by John Hood North Carolina’s economy, battered by COVID-19 itself as well as government’s costly attempts to contain its spread, is still struggling to recover. There were about 350,000 fewer jobs in August than in February. That’s a 7.6% decline in total employment — the worst in t
by John Hood The post of lieutenant governor is a constitutional office in North Carolina, and the only one empowered to exercise both legislative and executive powers. Those powers are rather limited, however — casting a vote in the state senate when there is a tie, “presiding” over
by Amy Cooke The 2016 presidential campaign turned me into a judiciary junkie. As Democrats force fed the American public an unhealthy diet of identity politics, voters like me quietly became champions of the judicial branch. While we didn’t know how Donald Trump would govern, we did
by Andy Taylor Last year, a Superior Court panel in North Carolina declared the state’s congressional districts an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander. As I noted in a previous column, this was an egregious abuse of judicial power. No matter, it is done. We should now look
By JOHN HOOD North Carolina is already the homeschooling capital of the United States. Now the attraction of this education option is soaring higher than ever — thanks not to the actions of its proponents but to the antics of its opponents. According to data compiled by the organization&
JOHN HOOD RALEIGH — According to the latest jobs report, North Carolina’s headline unemployment rate fell to 6.5% in August, down from 8.5% in July. Good news worth celebrating, right? Don’t pop the cork on that champagne just yet. This was mostly a statistical artifact, not a major imp
Mitch Kokai, Carolina Journal News Service We’re taught at an early age that the people maintain ultimate authority over government in our state and nation. An ongoing state court battle challenges that teaching. Some 2,094,924 people cast ballots in 2018 to lower North Carolina’s stat
by John Trump Maybe I’m just too dumb to get it. All that science and data. Stupid me, thinking I could think for myself. At one point in my life, not that long ago, really, I thought I was pretty smart. Well, smarter than average, anyway.
by Jon Guze The United States was founded on the principle that government exists to protect the natural rights of the governed, including, especially, the natural right to liberty . The Declaration of Independence says so explicitly. The Constitution — signed 233 years ago toda
by John Hood I have repeatedly criticized Roy Cooper’s troubling efforts to amass power in the governor’s office at the expense of other elected state leaders, local governments, and private citizens. I have related the history of Cooper’s conflict with the General Assembly. I
by John Hood RALEIGH — North Carolina’s state government began its 2020-21 fiscal year with $1.5 billion in cash left over from last year plus another $1.8 billion in rainy-day funds and other earmarked reserves. Since then, the state has collected some $1.5 billion more in General F
by Becki Gray Gov. Roy Cooper owns this. He owns the coronavirus response and everything that will follow. Cooper has refused to confer with the Council of State, vetoed the General Assembly’s efforts to get businesses safely opened and people back to work
