As Gov.-elect Pat McCrory and the Republicans who run the North Carolina General Assembly start their work in 2013, one item they will need to address is the state’s long-term debt obligations. The Charlotte Observer published this week John Locke Foundation President John Hood‘s observations about the importance of tackling the debt issue.

Hood’s latest appearance on News 14 Carolina’s statewide “Capital Tonight” political program included analysis of McCrory’s first appointments to lead key state government departments. The News & Observer‘s “Under the Dome” blog cited Hood’s thoughts about voter identification laws, while the Winston-Salem Journal interviewed him about unemployment insurance reform.

Along with his regular syndicated column, the Oxford Public Ledger recently highlighted Hood’s biography, borrowing liberally from the JohnLocke.org website. (Syndicated columnist John Hood is President and Chairman of the John Locke Foundation, a North Carolina think tank that issues policy studies, hosts dozens of events and training sessions each year, produces broadcast programs, and publishes Carolina Journal, a monthly newspaper with a readership of nearly 200,000 North Carolinians.)

Hood and JLF Director of Communications Mitch Kokai also filled in this week for host Bill LuMaye on Talk Radio WPTF. Topics included gun laws, the federal fiscal cliff, North Carolina tax reform, and small business owners’ pessimism about their prospects in 2013.