Daily Archives: April 27, 2011

David Bass’ latest Carolina Journal Online report focuses the progress of N.C. House legislation designed to offer education tax credits to parents of children with special needs.

In this Cato post, economics professor Steve Hanke compares presidential administrations back to Ike on their “misery index” results. Obama hasn’t (yet) created as much misery as Jimmy Carter, but he’s near the head of the rest of the field.

Should Obama take the blame for rapidly rising gasoline prices? I’d say not very much, although his reckless spending binge is driving down the value of the dollar and that has some impact. Anyway, Don Boudreaux examines this issue in the letter below. He has no sympathy for Obama, who created the ridiculous expectation thatContinue Reading

When the North Carolina legislature passed a statewide smoking ban in 2009, it gave local governments the power to exceed the state prohibition by restricting smoking in additional locations, including local government grounds, such as parks. As expected, municipalities have taken advantage of this power by restricting smoking in public outdoor areas.  Earlier this year,Continue Reading

Look at the situation from a budgetary, traffic congestion, or environmental perspective, and you’ll reach the same conclusion: North Carolina should reject any federal stimulus money for high-speed rail. That’s the conclusion national urban and transit policy expert Wendell Cox reaches in a new John Locke Foundation Policy Report. Joseph Coletti reacts to Cox’s findingsContinue Reading

Yesterday, the North Carolina House passed an eminent domain amendment by a wide margin (89-28).  This was the second reading of the bill.  It still has to pass the House one more time before heading over to the Senate. For an amendment to become law, it must pass by a three-fifths majority of both chambersContinue Reading

An unsigned National Review brief focuses on the response to U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan‘s budget plan: The fights over the continuing resolutions to fund the government through the end of September were just skirmishes. Ryan’s budget begins a battle that will continue through the 2012 elections. The lines of attack on the Ryan plan areContinue Reading

Read Don Carrington’s lead Carolina Journal Online article about the dubious concept of “job-years,” and you’ll find this quote from Gov. Beverly Perdue: “You know, what I’m aware of on rail is that the money would help us do what we need to do in this state, and what we need to do in theContinue Reading