Politics
March 12, 2019 -
A state judge recently struck down a voter ID amendment to the N.C. Constitution because the legislators who ratified it were elected in unconstitutional, racially gerrymandered districts. Meanwhile, two white sheriffs who ousted black sheriffs with the help of a suspected election fraudster are also facing legal problems.
March 8, 2019 -
With a growing number of banks refusing its business amid pressure from human rights activists, the U.S. private prison industry has been ramping up spending on lobbying and campaign contributions. Tennessee-based private prison giant CoreCivic just added to its powerhouse lobbying roster another influential firm for help on banking issues.
March 1, 2019 -
A new coalition seeks to end Duke Energy's electric monopoly in North Carolina in hopes of hastening the shift to clean energy. There's also an effort underway to bring competition to the electricity market in Florida, where Duke operates as a regional monopoly.
February 28, 2019 -
A bill in the Georgia legislature would overturn local reforms across the state that keep people from being locked up just because they can't afford bail. The bail bonds industry lobbied for the bill, which would reverse recent bipartisan reforms, and contributed to the campaigns of lawmakers who back it.
February 25, 2019 -
House Democrats are traveling around the country to investigate discriminatory election practices and document the need to restore the Voting Rights Act. Events have already been held in Texas and Georgia, with the next set for North Carolina.
February 21, 2019 -
Cheri Beasley will soon be sworn in as chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, becoming the first black woman to lead the court. She brings much-needed diversity to the South's appellate courts, which are overwhelmingly white and male.
February 15, 2019 -
Groups funded by Big Oil and other special interests are reviving a scheme — refined by a Koch brothers associate in the 1990s — to evaluate judges in Louisiana and Mississippi based on whether they rule in favor of corporations. It's the latest effort to stack the judiciary.
