by Deona Hooper, MSW
Once a place many believed would become a purple battleground state, North Carolina is now a testing lab for an extreme right wing state legislature to exert their will on the masses. However, the wealthiest 128 families in North Carolina will do even better as they are the direct beneficiaries of the Republican State Legislature law making. North Carolina Republicans and their budget director, Art Pope who is the Southern comparison of David Koch being the US Treasurer, are passing teaparty legislation unopposed as a result of their Republican Supermajority.
It appears Republicans believe their policies would go unnoticed since it’s not election season. However, no one is on an election high like the 2008 presidential election which led to Republican’s sweeping elected seats on the local, state, and national 2010 elections. Many Republicans want you to believe they are fiscal conservatives advocating for a smaller government to reduce debt. At the end of the day when you examine their policies, they lead to three things…. racism, sexism, and greed. North Carolina citizens do not plan to take this laying down. If not, this current style of North Carolina politics will be replicated across America. Democrats need to start repealing Republican policies starting with Right to Work, Abortion laws, and Voter Restriction legislation. Until there is a power balance restored, these issues must remain on the minds of the public. Reverend William Barber of the NAACP and other organizations are on the job by bringing national attention to this issue.
Reverend Barber and 17 protested were arrested by North Carolina police in protest of the laws being passed by the Republican Supermajority state legislature. Here is an excerpt from Think Progress:
Republicans currently control the state legislature for the first time since 1870, due in no small part to millions in election spending by a wealthy tea partier named Art Pope. In the few months since McCrory became governor last January, Republicans in North Carolina have pushed to transform the increasingly purple state into a laboratory for the tea party’s wish list. In addition to the issues flagged by Barber’s open letter, North Carolina Republicans introduced legislation mimicking the Florida law that led to six hour voting lines last November. They’ve tried to write lower wages into the state constitution. They’ve pushed a pair of bills making it easier for interest groups to buy and sell judges. And the Republican House Majority Leader even endorsed a pre-Civil War understanding of the Constitution, claiming that North Carolina was free to violate the Constitution’s ban on state-sponsored religion. Read Full Article
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