CASH IN THE APPLE FOR
06-29-17
By Cash Michaels
BUDGET OF
DESTRUCTION – By the time you read this, the compromise budget for fiscal year
2017-18 will most likely have been vetoed by Gov. Roy Cooper, and that veto
will have been overridden by both the Republican-led state House and Senate.
In his
remarks before wielding the veto pen, the Democratic governor called the $23
billion budget “small-minded.”
The online dictionary defines
“small-minded” as “having or showing rigid opinions or a narrow
outlook; narrow-minded, petty, mean-spirited, uncharitable, close-minded…” You
get the picture.
Yes, the Republicans tout the budget
as giving teachers and state employees raises, providing disaster relief for
folks victimized by Hurricane Matthew, and of course, tax cuts for the rich.
But then there are the areas of this
new monstrosity that defy decency. So much so, that even national news
publications like Slate.com can’t
believe what they’re seeing.
“This week, the General Assembly’s
Republican leaders released their final budget, which includes a brazen plan to thwart the governor in
several ways,” reported Slate.com
last week in a story titled, “North Carolina Republicans Are Trying to Strip the Governor of His Power
to Challenge Laws.”
“First,”
the story continued, “… the budget prevents Cooper from using the governor’s
office attorneys without the General Assembly’s permission. Second, the budget
prevents Cooper from using “lapsed salary savings”—money saved when the state
pays an employee less than it had budgeted—to hire outside counsel. These
provisions effectively prevent Cooper from suing the legislature to halt
unconstitutional laws. In order for him to do so, the General Assembly would
have to give its permission to be sued, or Cooper would have to pay private lawyers
out of pocket.”
“Republicans also added a provision
to the budget mandating that the legislature participate in any suit
challenging a North Carolina law. That means the General Assembly can always
step into a lawsuit against the state and defend the challenged statute, even
though the governor cannot—unless the General Assembly allows him to, and permits
him to use his attorneys,” the Slate.com story added.
What kind of power hungry, demonic,
mean-spirited four-legged animals in sear-sucker suits do we have making laws
in our state? They will do anything to grab complete power, regardless of how
North Carolinians voted last November.
And of course, if you read our
front-page story about the state budget, then you read how the Republicans
eliminated a $200,000 African-American heritage monument that was originally
planned for under Gov. McCrory, a Republican, and replaced it with a $5,000,000
appropriation for a $65 million “Civil War History Center” to be built in
Fayetteville, replacing the Cape Fear Museum there.
And get this – according to the
fundraiser for the “center,” at least $27 million has already been raised, all
but $7 million is public funding, from the city of Fayetteville, the county of
Cumberland, and now, the state of North Carolina.
So while other Southern states are
getting rid of their symbols of the old Confederacy, North Carolina is steadily
spending taxpayer dollars to help open a $65 million museum to celebrate the
legacy of the Civil War, completely eliminating the African-American history
monument that has been in planning for months.
North Carolina NAACP President Rev.
William Barber says one of the best ways to determine what’s in a lawmaker’s
heart is to take a look at his budget. That tells you what his priorities are,
and are not.
Rev, I think we got the message on
this one, alright!
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NC NAACP LEADER DECIDES
TO STAY UNTIL OCTOBER
By Cash Michaels
Contributing writer
Responding to a powerful “Urgent
Personal and Public Appeal” not to leave office until the election next October
of a new NC NAACP president, the current president, Rev. William Barber, says
he’s decided to indeed stay until then because of emerging issues.
“I cannot and will not seek another term as state president, but
for the stability of the movement in these transitional moments, I will stay with God’s help until a new
president is elected to lead the NC NAACP in October, civil rights leader said
in a statement Sunday.
Rev. Barber was responding to
a June 20th open letter sent exclusively to the Black Press across
the state from sixteen members of the NC NAACP’s executive committee.
When Barber announced in May that he would be
stepping down by June to join the national Poor People’s Campaign, he indicated
that the NAACP Constitution already spelled out the mechanism for who would be
next in line to succeed him, namely the NCNAACP’s First Vice President Carolyn
Coleman of Greensboro, unless she turned it down.
Publicly, Ms. Coleman, a highly respected
civil rights veteran, had not indicated whether she would accept the interim
position, or actually run for the NCNAACP presidency in October.
Thus far the only announced
candidate is Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman, NCNAACP Third Vice President, and a
Greensboro pastor.
Citing the recent U.S. Supreme
Court decision striking down North Carolina’s 2011 legislative redistricting as
unconstitutional because of racial gerrymandering in 28 voting districts, and
the Republican leadership’s refusal to immediately begin redrawing the
districts and planning for special elections, the appeal to Rev. Barber made it
clear that this was a time when his leadership is needed the most.
“It is the urgent duty of the
social justice movement, including our NAACP State Conference and its many
partners, to work full time on exposing the extremists’ contempt of the Court’s
orders,” the June 20th open statement said. “This is the reason for this Personal and
Public Appeal to Rev. Dr. Barber.”
Among the signees were Rev. Dr.
John Mendez of Winston-Salem; Rev. Nelson and Joyce Johnson of Greensboro;
atty. Al McSurely of Chapel Hill; Rev. Dr. Rodney Sadler of Charlotte; and
Daphne Holmes-Johnson and Kim Porter of Winston-Salem.
“I was
humbled by the personal and prayerful request that my friends and mentors
within the NC NAACP made public this week,” Rev. Barber replied. “I did not
make the decision to consider stepping aside from my elected position this
summer lightly. I've been in deep prayer and fasting about my calling to help
lead the new Poor Peoples Campaign. I know this is work I must help with and
attempt to guide. Of this, I have no doubt. “
“But I
also know that our work here in North Carolina is critical to the work of the
new Poor People’s Campaign and a national Moral Revival.”
Rev.
Barber went on to say that he had the support of his family, church, the chair
and vice chair of the national NAACP,
and team at his own social justice group, Repairers of the Breach, as
well as the national leadership of the Poor People’s campaign.
“I can do
none of this work alone. With everything in me, I believe in "WE."
We are living in serious times, and because I have heard a call from
people who are committed to these serious times, I'm willing to do my part.”
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DEMOCRATS HAIL COOPER
BUDGET VETO,
QUESTION GOP CIVIL WAR CENTER FUNDING
QUESTION GOP CIVIL WAR CENTER FUNDING
By Cash Michaels
Contributing writer
On Tuesday,
Gov. Roy Cooper, calling it “small-minded,” vetoed the compromise $23 billion
budget the Republican-led NC General Assembly passed last week. The NC Senate immediately voted to override Cooper’s veto, followed by the NC House Wednesday morning. The budget is now law, but Cooper threatens to file suit to stop it.
In touting
their budget plan, Republicans have pointed towards pay raises and more tax
cuts as to why they feel it’s what’s best for North Carolina.
“I was one
of the House budget writers, and [I believe] the compromised budget [between
Republican conferees of the House and Senate] meets many of the needs of the people
across our state,” says Rep. Donny Lambeth [R-Forsyth]. “It provides teachers
with an average approximate 10 percent increase over the budget period. It
provides a cost of living increase for retired state workers, it gives state
workers a $1,000 increase, it invests in our pre-K programs and reduces the
wait list, it provides disaster funding, adds to our savings reserve, adds more
funds for school construction and helps allow families to keep more of their
hard earned money.”
“So I
believe this is a solid plan for allocating state funds to important programs
in North Carolina that provides so many services,” Rep. Lambeth concluded.
Naturally,
Democrats got behind Gov. Cooper’s reasoning as to why the Republican budget is
a big mistake.
“Governor Cooper is right to veto the Republican
Conference budget,” said Sen. Paul Lowe (D-Forsyth). “I voted against this
budget because it shortchanges our state, by prioritizing tax cuts for the
wealthy over education and our economy.”
Rep. Ed
Hanes {D-Forsyth] joined his colleague, Sen. Lowe, in his dismissal.
“I could
not bring myself to vote for this budget,” Hanes said. “There is a profound
problem with the thought that for our state to prosper, we need to further
lower taxes for corporations and the wealthy. We’ve substantially done that
over the last years and stand at number 3 in the country for business. Further
action shifts the tax burden onto the shoulders of the poor and the middle
class.
“Trickle
down economics simply does not work,” Rep. Hanes concluded.
Rep. Cecil
Brockman, Democrat of neighboring Guilford County, also blasted the GOP budget,
saying that it “…shows that their top priority is slashing taxes on
millionaires who should be paying their fair share while leaving our
hard-working families behind.
In terms of
the financial nuts-and-bolts, there was plenty about the new budget Democrats
could quibble with, especially when it came to cutting taxes, money for
education, and funding for economic development in poorer counties.
But a
closer look at the GOP budget yielded yet other bones of contention.
By now it’s
well-known about $10 million being slashed from the NC Justice Dept., headed up
by Democratic State atty Gen. Josh Stein. The Republicans deny it, but Stein charges that the cut is political
retribution for him winning the office last November, and siding with Gov.
Cooper against the Republican legislative majority on several voting rights
cases.
Stein says
he may have to lay off at least a hundred state litigators as a result, which
will ultimately hurt law enforcement.
The GOP compromise
budget also cuts $1 million from Gov. Cooper’s office, and limits his ability
to hire independent legal counsel to sue the General Assembly when it
challenges his authority. Cooper has hinted that he will indeed file a lawsuit
as a result.
“I just became aware of this latest ill-advised
political power grab by the North Carolina General Assembly,” said Irving
Joyner, law professor at NCCU School of Law. “This action represents just
another example of the destruction of democracy in North Carolina. These
right-wing extremists, who presently control the General Assembly, are intent
upon dominating every aspect of life in North Carolina and have gone to great
lengths to destroy the "checks and balances" which the state
constitution requires. These acts should be exposed and aggressively resisted.”
But among others, there is one
situation in the voluminous pages of the GOP budget that is of particular
interest to African-Americans across the state.
According
to the North Carolina Democratic Party, when Gov. Cooper originally issued his
budget proposal several weeks ago, included was $200,000 one-time funding for
an African-American heritage monument on state Capitol grounds.
The proposed
monument, originally planned for under Gov. Pat McCrory by the NC Historical
Commission and the NC African-American Heritage Commission, was the subject of
numerous public hearings across the state last year.
"I can't think of a more appropriate way to
recognize the contributions of African Americans to North Carolina's history
than a monument at the State Capitol," McCrory said at the time.
Republican budgetwriters, however,
discarded Cooper’s monument item, and instead replaced it by appropriating $5
million for a new Civil War museum in Fayetteville.
“Civil War
Museum” is the title of item#6 under Department of Natural and Cultural
Resources on Page M5 of the “Joint Conference Committee Report on the Base,
Capital and Expansion Budget (Senate Bill 257)”
Provides $2,500,000 to the Department of
Natural and Cultural Resources to begin the process of converting the Museum of
the Cape Fear (in Fayetteville) into a Civil War Museum. There is an additional
$2,500,000 appropriated to the Department upon verification of $2,500,000 in private
donations towards the project. The revised net appropriation for this project
is $5,000,000.
According to David Winslow,
president of The Winslow Group, Inc. of Winston-Salem, the primary fundraiser
for the $65 million “NC Civil War History Center” since 2014, approximately $27
million (with the state money added) has already been raised, and most of that
has come from public dollars contributed by the city of Fayetteville, the
county of Cumberland, and now the state of North Carolina.
Only $7
million from private donations.
According
to the company’s website, the museum is scheduled to open in 2020. Winslow says
the “center” will be different.
“We are
about telling the whole story,” Winslow said by phone on Tuesday. “We have partnered with Fayetteville State
University in what we’re doing.”
Still, it
is not clear why Republican lawmakers cut $200,000 for a state monument to
African-American heritage originally started by a GOP governor, only to give
twenty-five times that much for a “center” focusing on the civil war, which
most historians agree was fought over slavery.
“Budgets show what you value,” said NC Democratic
Party Chairman Wayne Goodwin. “Governor Cooper, through his budget, outlined
how important it is that our state remember and honor our shared history.
Republicans clearly feel otherwise – they’d rather give their offices an
upgrade. I’m not sure the difference could be any clearer: Republicans value
themselves and their power, while Governor Cooper wants to see our state
remember on capital grounds our full heritage.”
-30-
STATE NEWS BRIEFS
STATE NEWS BRIEFS
BILL TO REDRAWN NC
JUDICIAL MAP POSTPONED
[RALEIGH] A
Republican-sponsored bill to redraw North Carolina’s judicial districts has
been withdrawn from consideration this session, but is expected to be brought
back up in the next legislative session. Rep. Justin Burr (R-Albemarle) is the
sponsor of HB 717, and says that while
he introduced the measure Monday, with the short session ending possibly this
week, he feels there isn’t enough time for the bill to be properly vetted.
Democrats and court officials opposed the bill, with Democrat charging it was
just a GOP ploy to take control of the state’s judiciary.
DR. JOHNSON AKINLEYE
IS NAMED NEW CHANCELLOR OF NCCU
[DURHAM]
The man who has served as interim chancellor ever since the untimely death of
Debra Saunders-White last year, is now officially the 12th
chancellor of North Carolina Central University. The UNC Board of Governors
officially announced that Dr. Johnson Akinleye has the job. "Dr. Akinleye is a strategic thinker and
no-nonsense leader," said UNC System President Margaret Spellings.
"His distinguished career includes extensive experience in senior
administrative leadership roles at public, private and church-affiliated
institutions. He sees building a relationship with the campus and community leaders
as a priority and he understands the need to maximize the full value of being
in the Research Triangle.”
"I accept the awesome
responsibility as the 12th Chancellor for North Carolina Central University
with humility," said Chancellor Akinleye. "I look forward to leading
NCCU in a manner that honors our mission and to working closely with UNC
General Administration to fulfill the university's system-wide mission and
goals that accrue to the benefit of the citizens of the great state of North
Carolina.”
$2.5 MILLION BOND SET FOR ACCUSED SEX OFFENDING
SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICER
[DURHAM] A Durham County deputy, who
also served as a school resource officer, has been charged with several sexual
offenses involving a minor. Bond for former Deputy Chris Kelly has been set for
$2.5 million. He was arrested on April 28th. Investigators found
explicit video chat messages Kelly had with female students, along with
letters. The father of one of the victims became suspicious when he saw images
of the deputy on his daughter’s phone. He turned it over to law enforcement.
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