Civitas Review Online

Here we go again.

Pregnant women are at risk in North Carolina. While this current case has a mother-to-be unresponsive in the hospital with the unborn child's status unknown, it has happened here before.

The death of an unborn child and mother
is a surprisingly frequent occurrence in

North
Carolina

and the law does not address it.  In just three short years, the murder of pregnant
women has become a regular feature in

North
Carolina

news reports. 

A cursory search of media headlines show that
at least seven pregnant young women have been murdered in

North Carolina

in the last 3 years, alone.   Despite this wave of horrific crimes, the
law in this state is silent.  

When a killer takes the life of a unborn child, the law must punish that killer.

Look for more of these crimes to happen until North Carolina is willing to stop it.

So says Locke Foundation analyst Daren Bakst in this article.

Bakst describes a recent US Supreme Court decision that has direct implications on the "matching funds" element used in NC's public campaign financing system. (read more about NC's scheme to force taxpayers to finance political campaigns here)

State legislators take an oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution. Matching
funds, which are at the heart of North Carolina's taxpayer financing systems,
clearly are unconstitutional.

The legislature should immediately repeal the state's judicial and Council of
State taxpayer financing systems. At a minimum, there should be a moratorium on
these systems until a court forces their repeal.

Whenever public servants are mentioned in the media, it usually involves criticism of their job performance or the revelation of some sort of character flaw.  This is even more the case in the blogosphere.  But, when we see our public leaders doing the right thing, this too must be recognized.

Raleigh's Chief of Police has been caught doing the right thing.  On my way home on Monday, December 22nd I ran up on a disabled vehicle on one of the Oak City's busier boulevards, Wade Avenue.  Traffic had begun to slow to a crawl.  As I inched closer, I noticed a police cruiser was on the scene. 

I next spotted an officer returning to his car with a battery charger in hand.  For just a moment, my brain tried to comprehend why this officer had four stars on each of his shoulders.  I suddenly realized what I was watching.  Harry Dolan, Raleigh's Chief of Police was out in the cold rendering assistance to a stranded motorist.

This man is the leader of nearly 800 police officers in a major city and yet he finds that it is just easier to step in and solve the problem at hand his self. No need for a tow truck, no need to call another officer.  Problem observed, problem dealt with. 

Be careful, Chief Dolan.  That kind of rational thought could get a public employee into trouble someday.  But, while you're at it, thank you.  You are the type of public servant we need all over the  state.

The budget hole for current fiscal year continues to grow, according to a Fiscal Research report. Tax revenues are down 6.1% compared to revenue projections that were used while crafting the budget. The new numbers are down even more from the 5% below projections Fiscal Research reported in November.

A few weeks ago, legislative economists were projecting the current year gap to grow as large as $1.6 billion. In light of this most recent revenue report, and what will most likely be disappointing revenue due to a slow Christmas season, look for estimates to re-adjust to $2 billion or more come January.

State lawmakers can react to this news by cutting spending, raising taxes and fees, or some combination of the two. Stay tuned.

You would think if you paid $30,000 for the privilege of sponsoring part of the governor-elect's inauguration, you could at least have your name spelled right on the invitation.  Not so the case for Mega-law firm McGuireWoods.The official invite listed the Richmond based firm as McQuireWoods (sic) (but has since been updated online).

The firm has over 900 lawyers in 17 offices in such far flung places as Raleigh and Kazakhstan and are sponsoring the Inauguration Council of State Reception on Thursday, January 8th. 

Hopefully, the firm can get a little more respect in the future for their $30,000.

If you believe that, I have a bridge I want to sell you. Don't take my word for it, here are the words of state Senator Tony Rand the Majority Leader of the NC Senate and one of the chief architects of the state budget:

“We’ve thrown money away in the past,” Rand said. “Now, we’re going to make sure we can justify every penny we spend.”

You can read the whole article in the Fayetteville Observer.

If you want to see what to do about the NC budget deficit read the recommendations by Civitas Analyst Brian Balfour. On the right are links to all of his reports.

Don't ever tell me there is no fat or waste in government budgets. This qoute should be etched in stone at the entrance to any building where politicians meet to spend your money!

A couple of weeks ago I told you about the inherent differences between the Carolinas by looking at their respective license plates.  I may have spoke (or blogged) to soon.  Our southern neighbors legislative wishes have been challenged by the usual atheist and non-christian litigants, who have found a sympathetic ear with federal judge Cameron Currie.

SC's premier political newspaper, the State, has the details.

Now, let's see.  A federal judge has gotten involved so there must be a constitutional question.  So, let's pull out our copy of the Constitution and have a look at Amendment number 1:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,
or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…(Fortunately for the the plaintiffs, the South Carolina legislature is the initiator here, not Congress.)

Now, I seem to recall a little rowdydow down in South Carolina some years back over the limits of federal power.  More to come from the Palmetto State.

Cato Institute's Dan Mitchell provides an easily-digestible explanation of why Keynesian "pump-priming" does not work.

View it here.

Looks like the "my highway loop should be done first" battle between Charlotte and Fayetteville is heating up even more in light of transportation dollars becoming a bit more scarce.

The project is now postponed indefinitely. And if Charlotte-area
transportation officials get their wish, the president of the United States will
issue an executive order to stop funding for the loop until an investigation
determines whether federal highway dollars are properly allocated."

…

"Ever since the N.C. Board of Transportation approved Fayetteville’s outer-loop
funding in November, complaints of favoritism have left state transportation
officials defending how the project was approved. (Tony) Rand, the Senate Democratic
majority leader, and state Transportation Secretary Lyndo Tippett are from
Fayetteville."

…

"Meanwhile, Charlotte transportation officials have raised questions about
whether politics played a role in funding the Fayetteville loop.

Lee Myers, chairman of the Mecklenburg-Union Metropolitan Planning
Organization, wrote a letter to Obama earlier this month. In it, he pointed out
that traffic counts on I-485 are at 120,000 vehicles already, while I-295 is not
expected to reach 30,000 vehicles daily until 2020. Myers criticized the way
I-295 was approved.

“It seems rather suspect that the person making the announcement and other
high-ranking people are from Fayetteville,” Myers said.

Asked if he was referring to Rand, Myers said, “He’s pretty high ranking.”

…

"State Sen. Tony Rand offered a sarcastic and terse response, saying he is
infuriated by the request that President-elect Barack Obama freeze federal
highway funding for the entire state to help Charlotte get money for its
loop.

“We’ve got a war in Iraq, a war in Afghanistan, and the economy is going to
hell,” Rand said. “But I’m sure that Charlotte’s whining about that will take
precedence. I hope he stops everything he’s doing and takes care of Charlotte.”

If you're in California, there's a lot of money riding on this particular name change. Democrats in the California State Legislature have been stymied in their efforts to raise taxes due to a pesky little clause in the State Constitution that requires 2/3 approval by both chambers of the Legislature to increase taxes. Their latest solution? Legislative leaders have proposed eliminating the state's 26 cent-per-gallon gas tax. Instead, they'll impose a 39 cent-per-gallon fee. Read the full article here.