Article V, Section 7 of the state's governing document states clearly that legislators — not judges — determine when and how taxpayer money gets spent.
Should Democrats on the State Supreme Court make the highly partisan and controversial move of forcing two Republican State Supreme Court Justices off a critical case to decide the fate of voter-approved state constitutional amendments requiring voter ID and lowering the maximum income tax rate, State House Republicans can effectively suspend those Democrat justices immediately...
As conservatives, we cannot overstate the importance of both the U.S. and North Carolina constitutions. Those documents set the framework for our government, with any additional laws or regulations falling within those parameters. Our system of self-governance allows for those documents to be amended, and the time to do so is now for the state...
An eastern N.C.-based food truck owner is going to court to challenge a steep increase in the cost of doing business in Farmville. Mark Shirley, owner of the Ole Time Smokehouse food truck, filed a lawsuit today in Pitt County Superior Court. It challenges Farmville’s food truck rules as violating the N.C. Constitution. “We have...
The General Assembly will consider a measure to enshrine North Carolina’s right-to-work policies in the state constitution. Sens. Carl Ford, R-Rowan, and Jim Burgin, R-Harnett, have introduced a bill — Senate Bill 624 — that would guarantee N.C. workers would not be forced to join a labor union or pay union dues as a condition...
The vast majority of respondents to a new John Locke Foundation poll of likely 2022 general election voters in North Carolina support the state’s right-to-work law and would support a right-to-work amendment to the N.C. Constitution. The result comes as North Carolina celebrates 74 years with the law on the books. As of March 18,...
North Carolina has been shut down for six months, 30 weeks, more than 200 days. The N.C. Constitution created a feeble executive branch, and its governor remained among the weakest in the nation. Until now. When the pandemic hit, Gov. Roy Cooper seized control of the economy, selecting essential businesses and shuttering the rest. His orders unleashed...
Even though Gov. Roy Cooper has allowed open salons and barber shops to reopen partially this week, salon owners still may file a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of his COVID-19 orders. The Hair Is Essential Association would base its challenge on the state constitution’s clause ensuring the right of North Carolinians to the “enjoyment of...
“Today, I want to tell North Carolinians that in order to ease restrictions we need to make progress in three areas: testing, tracing, and trends,” Gov. Roy Cooper said during his Wednesday, April 15, news conference. At least one more “T” was missing from the governor’s outline: transparency. Yes, Cooper’s rival Lt. Gov. Dan Forest...
Gov. Roy Cooper's decision to ignore the Council of State's input hurts our system of constitutional government.
Don’t despair North Carolina, despite continuing cries the state is without a budget — even after months of consternation, frustration, accusations, political wrangling, and dead–end negotiations. We do, indeed, have a budget. Granted, it’s not one either side — the governor and General Assembly — necessarily wanted, but it works. And it will continue to work until they’re more inclined to work together. For now, the budget we have is legal, fully funded,...
