Gov. Roy Cooper activated 450 members of the N.C. National Guard to help cities deal with potential property damage if riots relating to the death of George Floyd continue. He said the State Bureau of Investigation, N.C. Highway Patrol, and State Capital Police will be available if local officials ask. Officials in Raleigh and Fayetteville...
Gov. Roy Cooper should stop picking winners and losers in business as he reopens North Carolina’s economy, says N.C. House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland. Moore called out Cooper during a Thursday, May 28, news conference, saying he hopes the governor will sign newly passed legislation allowing bars to reopen during Phase Two of the governor’s...
Editor’s note: This story was updated Friday, May 29, to include current numbers on COVID-19 deaths, as reported the NCDHHS. A bill to reopen private bars and clubs, as well as expanding outdoor seating in restaurants and brewpubs, is awaiting a decision from the governor. He’ll probably veto the measure, which also applies to breweries,...
As Republican lawmakers fight Gov. Roy Cooper over the COVID-19 economic lockdowns, even their approach to news briefings has diverged. Senate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, held an in-person news conference Monday, May 18. But secretary of the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Mandy Cohen says she will continue virtual briefings as she encourages...
N.C. Senate Republicans aren’t happy with North Carolina’s lagging unemployment insurance system. They think Gov. Roy Cooper is accountable — and they want answers. Such was the theme of the General Assembly’s first day back in Raleigh since the legislature gathered two weeks ago to pass a COVID-19 relief package for the state. That was a...
Each week, staff at Carolina Journal looks back at the week in N.C. politics and chooses several interesting, relevant stories you may have missed. Here’s this week’s review: Regulatory relief: Gov. Roy Cooper has signed an executive order granting more flexibility for the health care industry. “It’s critical that our health care professionals are able...
Senate Leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, wants the governor to give counties the option to reopen hair salons and barber shops, which, like other small businesses, are left crippled by the COVID-19 lockdowns. Twenty-five states, including nearly every state in the Southeast, have reopened hair salons and barber shops in some capacity, Berger says in a...
Only 2.2% of volunteers tested in North Carolina have coronavirus antibodies — a percentage both hopeful and troubling for the state’s ability to reopen its economy, based on recent data from the first phase of a Wake Forest and Atrium Health COVID-19 Study. The findings come as Republicans and entrepreneurs push to reopen businesses shuttered...
It’s irresponsible of some politicians to use faith to lure people into endangering themselves, their family, and their own congregation, Gov. Roy Cooper said during a Friday, April 17, news conference. Cooper didn’t name names, but Senate Leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, is among those who have criticized county stay-at-home orders, such as Wake’s, that restrict...
North Carolina is funding a study that will help decide lawmakers’ stance on reopening the economy and a “host of issues, from school calendars to tax policy,” Senate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, announced in a news conference Wednesday, April 15. Lawmakers gave Wake Forest Baptist Health $100,000 for random antibody testing to gather data on...
Each week, staff at Carolina Journal looks back at the week in N.C. politics and chooses several interesting, relevant stories you may have missed. Here’s this week’s review: Prison lawsuit: The N.C. NAACP, the ACLU of North Carolina, and the Disability Rights North Carolina, have filed a lawsuit against Gov. Roy Cooper’s administration, calling for...
