A recent order by the North Carolina Supreme Court confirms that its four Democratic members may attempt to disqualify two of the court’s three Republican justices from a case seeking to nullify constitutional amendments voters approved in 2018. In addition to being unjustified and unprecedented, such a blatant act of partisan gamesmanship would seriously harm the court as an institution and permanently damage the reputations and electoral prospects of the justices involved. If successful, it would also effectively disenfranchise the millions of North Carolina voters who approved the constitutional amendments and elected the disqualified justices.
The NAACP has asked the North Carolina Supreme Court to overturn the results of the 2018 election as they pertain to two constitutional amendments approved by the voters. It has been reported that the four Democrats on the court may try to disqualify two Republican justices from the case, a partisan attack that, in addition to being unjustified and unprecedented, would do lasting damage to the court as an institution and permanently damage the reputations and electoral prospects of the justices involved. If successful, such an attack would also have the effect of disenfranchising the North Carolina voters who approved the constitutional amendments and the voters who elected the disqualified justices.
Reforming the Emergency Management Act is about good governance, regardless of who resides in the governor’s mansion. No individual should have the power unilaterally to deprive citizens of their liberty for an extended period. Reforms would still allow for rapid responses for true emergencies.
The North Carolina Emergency Management Act (EMA) delegates too much power to the executive branch and provides too little legislative guidance and oversight. This article proposes specific changes to the EMA to correct these deficiencies and restore the separation of powers guaranteed by the North Carolina State Constitution.
The first three counts are concerned with the discriminatory way Cooper has applied the Emergency Management Act. The last two counts, on the other hand, point to problems with the EMA itself — problems that can only be solved by amending the act.
Free people should never have to prove they have a right to live their lives free from government interference. Instead, it is the government that bears the burden of justifying the restrictions it wishes to impose, and the more severe the proposed restrictions, the stronger the justification must be.
Prior to the election, I emphasized the importance of the upcoming judicial races in North Carolina and urged voters to “choose wisely.” Judging by the results, I think they did. Compared with past years, an unusually high percentage of voters took the time to vote for judicial candidates this time around.
Cooper will continue to occupy the Governor’s mansion, and he’s made it very clear he intends to go on issuing lockdown orders without COS concurrence. Which raises a question for those of us who still object to those orders: what can we do about them now?
My level of anxiety increased steadily throughout the summer as each morning brought news of more violent protests in cities across the country and as the Democrats pursued their relentless attack on state election laws. As I looked at the election returns on the morning of November 4, however, I suddenly felt much better. Here’s how I explained it to a friend.
If the candidate who appears to have lost on election day eventually wins because of late arriving ballots, the public is going to suspect fraud, and with good reason. Late arriving ballots have always been a hallmark of election fraud.
