Conversations with prominent state and national newsmakers – politicians, advocates, analysts, academics and activists — about the news, events and public policy debates that shape life in North Carolina.
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If you pay any attention to politics and elections you know that the coming weeks will feature an avalanche of so-called horse race polls that test and report on the strength of various candidates as we head toward the fall midterm election. At such a time it becomes easy to think of North Carolinians […]
If there’s a branch of North Carolina state government that’s undergone the largest transformation in recent decades – both in its role and its make-up – it’s likely the state courts. Thanks in large part to an aggressive effort spearheaded by Republican legislators and funders, a combination of law changes and the dedication of millions […]
As anyone who’s watched a college or professional sporting event in recent years is well-aware, the rapid spread of online gambling has brought transformative – and many would say deeply troubling – change to what has long been one of the most important social institutions in our country. In just a very few years, sports […]
All across North Carolina, students, parents and teachers are preparing for the start of a new school year and, unfortunately, one of the most vexing challenges that’s accompanied this time of year for the last several is the struggle many public school teachers face in properly equipping their classrooms. Thanks to the state legislature’s […]
One of the most worrisome challenges to human health to emerge in recent decades has been the growing environmental omnipresence of a class of chemicals known as PFAS. Often referred to as “forever chemicals” because they don’t break down naturally and can remain in soil and water indefinitely, PFAS are used in countless consumer products. […]
With the 2026 midterm elections less than 100 days away, it a great time to check in with one of the state’s foremost experts on politics and elections, Western Carolina University Professor of Political Science, Chris Cooper. This past week, Newsline got a chance to catch up with Cooper for an extended conversation in which […]
One in four Americans is 60+ and one in two lacks the income to pay for basic needs. That’s where “Meals on Wheels” makes a difference serving 13 million seniors nationwide. Recently, NC Newsline sat down with two staff members from the Wake County operation: Director of Development and Communications Sara Walker and main office […]
State Rep. Marcia Morey of Durham County is one of the many experts who’ve expressed concerns about how the state budget debate played out. While she’s happy about raises that some teachers will get, she’s concerned about those teachers and state employees who will receive a relative pittance. And as Morey also pointed out […]
After more than a full year of delay at the legislature, North Carolina finally has a new state budget and as is almost always the case, what the new budget does and doesn’t do for public education is among the matters receiving the most attention. The good news is that a lot of teachers […]
Despite listing many concerns, Gov. Josh Stein signed the $34 billion state budget bill into law on July 7. One high-profile area that state employees and teachers felt didn’t go far enough was in compensation for those who keep North Carolina’s public structures and services up and running. While the budget does include decent, if […]
North Carolina’s new state budget runs more than 600 pages and includes dozens of other law changes unrelated to spending – many of which are only slowly coming to light and public awareness. NC Newsline state government reporter Brandon Kingdollar followed the twists and turns of the budget making process and recently joined us to […]
There’s a longstanding pattern in American politics that in most off-year elections, the party of the president tends to lose support and right now, that’s looking more and more like what we’ll see this fall in North Carolina. According to new polling from the Catawba College YouGov Survey, support for President Trump, the Republican […]
Republican leaders at the North Carolina General Assembly have pursued few objectives with more zeal than their crusade to overhaul state elections. Repeatedly, GOP leaders have advanced new laws that make voting more difficult and the oversight of elections more partisan. A new omnibus bill that sprang up at the legislature in recent weeks doubles […]
News deserts. At first blush, it seems like strange term in an era in which most people are regularly inundated on their devices with boatloads of emails and other messages about developments in the world around them. Unfortunately, as even a cursory look at the news landscape across the United States right now quickly […]
After more than a year of waiting, it appears the North Carolina General Assembly will vote later this week on a comprehensive budget for the new fiscal year that begins July 1. Newline recently sat down for an extended conversation with New Hanover County State Representative Deb Butler to discuss the lack of open […]
With a new state government fiscal year set to commence on July first, North Carolina state legislators have still yet to pass a budget for the year that’s coming to an end on June 30th. We’re the only state in the union in which this is the case. While the state has continued to […]
When a utility company like Duke Energy plans for the future, it tries to predict how much electricity its customers will need a decade from now. Unfortunately, and not surprisingly, much of that process amounts to a guessing game in which utility company profits often play a much bigger role than keeping ratepayer bills […]
As the effects of climate change continue to grow and spread at an alarming rate, it can be easy to become overwhelmed. But as author Dr. Katharine Wilkinson documents and explains in her new book, “Climate Wayfinding: Healing Ourselves and the Planet We Call Home,” the keys to tackling and adapting to climate change […]
One of the most expensive and worrisome immediate impacts of climate change and the weather disasters it spawns is the fast-rising cost of homeowners insurance. Here in North Carolina and in many parts of the country, these soaring costs are a big contributor to the housing affordability crisis that plagues so many communities. As Newsline […]
Since Donald Trump’s return to the White House, hardly a day goes by in which there is not some brazen, precedent shattering action by the president or his allies. Indeed, the orders, directives, proposals and court rulings are coming at such a rapid pace that it’s easy to become numb to them and what […]
Genuine food insecurity in which people don’t know where their next meal is coming from is a subject that merits a lot of attention. By any fair assessment the fact that literally millions of North Carolinians – a large percentage of them children – go to bed hungry in the world’s richest nation is, […]
Ever since Republicans captured control of the state legislature at the outset of the last decade, North Carolinians have been witness to a steady stream of proposals designed to make voting harder and more complicated and make the day-to-day oversight and regulation of elections more partisan. And now, with yet another national election of […]
North Carolina state lawmakers are in the midst of the 2026 legislative session and, as had been expected, several important proposals are advancing that could impact everything from alcohol sales to the state constitution. On the alcohol front, it appears that the recent ongoing trend to move the state away from longstanding blue laws continues […]
Republican state legislative leaders made headlines in recent days by announcing that they have finally reached agreement on a new state budget. But even as that long overdue news was being made, the lawmakers also moved to advance a series of state constitutional amendments that would, if enacted, have massive implications for future state […]
Earlier this month, regulatory commissions in North and South Carolina approved a merger between the two energy monopolies that dominate electricity production and distribution in our state: Duke Energy Carolinas and Duke Energy Progress. The merger comes at a time of rapid consolidation in the energy industry. Indeed, even as the merger of the […]
