Raleigh – Legislative Republicans are rushing back to Raleigh to grab power from the scariest thing imaginable to Republicans – a bipartisan board running an open transparent process. Their reason? That a bipartisan commission (out of their control) with an open and transparent public process is politicized:
Speaker Moore: “There’s been a lot of discussion about what I would believe, and what a lot of my colleagues would believe, is to misrepresent and politicize something that’s purely administrative.” [News & Observer, 7/23/18]
The spin is “laughable” considering that Republicans’ main goal this session is to politicize what currently is a transparent, open public process so they can misrepresent their constitutional amendments. Here’s the truth:
Secretary of State Elaine Marshall: “I have had no outside groups or pressure tactics aimed at me or used against me.” [7/23/18]
News & Observer Editorial: “In a laughable cover for his call for a special session, Lewis wrote that it’s needed to keep his party’s politically motivated amendments from being politicized … The proposed amendments were vaguely worded when the legislature approved them. And that was intentional to make the changes seem more palatable to voters or less revealing.” [7/23/18]
CBC Editorial: “Without a shred of proof, Lewis wrote that the commission would overreach … Bringing the legislature back is a terrible idea and shouldn’t be done. It will lead, as we’ve seen in the past, to nothing but trouble.” [7/23/18]
Charlotte Observer: HEADLINE: First the legislature proposed a blatant power grab. Now it wants a hidden one, too. [6/27/18]
Winston Salem Journal: “The arguments in favor of a resounding, across-the-board “no” are powerful and plentiful. Topping the list is the disingenuous and misleading way lawmakers crafted the proposals.” [7/20/18]
Star-News Editorial: HEADLINE: Attempted power-grab in Raleigh is plain un-American
“Mainly, though, it would result in bad governance. Given this legislature’s tendency to draw up bills in back rooms with no public debate, we can imagine the deal-making and favor-trading that would go into filling these powerful board seats.” [7/8/18]
Editor’s note: The Richmond Observer strives to provide fair and objective coverage of any and all political issues, situations, and/or developments, regardless of party affiliation. As part of this commitment, the Observer is offering this press release for your review. It is also our policy to print news release material in its original format, as it was received, with minimal, if any, editorial adjustments.
