News
Victims, advocates gather in Raleigh for Crime Victims’ Rights Week
The ceremony also included a flower memorial honoring victims of violent crime and a moment of silence for victims, survivors, and their families.
Opinion
Much accomplished, much left to do 14 years after GOP takes over NC General Assembly
While last long session led to some disappointments and distractions, there is still reason to think that conservatives in the legislature will solve important issues like they have in the past.
Opinion
NC’s foster-care laws should put children first
We are long past due for legislation that prioritizes placing our state’s most vulnerable children with stable families, whether blood relatives or not.
Opinion
Progressives may scoff, but data backs ‘two-parent privilege’
The political left loves to highlight the increasing rates of income inequality and declining rates of social mobility in recent decades. But progressives conveniently ignore one of the top drivers of these trends: a drop in the percentage of stable, two-parent households. Progressives struggle with this reality because it’s much easier — and more politically...
Opinion
‘Harm reduction’ alliance: Hey, take it easy on the fentanyl dealers
While most of North Carolina’s political observers have been focused on the long-awaited completion of the state budget, there have also been other bills progressing through the legislature — like SB 189, Fentanyl Drug Offenses and Other Related Changes, which increases fines and penalties for distributing the drug and sets up a task force to...
Opinion
When casinos win, consumers lose
After the success of their efforts to legalize sports betting, some leaders in the General Assembly are working to open up four more casinos and lots of video gambling terminals. These Senate and House leaders are proposing casinos to be developed in Anson, Nash, and Rockingham counties. The Lumbee Tribe would also have the option to...
Opinion
Saving lives by strengthening laws
A dangerous threat hides in the shadows, inflicting devastation upon our communities and claiming the lives of our loved ones — parents, siblings, children, and friends. Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is up to 100 times stronger than morphine, has emerged as a deadly force in the ongoing battle against drug abuse and overdose. To...
Opinion
Will NC finally move to quicker permanency for foster care children?
North Carolina has made little progress during Gov. Cooper’s administration in helping foster care children find safe and lasting homes. Over 12,000 children now swell the ranks of “children in care” in this state. Perhaps the state’s social-service agencies have better intentions than their track record shows. But the reality is that many children in...
Opinion
The conservative case for the Compassionate Care Act
As a Republican state senator representing a district with a significant population of military veterans, I firmly believe in the principles of personal liberty, limited government intervention, and supporting those who have bravely served our nation. That is why I am advocating for the passage of the Compassionate Care Act, a conservative piece of legislation...
Opinion
Deaths of despair need careful analysis
According to the latest-available set of comparable data, North Carolina ranks 33rd in the nation in “deaths of despair” — that is, in the combined rates of suicides, fatal drug overdoses, and alcohol-induced deaths. In 2020 our age-adjusted rate was 55.5 deaths of despair per 100,000 residents, slightly higher than the national average of 54.8....
Opinion
Some missing workers are really lost
North Carolina’s labor markets are healing — slowly. As of March, our state’s headline unemployment rate was 3.5%, comparable to where it was before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. More importantly, while our labor-force participation is still significantly below the pre-COVID rate 59.2%, it is improving. It was 57.7% in March, up...
News
Government won’t solve opioid crisis
Opioid addiction can be fatal, but government policies would probably make a bad situation worse, many experts say. Rising rates of opioid abuse led President Trump recently to declare a national emergency. Critics of the current approach insist state and federal officials continually use misuse the word “epidemic.” Even so, a serious problem exists, and...
