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Partisan budget proposal is a five-alarm fire for North Carolina’s courts
Our democracy here in North Carolina is a project 234 years in the making. The drafters of our state constitution were the architects who laid down the foundations and we, the voters, took it from there. It’s been an imperfect process, to be sure, but over time we managed to build a stronger, more inclusive […]
NC Freedom to Vote Act would protect and improve our democracy
The freedom to vote has faced serious challenges in recent years. New voting restrictions, rampant disinformation, threats to voters and election officials, and even violent attempts to overturn election results have led to growing concern about the future of our democracy and election process.
North Carolinians: Stand together against election deniers and conspiracy theorists
This election Let’s choose freedom over fear, proof over accusations, country over party, and people over politics. North Carolinians will disagree on everything from college basketball to which part of the state has the best barbecue, but one thing we’ve always come together around is that our election results should be respected. Each and every […]
Court challenge to voter ID amendment demands unbiased “referees”
Imagine that you are a basketball player. You show up at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Dean Dome or PNC Arena and your opponent’s three-point line is about six feet closer to the hoop than yours is. You probably think, “OK that’s weird,” but then you go looking for the referee to tell them about the rigged lines. You find the referee sitting in your opponent’s locker room, smiling and laughing with one of the players.
Special to PW: ALEC-inspired bill promoting more campaign finance secrecy should be rejected
Four out of five Americans, across the political spectrum, consistently support transparency when it comes to contributions to organizations that spend money on campaigns. Unfortunately, a growing number of states, now including North Carolina, are advancing so-called "donor privacy" bills to block public access to information about who is spending big money to secretly influence our vote and our government.
Pro-democracy advocates to host “Protect our vote!” virtual town hall Monday evening
‘Protect Our Vote’ virtual town hall to feature members of Congress and legislature discussing how to prepare North Carolina for upcoming elections amid COVID-19 WHAT: “Protect Our Vote” virtual town hall with members of Congress and the NC legislature, along with grassroots democracy advocates, discussing what actions are needed now to prepare North Carolina for […]
Hayes-Lindberg scandal demands a revival of publicly financed elections
More than 80 percent of Americans believe that elected officials do favors for big campaign donors, according to a recent national poll. Recently, a billionaire campaign donor attempted to secure just such a favor—right here in North Carolina. With the chairman of the state Republican Party Robin Hayes (pictured at left) recently indicted in a […]
What voters need to know about the proposed constitutional amendments
Kinston native Chris Suggs is fighting back against the six proposed constitutional amendments on the North Carolina ballot this fall because he’s no stranger to turning bad deals into better outcomes. In 2014, Chris met the poverty and violent crime hurting his hometown with opportunities for volunteerism.
Gerrymandering is only the latest attack on North Carolina’s courts
The framers of the U.S. Constitution designed a system that helps insulate federal judges from political pressure. Federal judges are appointed and can only be removed by impeachment. Congress cannot even reduce their salaries. This gives judges the freedom to protect individual rights, even when their decisions might be unpopular with voters or politicians.
North Carolina is not alone: The Right’s nationwide assault on state judiciaries
In the past few months, North Carolinians have seen our General Assembly make national news several times. At least a couple of those times were due to the continuing and shameless partisan assaults on the independence of our courts.
Special interest assault on judicial independence is harming NC, democracy in general
There are a lot of disturbing indicators these days about the future of American democracy and the growing power of a narrow class of one-percenters. For a classic, close-to-home example, however, North Carolinians need only to take a good look at what’s been happening to the state’s judiciary in recent years as conservative political forces and the politicians under their control have moved to assert more and more control.
Why Corporate Personhood is Bad for Business
By: Dr. Sally Goerner, Director The Integral Science Institute As we celebrate the second anniversary of the “Citizens United” Supreme Court decision giving corporations the right to buy our elections, it is important to remember that this ruling is just as disastrous for business and the economy as it was for democracy. Understanding how money […]