In the late 1970s, I was appointed to the Economic Development Board. At the time I lived in Northeastern North Carolina and believed rural areas deserved to get their share of the economic growth and... Read More
Celebrated novelist Ernest Hemingway was once reported to have made a bet with companions that he could write a novel in six words. He asked each to put $10 in a pot, saying that if he could construct... Read More
In 1973, Senator Sam Ervin, a self-described “country lawyer” from Morganton, was chosen to head the Senate Select Committee investigating the Watergate break-in. That investigation ultimately led... Read More
The most important function of state government is education, as evidenced by the fact that North Carolina spends 57 cents of every tax dollar on primary and secondary education. Better-educated... Read More
Too many North Carolinians lack confidence in our courts, according to a recently concluded 15-month study initiated by Mark Martin, Chief Justice of our state Supreme Court. 53 percent of the public... Read More
If you’ve ever put together a jigsaw puzzle you can understand the task of assembling a state budget. Like a puzzle, one piece of the spending and tax plan builds upon another as lawmakers construct... Read More
When Republicans were in the minority in North Carolina’s political power structure they frequently complained that Democrats were like a broken record. Times are good? Spend more and expand. Times... Read More
The current harangue over repealing and replacing Obamacare brings to mind the sign that hung in the auto repair shop in my hometown: YOU CAN HAVE GOOD. YOU CAN HAVE CHEAP. YOU CAN HAVE FAST... Read More
If we can allow ourselves to tune out the many distractions coming out of Washington (and Raleigh), we might be able to tune into the number one domestic issue of our time – healthcare. Even though... Read More
