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Effective today, we will no longer be posting updates at this site, please update your bookmarks and RSS feeds to the new blog at [...]
I blogged before about the Obama administration's blood lust for older Americans to, well, meet their maker in a more timely fashion. Behind every sweet-sounding platitute about policy created for "the good of society" are individuals that must be sacrificed for the ruling class to impose their will.
Duties to include calling stakeholders if a crane falls down as well as guided tours for elected officials. Prior experience with N. C. Aquarium projects preferred.
No, this is not a hoax.
With construction underway at the N.C. Aquariums – Jennette’s Pier, the Aquarium Division is hiring a part-time “on-site [...]
Are NC voters suffering from a bit of buyer's remorse on Governor Bev Perdue?
It appears so according to our latest poll results where Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory leads Gov. Bev Perdue 46% to 32% in a hypothetical matchup.
McCrory leads among Republicans (80-7) and Unaffiliateds (45-28), while Perdue is only [...]
Last week Robert Bowtwell posted the Obamacare organization chart . The story has taken a curious turn. When GOP members of Congress began to send the chart to their constituents, the Franking Commission ordered them to stop. In a memo sent Monday to Republicans on the House franking commission, Democrats [...]
I know that pointing out the broken promises and double standards of our rulers in Raleigh is like shooting fish in a barrel, but there are a couple of examples from today's news that need pointing out.
First off, kudos to Under the Dome for digging up the comments from then-candidate Bev Perdue and Senate President [...]
According to The Insider (a state government news service), budget negotiators are getting closer to a tax plan deal.
Budget negotiators continued pushing ahead with a $990 million tax plan that would rely heavily on a sales tax increase. Senate Democrats met this morning, emerging from the meeting still backing the [...]
The Daily Tar Heel (UNC-Chapel Hill’s paper) ran this article recently about budget cuts. The article focuses on cuts to building projects and possible cuts to academic programs.
Cutting bureaucracy wasn't mentioned as an option. I sent the DTH a letter pointing out this omission, but they didn't think [...]
“Hands off my Health Care” was the motto at yesterday’s Patients First Tour, a two day event visiting Raleigh, hosted by Americans for Prosperity. Several speakers, including Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory, were present to share their perspectives on the current government health care plan.<
The night kicked off with several personal accounts, one [...]
Well, it has been seven months since the inauguration of BHO and he has finally gotten around to gutting the 287g program. As used by seven North Carolina counties (Alamance, Cabarrus, Cumberland, Gaston, Henderson, Mecklenburg and Wake) the program authorizes sheriff's staff to interview any person booked into their jails [...]
So you think there is too much bureacracy in the UNC System? You're not alone. Yesterday Bain and Company, a management consulting group, released a report that said administrative layers at UNC-Chapel Hill are ten layers deep in some places. Is this news? Minus significant incentives to do [...]
We released Gov. Perdue's favorability rating today (30%) and we'll have much more on her unpopularity this entire week.
Tomorrow, we'll have a look at voters' opinion of her tax package.
Thursday, we'll look at whether voters are having "buyers remorse" and how she'd fare if the election were held [...]
Blame the law when you break the law; that is what Scott Mooneyham does on behalf of Mike Easley and Jim Black in his article “A Root of Corruption” in the Capitol View, INSIDER AFTERNOON UPDATE, July 20, 2009. It is Mooneyham’s contention that there is a loophole in a [...]
The WSJ exposes perhaps Obama's biggest lie regarding the healthcare bill: his claim that those who like their current insurance will be able to keep it:
So when Mr. Obama says that “If you like your health-care plan, you’ll be able to keep your health-care plan, period. No one will [...]
Excess capacity, high labor and pension costs, fleeing customers, ineffective management, outside competition and a reputation for low quality. You're right if you identified these as conditions that led to the demise of the American auto industry? You'd also be right if you said they are the same factors which helped to [...]
The more details that are released regarding the proposed health care "reform" coming from DC, the more resistance it faces.
This N&O article details the bi-partisan opposition coming from Governors across the nation.
The nation's governors, Democrats as well as Republicans, voiced deep concern Sunday about the shape of the health care [...]
We were in the field last week for our monthly polling and sent out a release today on health care. The subject is complicated but not so much that ordinary voters don't get it. What they want is simple:
1. Affordable health care
2. No tax increase
3. No government run [...]
Shortly after Judge Hobgood ruled that June Atkinson had the constitutional authority to run the Department of Public Instruction, Sen Tony Rand (D-Fayetteville)stated that the leftist legislature would have the political will to make changes to the current system. These "changes" would clear up, what Sen. Rand referred [...]
It's a victory for the people and limited government. That's how I'd describe today's order by Wake County Superior Count Judge Robert Hobgood who said Gov. Perdue cannot appoint a separate executive to run the state's schools apart from the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, a consitutional officer of the state and duly elected by [...]
The health care takeover rapidly progresses…
The Associated Press announced today that the White House wants more power to set Medicare rates. The proposed plan would convert Medpac – an independent congressional advisory agency – into a powerful decision-making arm of the executive branch headed by a group of Medicare “experts”.
The purpose [...]
10. Everyone was watching Jim Black's hearing and busy contemplating the very modest amount of punishment for accepting, and orchestrating a bribe.
9. Legislators were so emotionally exhausted after debating the Racial Justice Act which determines whether racial bias influenced a death penalty sentence.
8. The General Assembly was busy [...]
Yes, it's true. The Raleigh tourism video spoof we did here at Civitas has surpassed any other Raleigh tourism video on Youtube in number of views. This was done in a period of less than a day and we are currently more than 100 views ahead of the next tourism [...]
If you're June Atkinson, the organization chart (Download Orgchart) for the State Department of Public Instruction seems to say it all.
According to the chart, the superintendent is an officer with a staff of one and essentially no authority over the day-to-day operations of the department that administers public education. Last I checked [...]
Yesterday, some amazing things happened in the state Legislature. And, unless you really pay attention you may have missed them. Luckily we here at Red Clay have a cot in the Legislative Office Building just so we can bring you this report. (Note to Capitol Police: We don't really have [...]
Is anyone at all surprised that the Department of Commerce appears to have inflated job creation numbers to paint the best light on the Apple incentives deal?
The $1 billion Apple data center headed for western North Carolina will create "more than 3,000 jobs in the regional [...]
The House Democrats laid out their 1018 pages of plans yesterday for the new health care reform bill. Here are some highlights:
An impossible burden on small businesses:
The plan dictates an 8% payroll tax penalty will be applied to businesses who fail to provide their employees with health insurance options. The penalty [...]
An article in today’s N&O cites Senator Martin Nesbitt’s (D–Buncombe) argument that “industrial-scale wind turbines would destroy pristine views” as reason enough to ban commercial wind energy facilities in the mountains. (But it’s okay to have them on our pristine coastline… go figure.)
While this is clearly a stretch given [...]
What is the cost of being "green"?
Apparently to the city of Charlotte, it's a product that is 4 times more expensive and lasts only 1/4th the time of the usual product.
In this instance it's rubber sidewalks.
The city is undertaking a "test" of the product by replacing a couple of [...]
As the Auto Czar steps down, I think we should look to see what the term “Czar” refers to. The title “Czar” is derived from the Roman name “Caesar” and was used mainly in Russia by the Emperors. These Emperors were Kings, something that America was strongly founded against, [...]
Ray LaHood, the U.S. transportation secretary, announced the approval Monday of a $386 million federal loan to aid in financing the 18.8-mile Triangle Expressway, according to today’s N&O. The Triangle Expressway is a proposed toll road (the first in NC) connecting Research Triangle Park and western Wake County. The [...]
More details are beginning to emerge about just how South Carolina serial killer Patrick Burris was able to slip through the fingers of North Carolina's justice system and kill five people just across the border in Gaffney, SC. Gary Wright of The Charlotte Observer has the story in detail.
Despite [...]
Are NC Department of Commerce or other government officials meeting with the corporate bigwigs at Alcoa today?
According to public records available on flightaware.com, an NC Department of Commerce aircraft left RDU this morning in route to McGhee Tyson airport (Knoxville, TN). And was scheduled to return late this afternoon.
Alcoa, [...]
Yesterday's N&O featured an article about the $25 million pier in Nag's Head that the state is financing, in spite of one of what we are told is a massive budget crisis.
"This pier is essentially an aquarium on piling, with live animal exhibits, a 16,000-square-foot pier house and wind [...]
Local arts groups were abuzz yesterday when the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) distributed $325,000 in federal stimulus money to seven North Carolina arts groups. A spokesman for the North Carolina Arts Council said the grants – ranging from $25,000 to $50,000 -- will save about 9 full-time [...]
Tip of the day: If you vote for expanded government… government will expand.
$17 billion is the number released today as the first piece of Obama’s massive stimulus package (round one) that can be tracked locally, thanks to the hand-dandy $9 million tracker. While billions of dollars of federal [...]
When Jesse Helms first went to Washington, as an aide to Senator Smith, in 1951, Helms produced one of the first radio broadcasts for constituents. In the current age of technology, producing such a radio broadcast would be very inexpensive over the Internet. Airtime on radio waves may be more [...]
Protests held outside the NC Legislature yesterday continued the debate over the public health care legislation currently in the works in Washington, DC.
Moveon.org, a liberal advocacy group, met outside Sen. Kay Hagan’s office to push for her quick approval of the public option. NC Freedom, a conservative organization, was also present supporting [...]
The nice folks here at Red Clay want you to know that we are looking out for you.
The fact that $787 billion of your money is being spent by 537 people who have probably never even met you really troubles us. We think you know how to spend [...]
The Chapel Hill Sustainable Community Visioning Task Force, which is in charge of planning growth for the town, voted to put everything on hold because the committee wasn’t racially diverse enough.
The current committee members, all white, were chosen through an application process, no minorities applied. According to [...]
Today's N&O runs a NY Times piecedecrying the disproportionate amount of federal "stimulus" transportation dollars going to rural areas, rather than big cities.
According to an analysis by The New York Times of 5,274 transportation projects approved so far -- the most complete look yet at how states plan to [...]
Legislators bickering over the now past due budget are ignoring a great source of revenue.
The video poker industry, now prohibited in NC, is begging for permission to exist. In a committee meeting Tuesday morning, an industry representative made it clear that they are willing to jump through [...]
Here at Red Clay World Headquarters (RCWHQ) we often find ourselves discussing the future of the conservative movement in the great state of North Carolina. It has been a long time since we have had quality conservative leadership at the state level. Not just someone who wins an election, but [...]
Since this blog started almost two years ago, its been no secret that these pages have often been critical of Wake County government. However, when government does the right thing, it is only fair to praise it. Now is one of those times.
Earlier this week, Wake County developed a new web site called WATCH [...]
In response to recent news, many people are asking the disquieting question, what is the purpose of marriage and will it survive Generation Z? Marriage as an institution hails societal function and responsibility by protecting children as they mature into forthright adults. Some try to pervert the institution [...]
Does anyone else find it interesting that Los Angeles, in a state with a $24.3 Billion budget deficit, is spending $4 Million on a memorial service that it cannot afford for a musician that was up to $500 Million in debt? Maybe LA needs to collect private [...]
As reported at Under the Dome:
Gov. Beverly Perdue told legislative leaders Tuesday she wants a 1-cent sales tax increase and a total tax hike package of $1.6 billion to balance the budget.
Highlights of Perdue's wishlist, provided to Dome, include: an "emergency" 1-cent increase in the sales tax that would expire [...]
North Carolina overspent on Medicaid services by as much as $226 million in a single year, according to a report released yesterday from the Legislature's Program Evaluation Division.
$2.4 billion was spent on Medicaid “enhanced services” from 2006-2009, of which $827.2 million was paid by the state. However, the program had [...]
The House passed S870 Monday night by a vote of 79-33. The bill, which was sponsored by Cary Republican Sen. Richard Stevens, orders a commission to study ways to make the General Statutes and the North Carolina Constitution gender neutral.
The General Statutes Commission an advisory [...]
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) provides nearly $100 billion to K-12 schools. Despite the rhetoric of saving new jobs and propelling “true” education reform, Andy Smarick of the American Enterprise Institute thinks all the stimulus money may do nothing but actually hinder efforts to improve education (See: [...]
Just posted statewide voter statistics and they are interesting. In the period between May 23, 2009 and June 26, 2009 North Carolina’s voter registration rolls have increased by 7,400 voters. Net gains for the political parties are as follows:
Democrats – 825 Republicans – 1,394 Libertarians – 204 Unaffiliated voters – 4,977 Could this be a [...]
Bill Drafting head honcho Gerry Cohen took some exception to my post last week that called out Gov. Bev Perdue for her premature declaration that not passing a budget was "costing" the state $5 million per day. (See the comments at the end of the post.)
Turns out, I'm not [...]
Last week the Obama Administration announced its plan to reduce payments for Medicare specialists and increase payments to primary care physicians and general practitioners. The move, they hope, will boost the number of primary care physicians by “incentivizing” medical students to choose the field given more attractive paychecks. This means that specialists will see their overall [...]
Some interesting findings from Gallup today:
Despite the results of the 2008 presidential election, Americans, by a 2-to-1 margin, say their political views in recent years have become more conservative rather than more liberal, 39% to 18%, with 42% saying they have not changed. While independents and Democrats most often say their views haven't [...]As bad as the past week has been politically for SC Gov. Mark Sanford, a SurveyUSA poll released over the weekend shows him with higher job approval ratings than NC Gov. Bev Perdue.
According to SurveyUSA, 32% approve of Sanford's job as Governor.
When PPP polled Perdue in June, only [...]
Sen. David Hoyle (D-Gaston) was quoted by the AP over the weekend saying that the holdup in negotiations between the House and Senate in crafting a new budget were "philosophical" differences.
The House plan increases the sales and income tax rates while expanding the new (higher sales tax) to services, [...]
Here's another "dog bites man" story out of DC. More folks in DC think that even more government spending will lead us out the recession.
White House economists are discussing whether a second round of stimulus is needed, but a decision isn't expected until at least the fall. "We remain [...]
During your busy holiday weekend, please take a moment to remember Jesse Helms on the anniversary of his death.
[...]"Today, Governor Bev Perdue signed into law the Gender Justice Act. This new act will allow men on death row to challenge the judicial system of North Carolina on the basis of Sexism. Men that have been sentenced to capital punishment will be able to use data and other [...]
A sight I often wondered would ever happen is apparently happening.
On the House Calendar for Monday night, the chamber is schedule to hear debate on HB 1268 which authorizes a referendum on amending the NC Constitution to protect private property owners from having their property taken from them [...]
As reported in Under the Dome:
Online retailer Overstock.com has followed Amazon.com's decision to cut off a commission program to North Carolina-based Web sites.
The move would allow the companies to avoid having to collect sales tax on sales to customers in the state. Under the commission [...]
They’re pumping their chests over at the North Carolina Education Lottery. While most of state’s economy is mired in a prolonged recession, the Lottery has exceeded projections for the second year in a row. On Thursday, the lottery transferred $411 million to the public schools to be used for [...]
Late today, Governor Bev Perdue took to the bully pulpit to encourage the General Assembly to hurry up and pass a budget because the state is "losing" $5 million a day in lost new tax revenue and spending cuts.
Legislators now have until July 15 to agree on the budget, [...]In recent weeks Governor Perdue has been expending considerable effort telling the state's teachers and educators that she is working to protect teacher jobs and that she'll oppose efforts to raise class size or reduce teacher pay.
That said, one wonders how teachers feel about the $950,000 appropriation for Teach [...]
Today marks the beginning of a new fiscal year for North Carolina and while legislators still focus on finishing the budget, here is a sample of new state laws effective today:
(SB 287) STATE HEALTH PLAN $/GOOD HEALTH INITIATIVES.
An act to appropriate funds (ie:$ 675 million) for the State Health [...]
Does anyone else find it ironic that while the NC legislature prepares to hit taxpayers with new taxes in excess of a billion dollars it continues to fund an air force in excess of 60 aircraft including a corporate jet for executive transport? And I am not including the National Guard in this number.
[...]Nate Silver at FiveThirtyEight.com has an interesting analysis of the median voter theorem in which he says that being a so-called moderate elected official is only worth a roughly 2 percentage point advantage.
Certainly the median congressmember is important: by definition, it's that marginal vote you need to get a [...]Dell, Google, now Inspiration Networks joins the list of unfulfilled incentive promises.
Thankfully, this one is South Carolina's problem, not ours. But it is just one more example of the folly of the incentive game.
South Carolina pledged $26 million in incentives to Inspiration Networks, a non-profit religious broadcaster, to move its [...]
North Carolina’s cap on charter schools keeps thousands of students from attending the school of their choice. This morning's News & Observer tells us the state’s cap may also cost the state millions in federal innovation grants. Encouraged by the positive results of many charter schools, the Obama administration is [...]
Clearly we live in a nation where people are free to speak their minds. Darn if we actually use them. As Chris Fitzsimon earnestly points out in his June 26 post on NC Policy Watch, The Follies, all Republicans present during the vote to fund a $25 million North [...]
Clearly we live in a nation where people are free to speak their minds. Darn if we actually use them. As Chris Fitzsimon earnestly points out in his June 26 post on NC Policy Watch, The Follies, all Republicans present during the vote to fund a $25 million North [...]
I must admit I didn’t know what to make of the folly coming out of the nominations made by the Wake County Democratic Party to the Wake County Board of Elections. The N&O just left me with too many questions:
Here is the first glimpse of something I think you will be hearing a lot more about in the near future:
Fueled by aggressive House Democrats, the American Clean Energy and Security Act (H.R. 2454), also known as Waxman-Markey, is expected to come up today on the United States House floor. The reality of this pseudo “save-the-earth” energy bill is that it produces the largest tax in American history.
The [...]
Funny what wins praise among our ruling class these days. Seems the White House is giving North Carolina an "atta-boy" for how rapidly they are spending our money.
The White House says North Carolina is getting the job done on highways.
North Carolina has exceeded the federal deadline to obligate 50 percent [...]
Recognizing that cutting taxes encourages investment and creates jobs the North Carolina legislature lowered taxes... I can't go on and not laugh. The above is a headline you won't won't soon see about any of the taxes that would truly help the economy. It is true for a few politically [...]
George Will's column "Green job estimates, blown away", highlights the lunacy behind federal efforts to help rebuild the economy through green jobs. Will -- and many others -- remain puzzled over the Obama administration's decision to highlight Spain's initiatives in creating green jobs -- especially when the country is suffering from an unemployment rate of 18.1 percent -- twice [...]
So in addition to taxpayer dollars during a "budget crisis" being spent on the Governor jetting around the state and for a multi-billion dollar company making higher profit margins than Exxon Mobil, now the state Senate has approved larger taxpayer handouts to Hollywood big shots:
North Carolina lawmakers are pushing through a [...]
An email from one of the leading activists fighting for annexation reform gives a glimpse into the "sausage factory" that is what passes for our NC General Assembly. I am on the email list as I think that annexation reform is long past due. There are a multitude of [...]
The Bullying Bill passed its final vote in the NC House on Tuesday afternoon and is expected to be signed into law by Governor Perdue. This marks the first time that sexual orientation has been written into North Carolina Statute. Supporters of the bill claim a intent clause located at [...]
Maybe this should have been the topic of Mr. Obama's press conference:
"The last issue I'd like to address is health care the government costs.
Right now, Congress is debating various health care government cost reform proposals. This is obviously a complicated issue, but I am very optimistic about the progress [...]
The Governor's office announced yesterday another corporate welfare handout to a multi-billion dollar corporation. This is your tax dollars being spent to bribe a manufacturing giant to "create jobs" here in NC. (I'll leave aside for now the economic truism that government can not "create" jobs)
So as the Gov. [...]
I really can't understand the complete media and public overreaction regarding the whereabouts of SC Gov. Mark Sanford.
Former North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley was AWOL for 8 years and nobody seemed to notice and/or care.
[...]Another horror story in today's Charlotte/Raleigh Observer on that big bad bully Wal-Mart and all the really bad things it is doing to our economy:
Jobs: Employing 53,000 people in North Carolina, making it NC's largest employer (the government is #1, of course)How will this government run healthcare option in an open marketplace run private insurance companies out of business? Very easily, Mr. President. The government will base its prices off of estimates. These estimates will be lower than anything a private insurance company can provide for its costumers, merely because [...]
New start date legislation and slowing birth rates have led to a drop in North Carolina public school average daily membership (ADM) enrollment . Earlier this year DPI estimated a decline of about 12,000 students (See page 2).
That said, why does the House education Budget include $27.2 million [...]
The NC House has voted to include sexual orientation in the bill to prevent school bullying. The vote was 59 to 57. The bill will be heard again on Tuesday.
Jeff Mixon on location at the General Assembly.
[...]The misleadingly named "School Violence Prevention Act" SB 526 sponsored by Senator Julia Boseman (D-New Hanover) is on the NC House calendar for a vote during tonight's House session.
This bill would introduce into North Carolina law for the first time descriptions of sexual orientation. A similar bill was used [...]
I hardly know where to begin with this. Last Friday's Charlotte/Raleigh News & Observer/Observer ran a very predictable story on the illegal-aliens-in-community-colleges-saga. The shocker here is some of the comments from members of the NC Board of Community Colleges.
Dr. Stuart Fountain, a retired Asheboro dentist who heads the [...]
