Just as we were almost getting used to the idea that our state government is being run by big corporations, rustics and Baptist preachers, the “less government” folks in the General Assembly decided to really pour it on.
In the past week, the legislature’s rightwing assembly line has rolled out a glut of new bills that, if passed, would put North Carolina in serious competition with Mississippi, Florida and South Carolina for the title of “Most Backward State.” Here are just some highlights of the week:
* The House Health and Human Services Committee approved a bill that would ban teenagers from seeking substance abuse, mental health, sexually transmitted infection, birth control or pregnancy care without a notarized written consent form signed by a parent or guardian. Without the consent form, care providers could not diagnose, treat or even counsel teens. Doctors voiced strong opposition to the bill, even though conservative backers, such as Rep. Marilyn Avila of Wake County, say that current laws letting teens access care when they need it have been “undermining our families” for years. It never seems to occur to these moral warriors that not all families are warm and wonderful, or that for some teens, the families themselves – including molesters or parents who look the other way when things go wrong – are often part of the problem.
* The House passed, and sent to the Senate, a bill to allow concealed guns in bars, restaurants, greenways, bike trails and sporting events – but not, surprise, surprise, in the state legislature. It’s long been a mystery why the current brand of American conservatism wants to take the U.S. back to the days of the Wild West, but the mystery hasn’t weakened their enthusiasm for such potentially deadly ideas. The exception they made for the General Assembly led to a great poster from ProgressNorthCarolinaAction:
* Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger rolled out his awaited tax overhaul plan, or rather an outline of a plan. If passed, it would slash taxes on the very wealthy, make serious cuts to essential state services, and raise taxes for the working poor, and a substantial number of middle class families via higher sales taxes on drugs, groceries and a plethora of other currently tax-free services. The surprising, and good, news is that Berger’s plan seems to be pretty much dead on arrival. As reported by the News & Observer‘s Under the Dome column, neither McCrory nor House Speaker Thom Tillis backs Berger’s approach. Some political observers say Berger’s ideas could not be considered before the current legislative session ends anyway, and suggest that Berger is grandstanding to set himself up for a U.S. Senate run next year.
* The House took up a bill passed by the Senate that would require applicants for Medicaid, food stamps and other benefits listed as “temporary assistance for needy families” to take, and pay for, drug tests. Before passing the bill, the Senate turned down an amendment that would have forced state legislators to take yearly drug tests. The topper for this particular bill is that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit has already declared that Florida’s similar law, the one on which N.C.’s proposed law is based, is unconstitutional. And yet, in North Carolina, the whole stupid, needlessly invasive idea keeps staggering along like some kind of unkillable legislative zombie.
Obviously, the miscreants in the General Assembly have been busy trying to remake the state in their image: misogynist, vicious, pro-big-money defenders of fundamentalist Protestant morality. They’ve moved so quickly, even Tillis is telling them to slow down or risk losing their majority next year. Couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of empty suits.
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This article appears in May 8-14, 2013.
Can’t all these old paranoid white guys just retire already?
I have a hard time imagining they could keep their majority next election. It doesn’t seem to me like all these comically backwards proposals happening at such frequency are doing much to make conservatives happy. Even if they agree with them, its all pretty transparent pandering and I think all but the most far right voters are starting to see that the current house doesn’t give a shit about creating jobs, and are taking note of our slipping national reputation.
Most Americans are single issue voters. No matter how crazy they get, people who are anti abortion will vote Republican. People who carry guns all the time will vote Republican. People who believe that they need to make everyone around them pray to the Christian God at every opportunity will vote Republican. People who think rich people should be allowed to keep every penny they make while the poor and middle class pay the taxes will vote Republican. People who are unable to see that Fox News is blatant propaganda will vote Republican.
They will not look at the names, or the voting record of the candidate, they will just look for the R after their name.
I agree DLP, but we’re not in a hopelessly deep red state, we’re in a state that had a temper tantrum jerk to the right last election. Clearly some moderates and independents were swayed. Now with SUCH an overzealous and embarrassing group running the state, I don’t see any reason that we won’t swing back to normalcy before too long. Maybe I’m being too optimistic but there’s also always the slow but steady generational and demographic push to help things in that direction.
I hope you are right, but I read the irrational anger being expressed daily in newspaper comments and letters to the editor and I have my doubts.
I wonder how elections would change if we removed the political party references from the ballots and the political advertising. The war between the two largest parties is paralyzing our government.
I have an idea for CL. Put a poll taker on an uptown street, and another in front of Wal-Mart. Have them ask people who their state and local representatives are. I suspect that a very large number of them will not be able to correctly answer.
If you’re referring to the Observer comments, as disheartening as they are, they’re not to be taken seriously. They really read like its the same 3-5 people spamming the comments under different names. There has been a lot of vitriol over issues on there that then pass with 75% of the vote. Again I agree with your points whole heartedly and am just as disillusioned with the 2-party system in a larger sense, but I’m optimistic that the crazier far-right our state government gets, the quicker its going to inspire a successful backlash.
the problem is too many conservatives, period
” Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger rolled out his awaited tax overhaul plan, or rather an outline of a plan. If passed, it would slash taxes on the very wealthy, make serious cuts to essential state services, and raise taxes for the working poor, and a substantial number of middle class families via higher sales taxes on drugs, groceries and a plethora of other currently tax-free services.”
I will bet you lunch that he gets re-elected with the solid support of the middle class and working poor people outside of the two major cities.
Florida has allowed Concealed Carry in establishments that sell and serve alcohol since they first established concealed carry in ’89. The rule? You can’t sit at the bar. You can’t drink alcohol. The number of problems? Almost statistically zero. Why would anyone have a problem with a licensed concealed carrier using a greenway ? Can anyone tell me there has never been a robbery, rape, assault on greenway? Really, you people are idiots. I say that because an uneducated person could spend 10 mins of research and see Concealed Carry people are responsible. They don’t get drunk and wave their pistols around. They don’t threaten people with them. They have proven to the State over the past 13 or so years they are even-tempered, law abiding, safe. So stop your whining and gnashing of teeth. NC is just catching up with sensible rules regarding Concealed Carry. Me: Concealed Carry over 24 yrs. 1 shooting. The other guy looked like Obama’s son if Obama had a son. Pretty sure he didn’t get his pistol legally.
Perhaps if you Democrats hadn’t kept electing a bunch of crooks like Hunt, Easley, Black and Perdue, and incompetents like Obama, voters would not have had such a sour taste left in their mouths and decided a change was in order.