The debate continues over the federal Affordable Care Act – Obamacare as it’s known – even though we are past the first official deadline for enrolling. Supporters say Obamacare is a success and the initial website problems are in the past. But others, including the John Locke Foundation’s Health and Human Services Policy Analyst, Katherine Restrepo, begs to differ. She explains what the enrollment numbers mean and what is likely to come – the key themes of a recent Forbes.com article she co-wrote with Duke University research scholar Dr. Chris Conover. Next we look at state tax reform. Liberal critics contend the Republican-led North Carolina General Assembly has created long-term budget problems by focusing on “tax cuts for millionaires.” Top legislative leaders dismiss the concerns. Senate leader Phil Berger, House Speaker Thom Tillis, and top House budget writer Rep. Nelson Dollar explain how North Carolina’s 2013 tax reform package affects the state’s budget and North Carolina’s long-term economic health. Then we turn to debate over another form of taxatioin. Some state lawmakers want to scrap North Carolina’s local business privilege license tax and replace it with a local business tax of no more than $100. You’ll hear highlights from a recent debate on the topic. That’s followed by a look at legislators’ efforts to improve the state’s teacher pay system. They’re soliciting ideas from people like Andy Baxter, vice president for educator effectiveness at the Southern Regional Education Board. You’ll hear Baxter’s main proposals, along with immediate reaction from a top Senate education budget writer and Terry Stoops, John Locke Foundation director of research and education studies. And finally, George Leef of the Pope Center for Higher Education Policy explains a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that upheld the state of Michigan’s ban on the use of racial preferences. Leef explains the import of the ruling and the sharply political and long dissent issued by liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayer.