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Carolina Journal Radio No. 906: North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race has national significance

Carolina Journal Radio / Donna Martinez and Mitch Kokai
The Cross Radio
September 28, 2020 8:00 am

Carolina Journal Radio No. 906: North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race has national significance

Carolina Journal Radio / Donna Martinez and Mitch Kokai

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September 28, 2020 8:00 am

The outcome of North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race could help determine which party controls the chamber for the next two years. Incumbent Republican Sen. Thom Tillis faces a tough challenge from Democrat Cal Cunningham. Carolina Journal Editor-in-Chief Rick Henderson analyzes recent developments in the hotly contested race. It’s safe to say N.C. colleges and universities did not reopen in the fall in the way they had expected. Some campuses welcomed students back, only to send them home again for online learning within a matter of weeks. Jenna Robinson, president of the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal, assesses university’s preparations for and responses to the challenges of reopening during the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the recent actions state lawmakers have taken to address COVID-19 is a $335 check to be sent to parents of school-aged children throughout the state. State Senate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, explained the checks’ purpose during a recent news conference. In addition to higher education, COVID-19 has forced major changes for K-12 public education in North Carolina. During a recent online forum sponsored by the John Locke Foundation, state Sen. Deanna Ballard, R-Watauga, discussed key education challenges. Ballard explained legislative leaders approach to addressing public education issues during the pandemic. The N.C. Court of Appeals recently overturned a lower court and restored state constitutional amendments requiring a photo ID for voters and lowering the state’s cap on income tax rates. Voters had approved those measures during a statewide vote in 2018. Becki Gray, John Locke Foundation senior vice president, explains the significance of the split 2-1 ruling. She discusses the next steps for the court case that produced the ruling.

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From charity to car attack and the largest city to the smallest and from the statehouse into the schoolhouse Carolina Journal radio your weekly news magazine discussing North Carolina's most of public policy events and issues welcome to Carolina Journal radio why Michiko got during the next hour Donna Martinez that I will explore some major issues affecting our state. The new academic year didn't begin as planned. For many colleges and universities across North Carolina.

The leader of the top state higher education watchdog group offers her expert assessment. State lawmakers have decided to send $335 checks to parents of school-age children across North Carolina to learn how those checks tie into the states response to covert, 19 the pandemic is at a major impact on public schools throughout the state. One of the state Senate education leaders explains how she and her colleagues are approaching major challenges that will explore the significance of a new court ruling. It restores state constitutional amendments for voter ID and a lower cap on income taxes. Those topics are just ahead. First, Donna Martinez joins us with the Carolina Journal headline while we are getting very close to the start of early in person voting here in North Carolina and already at the point that were talking more than 800,000 N. Carolinians have already requested an absentee ballot. Lots and lots of interest in the selection of course one of the key races on the North Carolina ballot is the seat for United States Senate Carolina Journal paying very close attention to these major races for the election. Rick Anderson is editor-in-chief and he joins me now Rick welcome back to the show I saw the so the first U.S. Senate debate.

This was hosted by W RAL and David Crabtree that made national headlines. You had the Democratic candidate Cal Cunningham. He was on the stage with the Republican candidate Tom Tillis is the incumbent and Cunningham said that he would be hesitant essentially to take the covert 19 vaccine. Sen. Tillis said that he would take it that created national news.

Rick is that's an issue that could turn this race could move some bugs with the question about that because Cal Cunningham essentially took a position that's been taken by some on both the right and the left who are against vaccinations or whose some on the left who don't trust the ability of the trumpet ministration to go through proper safety protocols from Food and Drug Administration to the liberal vaccine that would be effective and safe both, and Sen. Tillis basically said look I trust the experts on this to do the job right.

He also added that initially he would take vaccine diversely or were available but prefer not to take it right away because you would prefer to make sure the people who are especially vulnerable to covert, 19 people encountered centers such as the senior centers like first responders, healthcare professionals, that sort of thing.

Those folks get access to. At first, but he said as far as being hesitant to take it if it were available to everyone, he wouldn't hesitate one bit that drew headlines across the country wrote about it to new stories. It made all the major cable network segments about this and so it made a national impression from Cal Cunningham what he wanted to have make this tell us about what were seeing in the polling at this point, holy is fascinating because this is the polling here shows the real clear politics average were talking here as Cunningham with about a 3 1/2 percentage point lead. But the thing is very interesting about this is that lead has been very stable over the past 90 days or so. Even though the numbers have changed quite a bit. Cunningham had a larger lead early in the summer and then it goes.

Seven points or so and then it collapsed down to about 3.3 and four.

It stayed stable although the whole time. Tillis's support is going up so Cunningham lost support and Tillis gain support those percentages have remained remarkably stable through that period of time. So this is not completely unlike what happened. Tillis ran for the seat in 2014 and that he had he had actually a larger deficit to make up early in the summer, but we can before the election. The polls had about 2.70 ahead in about two points I made was a good show that he's a good closer.

A good finisher and he's fairly much where he was six years ago when he first ran for city. It's interesting you would bring up six years ago because that gets to kind of the history of this seat has a history of flipping back and forth between Democrat and Republican. So normally we would think while the incumbent has Sam a leg up so to speak because they're more well-known. They have the bully pulpit, etc., but this seat is is really not showing that that's right.

This was the Jesse Helmsley which Sen. held retired in 2002 was with Dole seeking 2002, and that in 2008. She lost to Kay Hagan who served one term and was by Tom Tillis, like Hagan, so this seat has flipped every time since Jesse Helms are held for 30 years and the volatility of the seat is a good strong indication North Carolina so very much a swing state that it's very difficult to maintain some stability running for statewide office, especially of federal law. What we know of course North Carolina is key to the presidential race.

We've already seen Pres. Tromp and his family members and surrogates in the state a lot and we seen the Biden campaign as well. Expecting more of that is Sen. Tillis tied to the fortunes of Pres. Tromp in the state. I think he really is and the sender had a notable break temporarily with the president early part of 2019 where he said that he would not support emergency executive action to require funding for the border wall of Mexico and then he reversed course.

Almost immediately, but unfortunately for him after you written op-ed was published in the Washington Post will stake out that the position since then. He this is what the president it turns out that if you look at various sites to track votes. He's devoted with the president's agenda. Somewhere between 90 and 94% of the time and so there are not very far part of policy issues. All I nice the way I see this as I seem very very you people who will vote for Donald Trump and and Cal Cunningham, and so I think that the senator fill up spirituals is very much tied to the president. The president loses North Carolina to be almost impossible tonsils with Cal Cunningham has some national backing from national Democrats in this first televised debate that we were talking about Tim a few moments ago may have been really the first time for a lot of North Carolinians to have the chance to actually see Cal Cunningham in person live, so to speak, and to make their assessment of him as a candidate is seeking to be doing more public events or really is seeking to be real. Relying on that national influence through paid advertising. If he does more and more public events. You will need to sharpen his focus and sharpen his message because he's very much came across as someone who had not been on a major campaign debate stage since he last ran actually was able to statewide successful race that he had in 2001, worry I was a State Sen. North Carolina looked rusty. He was very focused did a lot of the stroke mouth, gesturing and shaking his head and things like that.

I mean, I hereby mean a lot about Lauren first 2000 debate with the president George W. Bush. She was not sold and came across was a very forceful presence. That's not a good look. We were going against Tom Tillis because he's extremely focused is always prepared and is an extremely good debater and campaigner and owning him was running very much like the front runner. He was just trying not making stakes and I probably did, so that Tillis's of management Tillis is very good when he is both offending his record and being on the attack very specifically against and very quickly ran kind. There are two other candidates who are vying for the seat in the United States Senate. The libertarian is Shannon Bray the Constitution party candidate is Kevin Hayes.

What about their impact. I don't see a lot I would be surprised to get more than two or 3% of the vote combined because this is very much a race focused on the two candidates in the two can major party candidates serving as proxies for the presidential campaign. Also some extent for the governors camp. So I just think the focus is going to be there.

The issue is going to be whether the supporters of each candidate can turn out people who want to vote for them but can't decide if you're going to go to the polls your lot. I don't think there a lot of voters were movable. Right now Rick Henderson is editor-in-chief of Carolina journal. Thanks for joining us. Thank you so much the same with this much North Carolina generating tired of fake names tired of reporters with political axes to grind.

What you need to be reading Carolina journal, honest, uncompromising, old-school journalism, you expect and you need even better, the monthly Carolina journal is free to subscribers sign up@carolinajournal.com you'll receive Carolina journal newspaper in your mailbox each month.

Investigations into government spending revelations about boondoggles who the powerful leaders are and what they're doing in your name and with your money. We shine a light on it all with the stories and angles. Other outlets barely cover but there's a bonus I print newspapers published monthly by our daily news site gives you the latest news each and every day lot onto Carolina journal.com once, twice, even three times a day. You won't be disappointed. It's fresh news if you'd like a heads up on the daily news sign up for our daily email do that Carolina journal.com Carolina journal rigorous unrelenting old-school journalism.

We hold government accountable for you look back Carolina journal radio hi Michiko guy it's safe to say the new academic year didn't start the way college leaders across North Carolina had hoped joining us for an expert assessment of the ups and downs of the return to colleges and universities is Jenna Robinson. She is president of the James G. Martin Center for academic renewal.

Jenna will go back to be here much. It hasn't turned out the way the people had planned.

I think that they could've rolled that out that are the schools that did bring their students back. A lot of them brought them back with out a testing plan. They only tested students who came in and said I'm pretty sure I have coded instead of doing neither pool testing or testing everybody as they returned, they just really didn't have a robust testing plan in place and I think that's the reason they had to turn around and send everybody home so quickly, and in some cases, from what I understand North Carolina universities stand in contrast to those in other states that did have some more robust plans in place absently even took right here in North Carolina. They have a robust testing plan and they are still in person.

What kinds of problems is creating for students. Obviously, this is this is not what they signed up right right a lot of problems mean, obviously there's the logistical problem of thinking you were going to be in your university town on campus or off campus and then having to go home but also there's the problem of having to take all your classes, virtually instead of in person which is not as easy as it could be no almost all of the schools have been dealing in some ways with virtual learning because most of shutdown in the surrendering and finish the year that way is the virtual learning that students are having now different from what they had at the end of the last school year.

Or is it still more the same for the most part it sounds like it's more of the same faculty did get some training at most schools, but it was superfluous training, the kind not superfluous but very surface level training the kind of training that makes sure that they are making amateur mistakes anymore, but it's still not a well-developed online virtual environment it's zoom you, and we have seen some concerns among people who follow these issues very closely that it looks as if the University especially that the University of North Carolina decided hey let's tell everyone that were going to have in person classes and have them pay as if they're going to have in person classes and then as soon as the bills are paid for going to go back to online is that is that the criticism warranted. I think the criticism of keeping the fees the same and that tuition same is warranted. Fees in particular because clearly students are still getting an education. They're getting something and the quality obviously varies but they are very clearly not getting an athletics experience. They are not getting the student activity experience. They're not even having access to the student Health Center and those are all fees that they pay, which are supposed to be directly to support services that they receive. And so I think to me. The fees are the more important one, especially since here in North Carolina.

We do keep tuition very affordable relative to other states and that we didn't even mention room and board. If you have paid for your dorm room to come back and now you're not in that dorm room right unfortunately they didn't find housing and dining and so that is obviously an inconvenience, but the students will get their money back. We're chatting with Jenna Robinson, who is president of the James G.

Martin Center for academic renewal, a group that keeps a close eye on public education at the higher education level in North Carolina and across the country. As you look at the University of North Carolina in the situation that it faces now.

What are some of the things that you want to see moving forward. I want to see a plan for robust testing for spring. I do think that in person for most students and for most classes is still the ideal for university education. I think virtual learning can be a lot better than it is. And so the other thing I think they should be working on is improving their virtual models and it shouldn't be just logging into zoom a couple times a week.

We knew this was going to be an issue way back in the spring when things first shut down.

This does anyone deserve some blame for how this was rolled out or is this one of those situations.

As we've seen with other things with covert, 19 that no one really knew what to do right. Well, I think that some blame belongs with the University administrators who waffled for a long time about what fall was going to look like students didn't know professors didn't know and I think crucially of professors expected that they could teach hybrid courses or in person courses they were preparing this course is to be online and the preparation is very different for an online course than for an in-person course or even a hybrid course and so I think if university officials had from the beginning. Said have a virtual plan that we would be seeing better virtual courses right do we run the risk for the students who are in universities right now that the spring semester of 2020 and the fall semester of 2020 are going to in some ways and be lost in terms of the education that they get well as I've heard from many sources justifying keeping tuition the same. The students will still get those credits whether they've actually learned anything during that time is totally different not heard from several university students think they're just not absorbing the material in the same way. It's hard to pay attention. It's hard to interact this the classes are just not set up in the right way and then of course there something you just can't do online.

You can't do your labs online and yet they're still trying to sell. Yes, in terms of educational outcomes. I do think that this fault lease will be a lot faster. What kinds of problems does that set the students up for in the future if they if they do get to sort of a bare minimum. Sort of education but not what they need is the building blocks for the rest.

They're right. I think it can be especially hard for the students who are missing out on practical's.

During this time. If your nursing student. If you are doing a lab science. The things that you learn in those in person hands on courses can't be replicated online and those they're going to have to make it out. You won't necessarily have to make up Spanish to you checked that box you moved on.

You know aside as it is to say that there it doesn't matter for their future and probably for most students, but for the practical skills that students in those hard sciences have to learn to have to go and do it again. James G.

Martin Center for academic renewal is going to be talking about online education. Again tell us about your event coming up October 1 on October 1 were having event via Zoom of course about online education.

We have a great panel lined up. We've got Marty Cota's hue is the chairman of the working group for on online education for the University of North Carolina board of governors. We got Doug Shackelford who is the Dean of clean Kenan Flagler business school and was also involved in creating their MBA online, which is a very well respected online program. Catherine Truitt who is the Chancellor of Western Governors University North Carolina lights which is an online school mastery based on and then Scott Rawls, the president of week which is been voted number one for online education for community colleges and we also have student panelists to talk about her own experiences and so I think that it's good to be a great panel and will be able to talk about what really works and how do we get this right. One person is going to be watching very closely as the University makes its decisions is Jenna Robinson. She is president of the James G. Martin Center for academic renewal genitive someone wants to participate in the October 1 event which of the they should go to James G. Martin.center and click on events and they will see it right in front of them.

Thanks much for joining think you will have more on Carolina journal radio just a moment.

If you have freedom we got great news to share with you now.

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You also support freedom. Don't forget log on to smile.amazon.com today, something nice and help defend freedom, help support the John Mott foundation of Québec, Carolina journal radio why Michiko got state Senate leader Phil Berger wants to help parents help their schoolkids in a recent news conference, Berger explained why state lawmakers promoted a state stimulus check for parents is important to note that every parent. North Carolina is also not a picture. Nobody can honestly that virtual learning is adequate. Frankly, I don't understand how a single parent can really do. When my kids were young along, I painted apartment at night while I was in law school. Fortunately, my wife was able will shoulder a great deal of responsibility for looking after octaves while I was in school working how a single mother handles that working parenting and teaching all the same time is amazing. I don't know where she found don't know when she sleeps parents across North Carolina are at their wits know $335 mortgage and the cost of electronic devices or help for tutor child can't seem to tackle new concept or maybe it will play for a babysitter also touted opportunity scholarship school vouchers. Most public school students cannot get into their classrooms.

Someplace are actually charging low income families for the privilege of entering the school building to help with virtual learning the science is clear.

Science is overwhelming.

Keeping kids out of classrooms is harmful and some students may never recover. So now more than ever, should be up when leaders North Carolina employees parental school chores. I think about that single mother. Maybe she can so your child slipping not grasping the concept.

Maybe she knows that her child needs to be in a classroom. Why shouldn't she have the opportunity to send her child to school Democrats.

There are quote better, smarter uses for opportunity scholarship fund and that our proposal is for special interest only route with clinic space, parents and children, or special interests that in a society focus on the quality is okay for a major political party dislike making decisions about your child's education is reserved only for the wealthy elite school chores should not be a privilege available only to those who can afford parental school chores is a right and we need to fund that's Republican state Senate leader Phil Berger speaking during a recent news conference for Carolina journal radio with where doubling down on freedom at Carolina journal radio were proud to bring you stories that impact your life and your wallet. And now get twice as much freedom when you also listen to our podcast headlock available on iTunes and@johnlocke.org/podcast headlock is a little bit different. It's a no holds barred discussion that challenges softheaded ideas from the left and the right, like Carolina journal radio headlock is smart and timely but with headlock you'll hear more about the culture wars get some more humor as well. We guarantee great information and a good time double down with us.

Listen to Carolina journal radio each week and listen to headlock to remember, you can listen to headlock@johnlocke.org/podcast or subscriber download each week iTunes Carolina journal radio and headlock just what you need to stay informed and stay entertained both brought to you in the name of freedom by the John Locke foundation.

Welcome back Carolina journal radio why Michiko got among those who wonder about the future of North Carolina public schools are the people who set the budget. State Sen. Deanna Ballard is one of those people leaving a powerful education committee and the Gen. assembly, she recently discussed education issues in an online forum for the John Locke foundation. The planners want to file their work schedules.

I work with a lot of parents to jot concerned about the school year might look and let me know how it might start minimize start exactly in what that looks like, but I also hear from parents and ready to get their kids back in the building and the right to get anxious to see any to some of learning loss on you know have happened within even their own students and their own children and really understanding and assessing where they are getting back year probably a little bit more anxiety and any teachers and on and totally understandable as well just not knowing what level of instruction. What format of instruction on placing and going into the fall on you know that children tend to be less at risk for population of teachers and the support personnel in this building that is contracting the virus and then you know my mentoring that we are all you know, following the guidelines that the health department and easy guideline for DPI and everyone is working together trying to ensure there and play. There is just a lot of certainty.

I do think a lot of local leaders has stepped up with the superintendents and really trying to assure family unity.

You think there's a lot of opportunity as challenging as it has been a lot of doors for just a new way of thinking and a new mind that is more ways than ever really change. Patient looks for balances 19 is affected different parts of North Carolina in different ways. Like doing the remote learning well is more smoothly than other districts to just so we can maybe learn best practices or what resources are in place and really interesting because I do think like Elgin city school is a smaller smaller school district in your smaller school system so they are even like burying smoothly and swiftly. During that process. When we went remote learning and then you have romance all berries district which is the renewal school district which is already been incorporating some remote learning into the culture of education they actually you know were pretty pleased and proud of just how they just like everyone else to buy it can be interesting. I think they look at maybe some of the smaller schools in those smaller areas will or wherever looking at how you know what resources were in place. Even the quality of teaching and support services that are there and even goes to the broadband connectivity in those local partnerships and providers understand hey, how can this work better even on a larger scale takes a lot of information fill out Aaron data collected on story and it'll type Lori on anyone can hear you actually learn better remotely versus in and so you know it's just really fascinating how this has highlighted the individualized learning environment that we now want to focus on here and just how you really know more consistently and diligent challenge moving forward at personalized learning that's State Sen. Deanna Ballard panelist during a recent John Locke foundation online forum focused on public education in the age of covert, 19 Ballard discussed the development of online learning is no infrastructure in place for remote learning in the notion of remote learning relief package believed it was really direct the local LEH develop remote learning and important for everyone understand that what were trying to get as much SAM flexibility and an no control of understanding how to deliver instruction in their district and their school classroom the best way they know that students learn about testing and assessment.

We come back in the fall are also teachers that I talked to in March and beginning of April. Know which students at this point need additional help and I know which ones are all like what we can do to help help help that you can enter it a lot for just the understanding of the teacher and principal, knowing their student population wanted in the best interest of their kid and you learn district.

I was Ballard approaching the future of North Carolina public schools and hopeful me. We have blessed with aligned human resources that we have in those classrooms in the school building on.

I think there's a lot of hard work left to do anything.

We've made progress will continue to make progress. It doesn't happen overnight, and I think it's important to take away from today is just how important leadership is making decisions and decision in moving forward something that I think we do every single week every single day dynamic time. There a lot of scenarios make a decision to keep moving forward and moving the needle on and I get paralyzed by the here and there you happen. I think we are well know, a lot of innovative and and and leadership locally. Especially that think outside the box that know their communities and other school and know how to take care of this kid we have to trust our principles. We have to trust her teachers know how to do that and I'm being very careful about how you know how much legislation may make in the land that are being involved because any one thing is that we are trying to do is really just create reiterate the value of of just the local local authority and not local control and no in the coming to the school building is district on surveys of parents on how school districts the only legislature legislator that actually talks about some ground school buildings and seeing what happening on just partnerships. What we need. For example, foursquare in Canton and for our state is is how we leave it no confidence and hope and optimism.

That's State Sen. Deanna Ballard, a cochair of her legislative chambers education committee. She spoke during a recent John Locke foundation online for term with North Carolina drove radio really influence you either have it or you don't and at the John Locke foundation we have it, you'll find our guiding principles in many of the freedom forward reforms of the past decade here in North Carolina. So while others talk or complain or name call. We provide research solutions and hope our team analyzes the pressing issues of the day jobs, healthcare, education, and more. We look for effective ways to give you more freedom, more options, more control over your life.

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Welcome back to Carolina Journal radio climbed onto Martina's a huge new ruling on voter ID from the North Carolina Court of Appeals is now focusing all eyes on North Carolina's Supreme Court and on the three court seats that are up for grabs this election.

Becky Gray is here to explain why she is the senior vice president at the John Locke foundation has been following all of these court cases and the election really closely Becky welcome back to the pilot set the stage here back in 2018.

We had an election and we North Carolina voters approved two amendments, one related to requiring a photo ID to vote another one related to a cap on the tax rate in the state, and of course these were amendments to our state constitution absolutely right. So we approved those five vote button. Then in 2019.

Trial court came in and overturned the voters vote that brings us to just a couple weeks ago Becky we have a Court of Appeals ruling here in North Carolina that is made another change help us understand what this means you and it is kinda complicated because this court case overturned a rule of the people vote of the people, as you mentioned, and so you know it's alarming. For that reason. The other thing that is really concerning about this is this loss. It was based on that. This general assembly was illegitimate and everything they did was illegitimate. Specifically, these two provisions in the for these constitutional amendments so anything that they did don't matter should be wiped away the trial court then rule out and read with the NAACP where this will go in the question that remains is was the general assembly that the courts again said had gerrymandered the districts is that a lit illegitimate general assembly.

Well, if you buying into that argument, and this was part of the opinion of the Court of Appeals. If you find that argument and everything that the Gen. assembly did was illegitimate, so are the teachers can give back your pay raises or we can take the money back that we spent Verizon's are we gonna take back the money that we put into the education system. And this isn't the only district or general assembly that served and made actions under districts that were declared gerrymandered next decade so you open that Pandora's box.

Where does it. In fact, the North Carolina Court of Appeals, in a two to one ruling decided that that that argument made no sense like they have now reinstated the North Carolinians votes on those two constitutional amendments that was to approve voter ID and to approve this tax Measure. So the important thing to know our listeners. Becky is what is this mean for this election in terms of voter ID it is off the table because Donna can't get nothing is easy and this is way more complicated than we can talk about in the short amount of time that we have that in addition to this NAACP lawsuit.

There are other lawsuits that are out there. There's been a stay will on the voter ID so one thing that I think I listeners really need to know is this doesn't make any change from what were currently going through with this November election, so a no vote, no ID required for now subsequent election shall see how this shakes out.

You know, we may in fact be able to go back to what the people voted on to require a better ID but that's on down the road for right now, again complicated lots of different things going on at the same time. While this court cases going on whether to determine whether or not North Carolina have to provide a voter ID or election for November's going forward. No voter ID is required. So for now, at least based on this North Carolina Court of Appeals ruling.

They have reinstated.

Essentially, the people's vote from 2018, which was to approve these two constitutional amendments, but because of all the court wrangling the 2020 election, no photo ID required are still court cases to be heard before we get to the issue of the North Carolina Supreme Court the highest court in our state and what role that body is gonna play in this whole conversation. Let's talk a little bit about this second constitutional amendment. The voters approved in 2018 and was struck down by a trial court in 2019. Now again just to cut a few days ago. The Court of Appeals is now working to reinstate this one to what was and that was a cap on how much you can pay out of your personal income for taxes now.

The change was that this is been part of the Constitution for decades that was capped at 10%. You don't have to pay any more than 10% of your income and income taxes for North Carolina this just brought back Down to 7% from 10% to 7% so it ensures it gives some integrity and ensures taxpayers that they are personal income that they're getting that will always be able to keep part of it again. Voters voted overwhelmingly in favor of that Think it's important to understand on were talking about was the general assembly properly seated in order to make these decisions.

The Gen. assembly did not make a decision on the voter ID or the tax What they did was by three this vote of the Gen. assembly. They voted to put that in front of the voters now handle those members of the Gen. assembly voted when I went into the about box. We don't know when.

And it doesn't matter. The people of North Carolina voted to put those provisions in our Constitution.

So that's one thing that gets really murky to me. Looking at these court decisions and what the judges are looking at even enough for some crazy reason they would agree that the whole Gen. assembly was illegitimate. The vote of the people in my view ought to take precedence over that we know that specifically in terms of the new Court of Appeals ruling on voter ID again reinstating the North Carolina vote from 2018.

The NAACP has already said they're going to appeal this to the North Carolina Supreme Court tell us first is area list. No surprise there at all in. It would certainly anticipated this. They have made it official so will go to the North County Supreme Court. Currently, the North Carolina Supreme Court course we have an election for three of the states coming in November that currently there are six Democrats on the North Carolina Supreme Court and one Republican now are like Mitch Co., his written extensively and brilliantly on a lot of the decisions that have come out and how those votes are fallen, and how the justices have voted for anybody to that. But is it goes to the North Carolina Supreme Court. It's important for people to recognize these are the kind of decisions that the Supreme Court makes and who sits on that court and the balance of the court is incredibly important for voter ID and the things he is as we seen in the past these judicial races. Sometimes it's hard to know a lot about the judges in their view at the bottom they don't get a lot of money.

So you see the television and you've done a fabulous job with moderating some panels of these judges to bring back to life. Some people have a better idea of who they're voting for. But with the us the voter ID.

The tax But in addition to this opportunity scholarships are on the chopping block that's going to go before than what you want to Supreme Court nets and education voucher for low income right kids want to carry on redistricting again.

Redistricting issues tax issues amine that is on, and on the different things that the North Carolina Supreme Court public safety law and order issues is also been at the top of the list.

They are so what I'm hoping will come out of the house and is confusing. There's a lot of stuff going on a lot of moving parts.

What I'm hoping is that voters will look at these Supreme Court candidates in the spring air right to vote on these facts for than what you want to Supreme Court and Court of Appeals, and realize how critically important it is. In the end of things that affect our everyday life that is in their hands. And so, who sits on that court is just incredibly important. So if if you are a voter who cares about voter ID if you care about limiting the amount of money that government can take out your pocket you care about school choice and making opportunities available particularly low income kids you care about those things and you want to care a lot about this. These judicial elections for than what you want to Supreme Court and Court of Appeals that we have an opportunity to vote on the greatest senior vice president with the John Locke foundation. She writes about all of these issues. Be sure to check out John Locke.org and Carolina Journal.com.

Thank you Donna time we have for the show this week. Thank you for listening on behalf of Mitch Co., guy. I'm Donna Martinez will join us again next week for more Carolina Journal radio Carolina Journal radio is a program of the job. Locke to learn more about the John Locke foundation donations support programs like Carolina Journal radio send email development John Locke call 1866 Jayla 166-553-4636 Carolina Journal radio is the John line foundation, Carolina free-market think tank and Carolina broadcasting system, Inc. all opinions expressed on this program are solely those do not merely for the station. For more information about the show or other programs and services of the foundation, toll-free at 866 JL would like to thank our wonderful radio affiliates across Carolina and our sponsors. All of us Carolina Journal radio. Thank you for listening. Please join us again next week