RALEIGH — Over the first six months of the Trump administration, the United States has experienced a dramatic decline in illegal border crossings. In June, reported the Department of Homeland Security, there were just 25,243 apprehensions or expulsions — the lowest such number in reported history.
RALEIGH — I am not much of a weeper. But a recent survey of American schoolchildren is testing my stoic disposition. Only 36% of 13-year-olds say they read for fun at least once a week. Back in 1984, the year I graduated high school, 70% did so.
RALEIGH — Since the federal reconciliation bill was signed into law last month, fans and foes of the sprawling legislation have waged a war of words over its likely fiscal and economic effects. Some argue its permanent repairs to a broken business-tax code will boost capital investment, productivity, and wage growth. Others argue that adding trillions of dollars to federal deficits over the next decade is grossly irresponsible, risking stagflation or worse.
RALEIGH — Of all the legislation enacted by the North Carolina General Assembly this year, none is more significant than House Bill 402, which strengthens legislative oversight of state regulations. Passed by both chambers in June, it drew opposition from Gov. Josh Stein. In July, lawmakers overrode his veto to make it the law of the land.
RALEIGH — It’s not the biggest threat to public safety, I admit, but panhandling along and often on North Carolina roadways is illegal, dangerous, counterproductive — and commonplace.
RALEIGH — The likely Democratic nominee for North Carolina’s Senate race next year, former Gov. Roy Cooper, led likely Republican nominee Michael Whatley by six points in the first independent poll commissioned after the two men announced their campaigns last month.
RALEIGH — As Americans continue to celebrate our country’s semiquincentennial — the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and the war for American independence — I will continue to highlight the pivotal role that North Carolinians played in these historic events.
RALEIGH — Daimler Truck North America operates some of North Carolina’s largest manufacturing facilities, including a Freightliner truck plant in Mount Holly, a Freightliner and Western Star plant in Cleveland, a components and logistics center in Gastonia, and a Thomas Built Buses plant in High Point. It employs some 6,800 North Carolinians in the Charlotte area alone.
RALEIGH — I don’t know for certain who will win North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race next year — and neither do you.
RALEIGH — While the North Carolina House and Senate continue to discuss how — or whether — to resolve their budget dispute and enact a new fiscal framework for the next two fiscal years, now is an excellent time for tax reformers in both chambers to spell out precisely what they hope to accomplish.
RALEIGH — North Carolina is in a mess. It was an entirely predictable mess. Indeed, I and others have been predicting it for more than two years. But former Gov. Roy Cooper, coming soon to a U.S. Senate race near you, and lawmakers of both parties didn’t listen. They expanded Medicaid to include hundreds of thousands of childless, able-bodied North Carolinians — without a realistic means of paying the bill.
RALEIGH — Are today’s elected leaders incapable of addressing public problems in a serious, respectful, bipartisan manner? If your answer is yes, I’ll concede that you have a strong case. Congress just enacted a sweeping reconciliation bill by the narrowest of margins, with no Democrats in favor. Neither party exhibits any serious intention to close our yawning federal deficits. Current and would-be officeholders seem more interested in talking up conspiracy theories than talking down political tensions or taking on tough issues.
