July 29, 2010

More contract madness

Posted by Dr. Terry Stoops at 3:28 PM

Contract: UNC-General Administration

Description: To support the existing eleven (11) and coordinate an additional 19 school partnership programs between K-12 schools in Jiangsu Province and North Carolina, strengthen knowledge and understanding of China and its cultures among K-12 educational leaders, educator and students in North Carolina, facilitate dialogue and collaboration between SBE and JPDE and, coordinate periodic reporting on the MOU between SBE and JPDE to the SBE, including highlights of school programs.

Cost: $119,000 (state funds)

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Reactionary Charlotte

Posted by Dr. Michael Sanera at 2:11 PM

The Charlotte city council rushes headlong into the 19th century.  Not satisfied with subsidizing light rail commuters to the tune of $40 per round trip, the city council, enticed by a $25 million federal grant, is spending $12 million and $1.5 million annually for a streetcar.   Yes, you heard it right, a 19th century streetcar to solve Charlotte's congestion problem.   Another train to nowhere.  And I thought Charlotte was having money problems in this recession?  You just cannot make up this stuff.  Raleigh taxpayers you are next.  Read about it here.

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Moving the health care goalposts

Posted by Joseph Coletti at 1:44 PM

I was catching up on health care blogs last night and noticed a theme on the Left: they have changed their arguments and justifications for ObamaCare and RomneyCare in the past few months.

Jonathan Gruber now claims the point of RomneyCare was not to reduce cost, even though cost reduction was a big selling point for it and its ObamaCare progeny.

Ezra Klein praises the Cadillac Tax on high-value insurance plans for "falling particularly heavily on union plans and striking a serious (and, over time, larger and larger) blow against the employer-based health-care system." As with Gruber's statement, this is true but President Obama sold his plan as protecting employer-sponsored insurance against those of us who think individuals should control their health insurance like they do their car insurance, life insurance, and homeowners insurance.

Jonathan Chait got in on the act, too, but extended the delusion to include the stimulus

First of all, the stimulus is temporary. And the spending surge is scheduled to largely recede:

I realize that conservatives believe that the stimulus will "really" be a permanent addition to the spending baseline. I have yet to see this explanation account for the mechanics of how Congress will add the stimulus to the regular budget, especially with the constraints of pay-as-you-go financing. It's simply a variant of free-floating quasi-paranoid anti-government animus.

Actually, in North Carolina, it is the big government supporters who act as though they believe the stimulus will be permanent. How else can we explain a budget that spends $1.6 billion in stimulus money on continuing obligations?

And it seems everyone on the Left has dropped the "Patient Protection" part of the bill title and call it simply the Affordable Care Act (ACA), again making it clear that their goal is to provide subsidies, ration care through government, take away patient choices, and not worry about patients: read you and me.

The good news is there is a new diagram to help you understand how ObamaCare will make your life simpler.

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Hunt-affiliated company gets first of many contracts

Posted by Dr. Terry Stoops at 1:35 PM

Wireless Generation, which has ties to "forever governor" Jim Hunt, obtained a $37,000 contract (state funds) from the State Board of Education to provide four days of teacher training. WG has a contract with the state to provide the software used in hand-held devices.

The company has been very active in North Carolina.

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Kay Hagan flip-flops on collective bargaining

Posted by Rick Henderson at 11:57 AM

Piedmont Publius Sam Hieb notes that Sen. Kay Hagan voted for cloture on a Senate appropriations bill including a provision with a mandate forcing states to allow collective bargaining with unions representing police, firefighters, EMS workers, and other public safety employees.

North Carolina has outlawed unionization of public safety workers for more than half a century. Hagan has been all over the map on this provision, most recently stating on May 25 (through a spokeswoman — see comments) that she would NOT vote for cloture on the standalone version of the collective bargaining bill.

North Carolinians will have to decide whether the freshman Democrat gets a pass for abandoning her earlier pledge, even though the cloture vote is for a much more expansive piece of legislation.

Read Donna Martinez's CJ exclusive on the standalone collective bargaining bill here.

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Re: Tax Hikes on the Ballot

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 11:43 AM

Joe has offered you the basics of his arguments against Robeson County's proposed sales tax increase.

He also discusses the issue in the video clip below.

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Citizen soldier program says staffer will be 'sorely missed'

Posted by David N. Bass at 10:48 AM

Carolina Journal reported last month on Susan Kerner-Hoeg's departure from the Citizen-Soldier Support Program. She was criticized for racking up extensive commuting costs traveling between Washington, D.C., and Chapel Hill.

In a press release announcing that Kerner-Hoeg was leaving, CSSP addresses the criticism:

Recent criticism of the program fails to acknowledge the great work that Susan has done for the program and that when she was hired, it was a conscious and cost effective decision of the program that she remain in Virginia and commute to Chapel Hill as required. Her responsibilities were principally in the Washington, D.C area and the commuting costs from Chapel Hill to Washington, D.C. would ultimately be much higher.

Her impact on the program has been profound and countless Service Members and their families have benefited from her dedication to the cause of mobilizing community involvement, increasing community capacity in and access to service delivery systems; she will be sorely missed.

For CJ's full coverage of CSSP, click here.

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Taxes: A Defining Issue

Posted by George Leef at 10:10 AM

That's the title of Daniel Henninger's WSJ column today. Excellent reading.

Henninger nails down the difference between two visions. Under the Obama/statist vision, taxes must constantly be increased, especially on business and "the rich." It's the "We work, they decide" approach, "they" meaning politicians.

On the other hand, many people prefer a tax system "that keeps more of the nation's decisions about using its wealth in the hands -- and minds -- of millions of intelligent citizens, from any economic class. They work, they decide."

Put it this way. The lower tax rates, the more that individuals get to choose how to spend or invest money. The higher tax rates, the more politicians get to choose how to spend or invest money. Well, take out "invest" from the last sentence. Politicians never really invest money, despite the chatter about how their spending on education, health care, etc is really an "investment." High taxes cut down on true investment and transfer spending decisions from individuals (who tend to carefully weigh costs and benefits) to politicians who are driven by short-run electoral considerations and special interest pressures.

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Tax hikes on the ballot

Posted by Joseph Coletti at 09:46 AM

Robeson County commissioners have already raised taxes $1.2 million for fiscal year 2011. Now county commissioners want to add another $1.1 million tax hike in a vote next Tuesday, August 3. But county commissioners are selling it to taxpayers as a property tax cut.

How does the sales pitch work?

Commissioners say (promise is too strong a word) they'll give back the earlier property tax hike, $0.02 per $100 valuation, if voters approve a quarter-cent sales tax hike that raises the equivalent of $0.04 in the property tax rate. John Hood has written before on how this disingenuous strategy has worked in other counties. We have a fuller analysis of the Robeson vote available, too.

Now Guilford County commissioners are warning they may seek a sales tax hike without a partially offsetting property tax cut. Commissioners there tried to get the tax hike in conjunction with bonds voters approved in 2008. So there's no sleight-of-hand there. But this quote from Commissioner Carolyn Coleman is stunning: "[T]he sentiment I’ve heard from people is they would prefer a sales tax increase over property tax. Many people who have property but are on a fixed income would be more affected by having to pay a big lump sum.” So she thinks people can afford to pay $8.00 on every $100 they spend but doesn't think the county can find a way to offer installment plans for property taxes?

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Latest dispatches from the campaign trail

Posted by David N. Bass at 09:00 AM

• Charlotte is hungry for the Democrats' convention in 2012 — the city is wining and dining party leaders.


• Independent candidate George Shaeffer enters state House District 15 race.


• G.K. Butterfield's Republican challenger asks the congressman to return campaign cash from the embattled Charlie Rangel.


• U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler, D-11th, enjoys bi-partisan support, according to a poll of registered voters in Jackson County.


• Renee Ellmers, Bob Etheridge's Republican opponent in the 2nd Congressional District, responds to the recent ruling on the Arizona immigration law.

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Latest ABCs results show Wake County's test growth lags behind other urban districts

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 08:23 AM

Supporters of Wake County's recently discarded forced busing policy argued that the policy had led to benefits for student performance.

The latest ABCs of Public Education report will tell a different story, as Terry Stoops explains here. In summary, Wake's test score growth for 2009-10 lagged behind the growth in most of North Carolina's other large urban districts.

Terry discusses his findings in the video clip below.

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Will We Ever Get Past Race and Class?

Posted by Dr. Terry Stoops at 08:18 AM

Michael Petrilli observes,

For the better part of a week, Washington has been consumed by the Shirley Sherrod pseudo-scandal, leading many pundits to ponder race relations in America circa 2010. A better indicator, however, might be the goings-on in Wake County, North Carolina, where civil rights advocates are angrily protesting the decision of a newly elected school board to end the education system’s long-running busing program.

This story has it all: civil disobedience, allegations of “carpet-bagging” Yankees, super-charged emotions, and the highest of stakes: our children. Unlike the Sherrod dispute, which is mostly a symbolic proxy war, this one is fundamental to our self-definition as a country. Do we believe in raising our children together, with kids of other races, cultures, and economic backgrounds, or not?

[snip]

A new Education Next forum titled “Is Desegregation Dead?” sheds light on this question. Susan Eaton of Harvard Law squares off against Steven Rivkin of Amherst College. Though they differ in their interpretation of the “success” (or not) of desegregation, they agree on the fundamentals: Integration helps to raise minority student achievement, but it’s not nearly a strong enough intervention by itself to close achievement gaps.

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New Carolina Journal Online features

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 06:55 AM

The latest Carolina Journal Online exclusive features Duke Cheston's report on the impact of nontenured faculty members at public universities.

John Hood's Daily Journal makes the case for a tax increase — on state and local government bonds.

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July 28, 2010

Kerry playing 'ketchup' on tax dodge

Posted by David N. Bass at 3:35 PM

John Kerry has now realized that living in the People's Republic of Massachusetts means you have to pay the taxes of the People's Republic of Massachusetts — and millionaire/billionaire ketchup dynasties are no exception.

From The Boston Globe:

Senator John F. Kerry announced yesterday that he will voluntarily pay $500,000 to Massachusetts tax collectors on his luxury yacht, a pledge made hours after state officials had begun inquiring into whether he had attempted to evade the payment by docking the boat in Rhode Island.

The state Department of Revenue had just started looking into Kerry’s use of the $7 million sloop and into reports that it had been spotted repeatedly in Massachusetts since it was registered in March. Officials could have subpoenaed the ship’s log to see where the yacht had been, according to a Department of Revenue official who declined to be identified by name because tax cases by law are confidential.

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Seven Year Terms for U.S. Senators

Posted by Dr. Troy Kickler at 2:23 PM

It could have been so.  Seven-year terms were included in the original draft of the Constitution, but at the Constitutional Convention, Hugh Williamson of North Carolina suggested six year terms.   His reasoning was that six years "was more convenient for Rotation."  After some disagreement and questioning, the delegates agreed to Williamson's suggestion. 

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Slam

Posted by David N. Bass at 2:04 PM

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Amber alert ... severe thunderstorm warning ... Basnight fundraiser

Posted by Rick Henderson at 1:51 PM

Under the Dome reports the comical/embarrasing/scandalous story of the Kill Devil Hills town clerk distributing information about a fundraiser for Senate Pro Tem Marc Basnight using the town's tax-funded e-mail server.

It was all an innocent mistake, Mary Quidley told the N&O's Ben Niolet.

"I did it because I figured it was something our citizens might want to know about not thinking that I was supporting the campaign," Quidley said.

Yeah, that's the ticket.

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New Carolina Journal Online exclusive

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 11:36 AM

The latest Carolina Journal Online exclusive features David Bass' report about a federal appeals court ruling against North Carolina in an air-pollution dispute with the Tennessee Valley Authority.

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Poll: 70 percent oppose banning Jesus' name from invocations

Posted by David N. Bass at 11:14 AM

Civitas has an interesting poll out showing bi-partisan opposition to banning Jesus' name from invocations in the state House:

Both Democratic and Republican voters in North Carolina disagree with the policy forbidding guest chaplains in the state House from mentioning Jesus in the opening prayer session according to a new poll released today by the Civitas Institute.

According to the live caller poll of 600 likely voters, 70 percent of voters said they disagree with the policy that forbids chaplains from mentioning Jesus in their prayer. Twenty-seven percent of voters said they agree, and three percent said they are not sure.

Republicans oppose the guidelines by a 74 percent-24 percent margin. Democrats also disagree with a 70 percent-26 percent margin in opposition. Moreover, unaffiliated voters also oppose the policy by 61 percent-31 percent.

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Re: Report: N.C. fourth laziest state in the union

Posted by Dr. Michael Sanera at 11:10 AM

David,

Don't miss the interviews at Watkins Grill in the WRAL report.   Too bad Troy and Michael Moore were not there to explain how thinking is really hard work.

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What Americans know about the 4th of July, Not much

Posted by Dr. Michael Sanera at 11:02 AM

Thanks to the folks at the American Council of Trustees and Alumni for posting this Jaywalking episode. Watch to the end to see grandpa.

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Government employees still have better benefits

Posted by Joseph Coletti at 10:51 AM

The Wall Street Journal summarizes findings of an annual Labor Department report on benefits.

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Report: N.C. fourth laziest state in the union

Posted by David N. Bass at 10:35 AM

From WRAL.com:

North Carolinians spend more time watching TV, relaxing and thinking than residents in most other states, according to a BusinessWeek study released on Tuesday that ranks the Tar Heel state the fourth laziest, behind Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas.

Residents on average each day spend eight hours sleeping, nearly three hours watching TV, about 25 minutes thinking and nearly an hour socializing, according to the study. The average North Carolinian, aged 15 and older, spends nearly three hours working.

I don't agree with the categories here. How is "thinking" lazy? We could use a lot more of that in North Carolina and the country as a whole. And getting an average of eight hours each night is healthy, not lazy.

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Two Democrats call Obama "divisive"

Posted by George Leef at 09:25 AM

Today's lead WSJ op-ed piece by Democratic pollsters Pat Caddell and Douglas Schoen argues that Obama has proved to be the very opposite of the "post-partisan" so many Americans thought they were voting for.

Maybe they are surprised, but I'm not. A "community organizer" steeped in leftist economic fantasies and group resentment could scarcely be expected to adopt a sensible approach to the presidency -- one that depoliticizes the nation. Instead, Obama has turned up the heat on the burners as far as they can go.

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Latest dispatches from the campaign trail

Posted by David N. Bass at 08:55 AM

• Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr and his Democratic opponent Elaine Marshall are well off but not wealthy, reports the N&O.


• State Rep. Bruce Goforth, a Buncombe County Democrat, lost his primary in May and has now decided to resign rather than complete his term.


• State Supreme Court hearing on third party ballot access case to be held in September.


• Kissell-Johnson race in the 8th Congressional District makes CNN’s list of 50 most vulnerable House seats.


• Former Massachusetts governor and GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney adds $5,000 to Burr's campaign kitty.


• Civitas poll shows Burr leading Marshall 44-37 percent.


• A June campaign fundraiser hosted by Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight had a big invite list.

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Economic uncertainty highlighted again

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 08:53 AM

Though he's less explicit about the issue than some other observers, Newsweek's Robert J. Samuelson highlights in his latest column the impact of economic uncertainty on the current American economy:

The rebound in profits ought to be a good omen. It frees companies to be more aggressive. They’re sitting on huge cash reserves: a record $838 billion for industrial companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (companies like Apple, Boeing, and Caterpillar) at the end of March, up 26 percent from a year earlier. “They have the wherewithal to do whatever they want—hire, make new investments, raise dividends, do mergers and acquisitions,” says S&P’s Howard Silver-blatt. Historically, higher profits lead to higher employment, says Mark Zandi of Moody’s Economy.com. Except for startups, loss-making companies don’t generate new jobs.

So far, history be damned. The contrast between revived profits and stunted job growth is stunning. From late 2007 to late 2009, payroll employment dropped nearly 8.4 million. Since then, the economy has recovered a scant 11 percent of those lost jobs.

Samuelson examines the role of executive stock options, unions, imports, and immigrants as factors contributing to the lagging job growth.

In a throwaway reference, though, Samuelson names another factor that's undoubtedly playing a role.

But it’s unclear whether corporate elites were so traumatized by the crisis that they’ve adopted a bunker mentality. That, as much as uncertainty over Obama’s policies, is fearsome.

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Boycotting Israel

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 08:41 AM

As a left-of-center columnist, even by Newsweek's standards, Jacob Weisberg is not the sort of writer you'd expect to raise much fuss about the latest half-baked political statements from celebrities such as Meg Ryan and Elvis Costello.

But because those two stars' latest actions involve a cultural boycott of Israel, Weisberg does take note and responds.

The stronger case against a cultural boycott of Israel is based on consistency, proportionality, and history. That supporters of this boycott seldom focus on China or Syria or Zimbabwe—or other genuinely illegitimate regimes that systematically violate human rights—underscores their bad faith. Boycotters are not trying to send the specific message, “We object to your settlement policy in the West Bank.” What they’re saying is, “We consider your country so intrinsically reprehensible that we are going to treat all of your citizens as pariahs.” Like the older Arab economic boycott of Israel, which dates back to the 1940s, the cultural boycott is a weapon designed not to bring peace but to undermine the country.

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2010 AYP results for urban counties

Posted by Dr. Terry Stoops at 08:38 AM

AYP Status – A federal measure that determines how subgroups (e.g., race/ethnicity, sex, disability, and socioeconomic status) performed on state tests. For a school to make Adequately Yearly Progress (AYP), all subgroups in the school must score proficient on state tests.

Guilford: 69 schools out of 116 (59.5%)
Charlotte-Mecklenburg: 97 schools out of 168 (57.7%)
Winston-Salem/Forsyth: 44 schools out of 81 (54.3%)
Wake: 61 schools out of 159 (38.4%)
Durham: 13 schools out of 52 (25.0%)

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Barone sees signs of Democratic 'thumping'

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 08:32 AM

Michael Barone's latest article for the Washington Examiner dissects Democrats' spin about the fall elections. 

[T]his Democratic spin sounds a lot like the Republican spin back in the 2006 cycle. If the numbers don't change too much from 2004, Republicans said then, we can hold on. If the numbers don't change too much from 2008, Democrats think now, they can hold on.

But the Republicans, as George W. Bush said, took "a thumping" in 2006. And most signs suggest Democrats will take a thumping this year too.

To see why, take a look at the generic ballot question -- which party's candidate will you vote for in elections to the House? The current realclearpolitics.com average shows Republicans ahead by 45 to 41 percent. Ten of this month's 15 opinion polls asking the question had Republicans ahead; Democrats led in four (twice by 1 percent), and one poll showed a tie.

Keep in mind that the generic ballot question historically has tended to underpredict Republican performance in off-year elections. Gallup has been asking the question since 1950 and has shown Republicans leading only in two cycles, 1994 and 2002, and then by less than the 7 and 5 points by which they won the popular vote for the House in those years.

So the Republicans' current lead in the generic ballot question suggests they may be on the brink of doing better than in any election since 1946, when they won a 245-188 margin in the House -- larger than any they've held ever since.

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New Carolina Journal Online features

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 06:53 AM

The latest Carolina Journal Online exclusive features Sarah Okeson's report on the impact of new Build America Bonds on local school and government debt. 

John Hood's Daily Journal explains the senselessness of spending taxpayer dollars on high-speed rail and a Charlotte streetcar line.

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July 27, 2010

New CJ Exclusive on high-speed rail

Posted by Rick Henderson at 5:48 PM

Anthony Greco's latest video report is on the rollout of a proposal to run a multibillion-dollar high-speed rail line from Charlotte to Washington, D.C. Watch Anthony's exclusive here.

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Barney Frank gets it: When it's your money, every dollar counts

Posted by Jon Sanders at 4:25 PM

Per the New York Post :

Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank caused a scene when he demanded a $1 senior discount on his ferry fare to Fire Island's popular gay haunt, The Pines, last Friday. Frank was turned down by ticket clerks at the dock in Sayville because he didn't have the required Suffolk County Senior Citizens ID. A witness reports, "Frank made such a drama over the senior rate that I contemplated offering him the dollar to cool down the situation."

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North Carolina loses its case, thank goodness

Posted by John Hood at 2:10 PM

A federal appeals court has unanimously overturned a district court decision in favor of North Carolina’s clean-air lawsuit against the Tennessee Valley Authority. The judges concluded, properly, that allowing a state to pursue dubious claims of environmental harm against a utility in another state encroaches on federal regulatory authority and could cause significant problems with uncertainty and fairness.

The John Locke Foundation has long questioned the factual and legal basis for Attorney General Roy Cooper’s lawsuit against the TVA. For example, a 2008 report by Roy Cordato and Joel Schwartz took a critical look at Cooper's assertions about the costs and benefits of the proposed emissions rules, concluding that “the actual benefits of the TVA power plant emission reductions will at best be only a tiny fraction of the amount claimed by the Attorney General’s experts.”

Carolina Journal has followed the case closely, as well, reporting in 2009 about a draft report that the state’s Division of Air Quality scrapped after realizing that it undercut Cooper's case. 

Check Carolina Journal Online tomorrow morning for a David Bass report on the appeals court decision.

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Fake charter schools give NC another shot at federal dough

Posted by Dr. Terry Stoops at 1:15 PM

Minutes ago, Arne Duncan announced that North Carolina is a finalist for Race to the Top money, round 2. This time around, 35 states and D.C. applied for a piece of the $3.4 billion pie.

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Re: Family-friendly entertainment

Posted by Paul Chesser at 1:01 PM

But let's not let it be called the Bud Light Amphitheater!

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Kerry on tax dodge: 'Can I get out of here?"

Posted by David N. Bass at 12:12 PM

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Family-friendly entertainment

Posted by Dr. Terry Stoops at 10:49 AM

"Legalize It 2010 featuring Slightly Stoopid" will be at the Raleigh Amphitheatre tomorrow. Cypress Hill and Collie Buddz will also perform.

Here is what the News & Observer wrote about the Legalize It 2010 tour earlier this year:

When city leaders hatched their plans to build an amphitheater across the street from the new convention center, this probably wasn't what they were thinking. Through an agreement with the city, Live Nation, the nation's biggest concert promoter, books shows at the new site.

Cypress Hill's song "Hits From the Bong" features these lyrics: "Inhale, exhale - just got an ounce in the mail. I like a blunt or a big fat cone, but my double-barrel bong is getting me stoned."

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Are we a "state-broken" people?

Posted by George Leef at 09:59 AM

In this Cato Institute speech honoring Milton Friedman, George Will says that we aren't.

It's a terrific speech, but the reason for all the turmoil in the country over the last several years (actually much longer) is that there is a large segment of the population that is entirely "state-broken" -- people who look to government to give them what they want and solve all the problems they perceive. Those people, exemplified by the likes of Obama, Pelosi, Reid, Frank, Dodd, and so many others, just won't leave the unbroken alone. They insist on not only taking away what is left of the liberty and property of those who prefer freedom, but wish to destroy their spirit by calling them nasty names and silencing their unwanted dissent from the statist orthodoxy.

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Latest dispatches from the campaign trail

Posted by David N. Bass at 08:10 AM

• Fayetteville preps for the Democratic Party’s state convention there this weekend.


• U.S. Sen. Richard Burr reiterates his opposition to Elena Kagan's nomination.


• Internal poll by Elaine Marshall's campaign shows the Democrat leading Burr, with a large percentage undecided.


• The Robesonian reports that Illario Pantano, Republican candidate in the 7th Congressional District, is raising money hand over fist.


• U.S. Reps. G.K. Butterfield, D-1st, and Walter B. Jones, R-3rd, are raising lots of money in their re-election bids.


• Mooneyham: For state Senate, big political money is hedging bets with GOP.


• Some see little impact on campaign donations after Supreme Court ruling.

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Pro-market versus pro-big business

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 06:59 AM

Ramesh Ponnuru tackles a similar theme in the latest National Review, urging Republicans to support policies that emphasize market competition, rather than policies that promote particular existing businesses.

”The problem we have had as a party is we have often confused being pro-market with being pro-business,” says Rep. Paul Ryan (R., Wis.) When businesses ask for earmarks, too many of his colleagues think that saying yes is the right thing to do. Ryan believes that Republicans should run against “crony capitalism,” in which government selects some firms for favors.

Ponnuru returns to the theme near the article:

A lot of Republicans are convinced that the free-enterprise system needs a more vigorous defense than it has needed in many years. Defending it requires first defining what it is — and what it is not. A welfare system for business is not, and tends to discredit, free enterprise. Supporters of markets must be zealous not only in protecting business from government but in protecting citizens from their improper combination.

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National Review features Pantano, other conservative vets seeking office

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 06:58 AM

The first candidate mentioned — and the only one pictured — is Ilario Pantano, who’s seeking to unseat North Carolina 7th District Democrat Mike McIntyre.

Wilmington-area John Locke Foundation supporters might remember Pantano’s 2006 Headliner presentation on his book Warlord.

Here’s an early paragraph from Miller’s new article:

Today, Pantano is one of the GOP’s great hopes for wresting control of the House away from Democrats. North Carolina’s 7th district, which includes Wilmington and its environs, prefers Republican presidential candidates. John McCain took it with 52 percent and George W. Bush took it with more. Since 1996, however, the area’s voters have sent blue-dog Democrat Mike McIntyre to Washington, often with commanding majorities against token opposition. Pantano insists that he’ll deliver a different result in 2010: “When I saw that Scott Brown could win a Senate race in Massachusetts, I knew I could win here.”

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New Carolina Journal Online features

Posted by Mitch Kokai at 06:56 AM

The latest Carolina Journal Online exclusive features Hal Young's profile of Rod Helder, the man who's retiring after 25 years of overseeing private and home education for state government.

John Hood's Daily Journal encourages Gov. Beverly Perdue to follow up on the idea of selling off North Carolina's state-owned liquor stores, along with other low-performing assets.

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