This week Tom Campbell discusses North Carolinians reactions to trying to stop the spread of Coronavirus and our past history of civil disobedience.

Question for Becki Gray and Chris Fitzsimon – Removing statues and renaming buildings named for segregationists and slave owners has filled the news lately. George Washington, for instance, owned slaves. Should his name be removed taken down? What criteria should be used in deciding which statues and which names are removed?

Question to Leo Daughtry and Brad Crone – The House has passed a bill requiring the Department of Transportation to have a balanced budget, more oversight and giving the legislature power to appoint more board members. This is an agency that has long had problems. One of their biggest problems is how to provide revenue to support the agency since the gas tax has tanked. What’s revenue sources should be implemented?

NC SPIN episode #1128 Air Date 6/26/2020

Topics:

Runoff election

What happens now with COVID-19?

Tell Us Something We Don’t Know

Panelists:

Brad Crone, Communications Consultant

Becki Gray, VP John Locke Foundation

Chris Fitzsimon, Director, States Newsroom

Leo Daughtry, former NC Senator

Tom Campbell, Moderator

This week Tom Campbell discusses how the current health crisis has been politicized and how we all should be better than that.

Question to John Hood and Chris Fitzsimon – The Atlantic Coast Pipeline had been stalled because a court said pipeline owners could not cross over The Appalachian Trail. On Monday the US Supreme Court overturned that ruling saying that the U.S. Forest Service had authority to issue the permit to build the pipeline. Does this mean the pipeline will be built? It is now three years behind schedule and the costs have doubled to $16 billion.

Question for Becki Gray and Bev Perdue – Carolina Demography is reporting that much of our population growth is coming in urban areas from young people, minorities and people from out of state. Some political wonks say this is good news for Democrats and portends a loss of power for Republicans. But the report says our state has a larger rural population than any state but Texas and they tend to have a higher turnout. What’s your take on this report?

NC SPN episode #1127 Air Date 06/19/2020

Topics:

Lawmakers quietly at work

Racial justice

Panelists:

Bev Perdue, former Governor of NC

John Hood, Syndicated columnist and author

Chris Fitzsimon, Director, States Newsroom

Becki Gray, VP of John Locke Foundation

Tom Campbell, Moderator

This week Tom Campbell discusses how our state spends money on education.

Question to John Hood and Chris Fitzsimon – Medicaid managed care was supposed to begin this year but COVID-19 has delayed its implementation to the point some say it will be January of 2021 at the earliest before it could happen. But there are now voices saying maybe we shouldn’t even embark on the reform, that other states haven’t had the desired savings and perhaps a better model might be the Community Care North Carolina approach to Medicaid. What are your current feelings about Medicaid Managed Care?