerun the 2022 congressional election on a map other than that written by the North Carolina court.”

“The North Carolina Supreme Court’s decision to rehear Harper v. Hall . . . has no effect on this Court’s continued jurisdiction,” Thompson added.

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A Stabbing 5 minutes from our house
« Reply #114 on: May 07, 2023, 07:24:53 AM »
If we had children of this qge, this is the school where they would go:
==========================

https://sandhillssentinel.com/school-board-hears-update-on-pinecrest-stabbing/


The Moore County Board of Education discussed the April 28 stabbing at Pinecrest High School during the May 1 agenda meeting.

Officials on Friday said the isolated incident involved two students. The female victim, who is a junior, suffered critical injuries and required surgery after being stabbed several times. The suspect, who is also a student, is charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, but authorities did not release a motive.

The school board did not say the female victim’s or the male suspect’s names during the meeting.

While it is not normal protocol to identify a minor victim, the identity of the student has been made public by social media and fundraising efforts. A fundraising event through GoFundMe for the victim has raised $63,996 of a $75,000 goal.

Superintendent Dr. Tim Locklair and staff said they are keeping the victim in their prayers.

Mike Metcalf, chief officer for academics and student support services said the stabbing happened in the back auditorium parking lot between 8:30 and 8:45 a.m. on Friday. There was a lot of activity in the parking lot at the time.

Metcalf relayed the entire event to the school board. He said the suspect was dropped off in the parking lot, and the victim was in the parking lot getting out of her car.

When she got out of her car, the suspect allegedly stabbed her several times with a large knife. She fought back, and the suspect allegedly tried to get into the girl’s car, but a student backed his car against her car, so the suspect could not get inside. The suspect ran into the woods.

The assistant principal and a counselor saw the disturbance, and the assistant principal radioed for assistance and emergency services while five students reacted to help the girl. One student took off his shirt to provide pressure to the multiple lacerations, and other students called 911.

The assistant principal and a teacher took over the medical care, and the principal replaced the student who was applying pressure.

The school nurse arrived with an automatic external defibrillator kit and trauma kit, and a career education teacher in the medical field arrived, and they packed the deep wounds.

School resource officers and a counselor ran into the woods and apprehended the suspect without resistance.

The weapon was near the victim.

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) arrived and, with the school nurse, applied tourniquets to the girl. The school nurse traveled with EMS to the hospital.

An assistant principal and staff controlled parking lot traffic and cleared the scene, providing easier access for the police.

Another assistant principal applied a modified locked down to the campus.

The district’s critical incident response team arrived to help as counselors.

The communication plan was activated to provide updates to staff and students and provide media statements. The principal extended the first block of the lockdown and notified parents that students were safe and went into a phased release.

In phase 1, parents picked up students. In phase 2, students with cars drove home. In phase 3, normal procedures returned. The principal and others continued with the prom for Saturday night with extra police officers, a bag search, counseling services, and employee assistance through FirstHealth.

“We will learn a tremendous amount from this event,” Metcalf said about analyzing the incident responses.

“We appreciate the wonderful, professional response,” Chair Robert Levy said about the entire staff and students who provided a nearly flawless response.

Community members gathered at Pinecrest High School for a prayer vigil Saturday morning. The group prayed for all those involved and all those impacted. There were prayers of healing and also prayers of forgiveness.

~Written by Sandhills Sentinel Journalist Stephanie M. Sellers. Contact her at stephanie@sandhillssentinel.com.






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« Last Edit: May 27, 2023, 06:57:19 AM by Crafty_Dog »






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North Carolina polls
« Reply #126 on: June 06, 2023, 05:27:32 AM »
second

Bummer that Cooper is ahead!!!




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North Carolina: GOP "monster bill"
« Reply #130 on: June 10, 2023, 07:14:04 AM »

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GOP Bill challenged by Greens
« Reply #131 on: June 20, 2023, 06:11:29 AM »

Obviously this is a Dem oriented source, but the article contains an effort at genuine specifics and makes an effort at being fair.

On a personal note, I would note that I have been stunned at just how many beautiful lakes in my area in natural surroundings have fish that should not be eaten.



======================================================
Legislature advances an anti-environment proposal that’s stunning in its sweep
Rob Schofield
ROB SCHOFIELD
JUNE 20, 2023 5:55 AM
     
a glass filled with water from a tap
 A proposed “regulatory reform” bill at the North Carolina legislature would greatly inhibit the ability of regulators to protect drinking water safety. Photo: Getty Images

You don’t have to be a scientist with a Ph.D. to grasp the state of crisis that afflicts our fragile natural environment these days. Sadly, the list of dire threats to the global biosphere and the species who call it home is as long as your arm and readily apparent to anyone willing to look outside.

Between our rapidly changing climate, the alarming rates at which open space is being developed and species are becoming extinct, and the growing list of human illnesses attributable to pollution – just to name a few of the myriad challenges we confront — the massive scope of the problem is painfully obvious.

And, of course, all these problems (and many more) are on full display in North Carolina.

Especially in the state’s eastern third, increasingly frequent hurricanes and floods have already made climate refugees of thousands of residents. Meanwhile, rapid shifts in habitat brought on by the warming climate have adversely impacted millions of plants and animals from Murphy to Manteo.

Across the state, thanks in large part to the demands of a population that’s doubled and grown more affluent in the last half century, millions of acres of forests, wetlands, farmland, and other open spaces have been (and continue to be) transformed into urban landscapes each year at a breakneck pace.

And then, of course, there are the increasingly worrisome threats posed by toxic pollutants like PFAS and other “forever chemicals,” waste from massive hog and poultry farms, and the huge and frequently precarious mountains of coal ash that the state is only beginning to take on.

If ever there was time for strong – even urgent – public oversight of how and where we build and pollute, this is it.

Unfortunately, this realization continues to elude state Republican legislative leaders. The latest evidence: a new so-called “regulatory reform” bill that’s quickly advancing in Raleigh. As NC Newsline environmental investigative reporter Lisa Sorg reported last week, the 35-page measure represents a veritable Christmas tree of gifts for polluting industries.

Among the destructive changes proposed:

The bill would place impossible new time burdens to issue pollution permits on the state Division of Water Resources (a group that’s already badly understaffed). The agency would have 30 days to determine whether a water quality application is complete, and 60 days to approve or deny it. If it misses the first deadline, the permit must be deemed “complete,” no matter how flawed or inadequate it is. Failure to meet the second deadline results in automatic issuance of the polluter’s water quality permit.
Bizarrely, the bill would bar regulators from considering the impacts of a proposed water pollution source (like a new factory) beyond its immediate surrounding area, even if it’s going to, for instance, pollute a stream or lake miles away. Such a rule, of course, ignores the fact – one that’s particularly  obvious to people who get their drinking water from the lower Cape Fear River – that water pollution from multiple sources accumulates.
The proposal would bar DEQ from limiting the amount of toxic chemicals a polluter discharges into the state’s waterways unless there is a specific numerical standard attached (e.g., such as “X parts per million”). The problem with this is that there are hundreds of chemicals that state and federal regulators know are harmful, but for which they have yet to establish a specific numerical standard. Doing so can take years. It’s for this reason that regulators frequently rely on terms like “free from toxics in toxic amounts” or “free from objectionable taste or odors” for discharges into public waterways. While imperfect, such language provides a means of protecting human health. If this provision were to become law and be implemented (there’s a good argument that it would run afoul of federal rules), polluters would be utterly free to discharge dangerous chemicals like 1,4-Dioxane and PFAS without limit.
The bill would bar the state from denying a permit for a hog waste lagoon or swine gas project based on civil rights grounds. Lower income people of color have long borne a disproportionate burden when it comes to the often-sickening nuisances posed by giant animal feeding operations and in 2021, a group of Black citizens succeeded in winning some protections via a federal civil rights complaint. The proposal seeks to put an end to that.
None of this is to imply that all would-be polluters are diabolical money grubbers bent on destroying our natural environment and human health. And sometimes, it’s true that regulators can be inefficient, officious and bureaucratic.

But it’s also true that we live in a time in which there is almost no margin for error anymore when it comes to such matters. Having painted ourselves into a dreadfully dangerous corner, humans are simply going to have to learn to cope with more and tougher environmental oversight if they hope to avoid any number of catastrophic outcomes.

It’s for this reason that in a legislative session full of destructive legislation, this disastrous proposal may well top the list.

Crafty_Dog

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North Carolina Sheriffs report on gun law changes
« Reply #132 on: June 26, 2023, 09:00:34 AM »
Because of your kind donation to the North Carolina Sheriffs' Association (NCSA) through your county firearm permit application, NCSA provides you with up-to-date information on gun laws and firearms purchasing laws that affect you as a North Carolina citizen.

Each legislative session, it is possible and has been probable the past several years that the General Assembly will propose legislative changes to North Carolina’s gun laws. This year has been no different with bills being filed to both expand and limit firearms rights. 



Bills have been filed which create safe storage initiatives, red flag laws, and new crimes for failing to secure firearms. Other bills propose suicide prevention measures, drastically altering concealed handgun permitting requirements, and allowing employees of certain school units to carry weapons on school campuses.



Obviously, not all of those bills have or will become law. In fact, bills which have not already become law this session and did not make crossover will have a very difficult, if not impossible, time becoming law this year. Crossover is a self-imposed deadline chosen by legislative leadership by which a bill must make it from one chamber to another in order to be considered for the remainder of the session.



However, one bill, Senate Bill 41 (Session Law 2023-8) has already become law this Session and does the following: 



Repeals the pistol purchase permit for selling, giving away, transferring, purchasing, or receiving a pistol in this State.


Allows anyone with a concealed handgun permit, or who is exempt from having to obtain one, to carry a handgun on school grounds if the school grounds also house a place of religious worship. The law allows for the carrying of a handgun on the premises of the school grounds only when the premises are NOT being used for curricular or extracurricular activities, school-sponsored activities (such as on weekends or during holidays), or for any programs for minors conducted by entities unaffiliated with the religious institution.


Allows a civilian employee of a law enforcement agency with a concealed handgun permit to carry a concealed handgun in a law enforcement facility so long as the person has been designated in writing by the agency head to carry the handgun and has in their possession written proof of the designation. The agency head is allowed to rescind this authorization at any time.


Requires the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, in collaboration with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, to conduct a statewide firearm safe storage awareness initiative to educate the public about the importance of the safe storage of firearms. 


The repeal of the pistol purchase permit was effective when the bill became law on March 29, 2023. Most of the remaining provisions of the bill become effective July 1, 2023.

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North Carolina legislature bans ESG investment with override of veto
« Reply #133 on: June 29, 2023, 06:05:51 PM »

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2023/jun/29/north-carolina-legislature-overrides-governors-vet/?utm_source=Boomtrain&utm_medium=subscriber&utm_campaign=newsalert&utm_content=newsalert&utm_term=newsalert&bt_ee=1dPoDdEYxA0X%2FJyC2zG1tXiNp5%2BGorGK9%2FCD%2BMJc9zMh5MrzpP3bF0ORKgxFsPWX&bt_ts=1688066494856

============================

State legislature overrides governor’s veto of ESG ban

Pension use prohibited in climate financial strategy

BY RAMSEY TOUCHBERRY THE WASHINGTON TIMES

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and ESG investing suffered another setback this week when the Republican-controlled legislature voted to override his veto of legislation prohibiting the climate-focused financial strategy from being used with state pension funds.

Wielding their veto-proof majority, Republicans secured the three-fifths vote in the state House and Senate needed to override the veto from Mr. Cooper, a Democrat.

“We are grateful to those lawmakers who understand the need to shield the state pension plan against the movement to weaponize public retirement systems to achieve extreme agendas,” North Carolina Treasurer Dale Folwell said.

Mr. Folwell, a Republican who oversees the state’s public retirement system and is running for governor against Mr. Cooper, is among the array of GOP state financial officials across the country who have sought to bar ESG in state pension investments.

The veto override was the latest rebuke of Mr. Cooper from a lawmaker who defected from the Democratic Party. Saying that the “modern-day Democratic Party has become unrecognizable to me,” Rep. Tricia Cotham switched to Republican in April, giving the GOP a veto-proof majority in the House.

The Tar Heel state’s Senate already had a veto-proof majority.

The legislature has since overridden Mr. Cooper’s vetoes of bills to impose a 12-week abortion ban, loosen wetland protections and prohibit asking state job applicants about political beliefs.

More than a dozen other states such as Texas, Florida, West Virginia and Louisiana, have passed laws barring ESG — short for environmental, social and corporate governance investing — from use in managing public pension programs.

The hot-button practice, which conservatives call “woke socialism,” takes into consideration non-monetary factors like climate change and social justice politics that proponents say could impact long-term investment returns.

North Carolina Retirement Systems includes more than 1 million retirees and is valued at roughly $114 billion. It is the 12th largest public pension fund in the U.S.

Previously, Mr. Folwell took back proxy voting power for $14 billion of its investments with BlackRock, a move the treasurer said was to combat the behemoth asset manager’s pro-ESG investing strategies. Mr. Folwell is among Republican officials who have called on BlackRock CEO Larry Fink to resign over his support of ESG.

“We don’t need a law to tell us what is right and wrong,” Mr. Folwell said. “But now we do have a law that very clearly defines the guardrails.
« Last Edit: June 30, 2023, 06:38:41 AM by Crafty_Dog »

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Re: North Carolina
« Reply #134 on: July 04, 2023, 06:08:07 AM »
NORTH CAROLINA

Attorneys say lawsuit alleging speaker ruined marriage now resolved

BY GARY D. ROBERTSON ASSOCIATED PRESS RALEIGH | Litigation filed by a North Carolina local elected offi cial accusing House Speaker Tim Moore of ruining his marriage by having an affair with his wife is ending, attorneys said Monday, two weeks after a lawsuit was filed.

Lawyers for Scott Lassiter and Mr. Moore confirmed the resolution in separate emails. They said little more when asked for details, such as whether the lawsuit filed in Wake County court was being withdrawn or a settlement reached.

“We won’t be commenting on this matter further,” said Stacy Miller, an attorney for Mr. Moore.

Mr. Lassiter’s lawsuit, which sought at least $200,000 in compensatory and punitive damages, claimed that Mr. Moore “willfully interfered in the marital relationship” between Mr. Lassiter and Jamie Liles Lassiter, who leads an agency within the state-court system.

Mr. Moore, who is divorced, publicly acknowledged having a “casual” relationship with Ms. Lassiter but said he believed it was appropriate because she was separated. He said other claims in the lawsuit were completely false and vowed to file a counterclaim.

Both men are Republicans. Ms. Lassiter wasn’t a defendant but called her husband’s lawsuit “outrageous and defamatory” and said he was “lashing out” at the end of their divorce proceedings.

Mr. Lassiter, a former Apex town council member and current elected member of the county soil and water conservation board, also claimed that Mr. Moore and another unidentified man conspired recently to install a camera outside Mr. Lassiter’s suburban Raleigh home. Mr. Moore said he hired no one and didn’t know who the man was.

Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said separately Monday that “at this time, based on a review of the complaint filed in the civil action, there are not allegations that would give rise to a criminal investigation or prosecution.”

Mr. Moore, a lawyer, has represented a region just west of Charlotte in the House for 20 years. He was elected speaker in 2015 and is now in his fifth two-year term at the post — a state record.

Mr. Lassiter sued in part under legal claims allowed in North Carolina and a few other states through which jilted spouses can seek damages from a cheating spouse’s lover through alienation of affection and criminal conversation — also known as adultery.

The lawsuit filed June 18 accused Mr. Moore of using his position “to entice Plaintiff’s wife ... to participate in an illicit relationship with him.” The Lassiters were married in 2013.

Mr. Lassiter, an assistant principal in the Wake County school system, contended that they separated in January.

But Ms. Lassiter said there had been a signed separation document for years, and rejected her husband’s claims she wouldn’t end her relationship with Mr. Moore for fear of losing her job as executive director of the North Carolina Conference of Clerks of Superior Court


Crafty_Dog

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WSJ: Victory for parents in NC
« Reply #138 on: August 17, 2023, 06:32:30 PM »
A Transgender Victory for Parents in North Carolina
The Legislature overrides the Governor’s veto of three bills protecting minors and parental consent.
By
The Editorial Board
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Aug. 17, 2023 6:45 pm ET

North Carolina’s Republican-led legislature overrode Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of three bills affecting transgender children on Wednesday. This is a victory for parents, despite what you read elsewhere.

One bill bans North Carolina doctors from helping minors change their sex characteristics, including giving them puberty blockers and hormone therapy. Another bans biological males from competing on women’s and girls’ sports teams in middle school, high school and college. A third bans instruction on “gender identity, sexual activity, or sexuality” in kindergarten through fourth grade, and requires schools to let parents know if their child asked to be called by a different name or pronoun.

Although Republicans have a comfortable majority in the state Senate, in the House they achieved a veto-proof majority in April when Rep. Tricia Cotham switched parties. Republicans are hoping to repeat their success by passing tax cuts and expanding school choice over Gov. Cooper’s objection when they finish with the budget.

Often lost amid the passions unleashed is that these bills involve minors, some as young as kindergarten. Gender identification is contentious, involving competing—and often irreconcilable—views of what is best for children, especially those who are unhappy with their sex or confused about their identity. In this case the real argument is about who gets to make those decisions. There are about 20 other states with similar restrictions for minors.

The consequences are serious, with sometimes irreversible consequences. Prisha Mosley testified that she was hospitalized as a teen for depression following a sexual assault, and started taking testosterone and had a double mastectomy to remove two healthy breasts as part of “gender affirming care.” She is now suing her doctors and therapists, one of whom told her parents: “Would you rather have a dead daughter or a live son?”

Medical and trans activists argue that by denying such care the Republicans are making suicide among transgender youth more likely. But Leor Sapir, a fellow at the Manhattan Institute, notes that systematic reviews of evidence by European health authorities and by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health have found no reliable evidence that gender transition reduces the incidence of suicide or suicidal intent.

North Carolina hasn’t ended this debate. But it has determined—democratically—that there should be limits on such radical medical treatment for vulnerable minors. And that parents must not be left in the dark.

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ESS - out of Omaha
« Reply #140 on: August 20, 2023, 10:25:35 AM »

Crafty_Dog

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Re: North Carolina
« Reply #141 on: August 20, 2023, 12:47:11 PM »
TY CCP.


Crafty_Dog

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Re: North Carolina
« Reply #143 on: October 05, 2023, 01:52:18 PM »
Apparently my Congressman Dan Bishop, whom I like, is leaving Congress to run for AG of NC.

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Re: North Carolina
« Reply #144 on: October 05, 2023, 03:22:22 PM »
Apparently my Congressman Dan Bishop, whom I like, is leaving Congress to run for AG of NC.

Interesting.  I heard he was responsible for killing the defense authorization, but I see it's something of which he is proud :
https://danbishop.house.gov/media/press-releases/bishop-votes-against-reckless-woke-defense-bill

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Re: North Carolina
« Reply #145 on: October 05, 2023, 04:10:36 PM »
Thank you for that. 

I receive his newsletter and overall I am quite pleased.

I cannot say I am conversant with the details of the bill in question here.

DougMacG

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Re: North Carolina
« Reply #146 on: October 05, 2023, 05:19:01 PM »
Thank you for that. 

I receive his newsletter and overall I am quite pleased.

I cannot say I am conversant with the details of the bill in question here.

Funding a woke military was part of it but I think the contentious part is Ukraine funding.  Half of Republicans support it.  Half oppose it.  How do we resolve that?

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Re: North Carolina
« Reply #147 on: October 06, 2023, 06:11:29 AM »
By impeaching Biden-Harris.

DougMacG

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Re: North Carolina
« Reply #148 on: October 06, 2023, 06:52:51 AM »
By impeaching Biden-Harris.

Be careful what do you wish for. We don't have a Republican next in line anymore.

https://firehydrantoffreedom.com/index.php?topic=1273.msg162935#msg162935
« Last Edit: October 06, 2023, 07:38:29 AM by DougMacG »

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Re: North Carolina
« Reply #149 on: October 06, 2023, 07:51:58 AM »
We don't?

Anyway, obviously the votes in the Senate to convict are not there so , , ,