The nation’s largest teachers union has released its latest report on teacher pay across the United States. Terry Stoops, John Locke Foundation vice president for research and director of education studies, assesses the report’s implications for North Carolina. Stoops also looks ahead to the likely increase in state education spending this year. There’s no race for president, governor, or U.S. senator on the N.C. election ballot this year. But that doesn’t mean the electoral season will be boring. Jonathan Kappler, executive director of the N.C. FreeEnterprise Foundation, explains why the 2018 elections will have a major impact on state government. He also highlights the two N.C. congressional races that could help determine control of the U.S. House of Representatives. Politics often seems like a war between enemy combatants. But United Nations Amabassador Nikki Haley recently urged a Duke University audience to differentiate between political confrontations and actual battles with evil adversaries. You’ll hear highlights from Haley’s remarks. The late U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms made his mark as one of the most significant figures in late 20th-century N.C. politics and government. Now the Jesse Helms Center is celebrating its 30th anniversary. President John Dodd explains how the Helms Center is commemorating its namesake’s legacy in conservative politics and foreign policy. U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently returned to North Carolina to highlight the federal government’s role in the fight against opioid abuse. Rick Henderson, Carolina Journal editor-in-chief, discusses Sessions’ visit to Raleigh. Henderson also discusses the attorney general’s plans to ramp up federal involvement in civil asset forfeiture cases.