The Political Circus in Raleigh | Eastern North Carolina Now

Tom Campbell
    The circus came to Raleigh this week - not the farewell tour of thick-skinned pachyderms - but one in which other elephants were in the center ring.

    Faced with the mandate from a three-judge federal panel to redraw Congressional Districts 1 and 12 within ten days, the state appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court to stay that order. Legislative leaders were virtually assured their appeal would be successful, therefore allowing the March 15th Primary Elections for Congressional seats to go on as scheduled. As part of this great circus lawmakers held a statewide public hearing on redistricting Monday but it was little more than a show, minus the calliope, peanuts, Crackerjacks and clowns - though some likened lawmakers to those with the white painted faces and big red noses.

    That hearing proved that redistricting is an issue that stirs the passions and interests of more than just the inside-the-beltline politicos and left legislators wishing they had not staged it. Comments were heated enough to melt the snow and ice that blanketed our state and should have been a wake-up call that lawmakers are the villains in this redistricting saga. Voters are weary of redistricting efforts that effectually allow legislators to choose their voters instead of drawing competitive districts in which voters select their representatives. Repeated Republican soliloquies that Democrats did this for decades only confirm that two wrongs don't make a right.

    Events changed dramatically on the way to the stay by the Supreme Court. Justice Antonin Scalia's untimely death threw the conservative plurality of the court into a partisan stalemate. The remaining justices are split evenly along party lines, so a tie vote kicks the issue back to the three-judge panel that has already ruled the two districts are unconstitutional and must be redrawn. This speaks to the state of our highly partisan appellate courts on both the state and national level.

    The next act, as daring as walking the high wire without a net, challenged those who had opposed the current districts by declaring "you can't have it both ways." Legislators said they would comply with the three-judge panel and therefore would not use race as any factor in redrawing the two districts. As might be suspected, those who opposed the original districts were forced to back up, explaining, that their opposition was to the stacking and packing of the 1st and 12th districts, then quickly adding that race must have some consideration in accordance with the Voting Rights Act.

    While this is all fascinating fodder for those watch every nuance under the political big top it demonstrates the absurdity in moving our primary elections from the traditional second Tuesday in May to March 15th. Lawmakers had justified their decision by proclaiming the move would produce two benefits: the March date would allow our state to be a player in the presidential nomination process, while also saving the state millions of dollars by holding only one primary election.

    29 other states will have held presidential contests before North Carolina and it increasingly looks as if our voice will not be so significant. Further, there is no way new districts can get necessary approvals by March 15th, so a May congressional primary is almost a certainty.

    It doesn't appear we will enjoy either of the promised benefits.

    Publisher's note: Tom Campbell is former assistant North Carolina State Treasurer and is creator/host of NC SPIN, a weekly statewide television discussion of NC issues airing Sundays at 11:00 am on WITN-TV. Contact Tom at NC Spin.
Go Back


Leave a Guest Comment

Your Name or Alias
Your Email Address ( your email address will not be published)
Enter Your Comment ( no code or urls allowed, text only please )




Confinement Gave Writer Shocking Insight into U.S. My Spin, Editorials, Op-Ed & Politics Expert: Virginia Redistricting Ruling Could Foreshadow N.C. Outcome


HbAD0

Latest Op-Ed & Politics

Be careful what you wish for, you may get it
America needs to wake up and get its priorities right
Former President Donald Trump suggested this week that if he becomes president again, he might allow Prince Harry to be deported.
It's a New Year, which means it's time to make resolutions — even for prominent evangelical leaders. The Babylon Bee asked the following well-known figures in the faith what they hope to accomplish in 2024:
Vice President Kamala Harris will visit a Minnesota Planned Parenthood clinic, reportedly the first time a president or vice president has visited an abortion facility.
An eight-mile stretch of the Blue Ridge Parkway near Asheville has been temporarily closed due to a string of “human and bear interactions,” the National Parks Service announced.
University of Wisconsin tried to punish conservatives for the fact that liberals regularly commit crimes to silence opposition
most voters think EU officials not doing a good job on illegal immigration
Come from behind by GOP candidate is a blueprint to 2024

HbAD1

Biden spending and energy policies to blame
Tuberculosis carried by illegal invaders has already infected Texas cattle
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said this week that the only campaign promise President Joe Biden has delivered on as president is the complete dismantling of the U.S. southern border.
Hamas is reeling after losing two of their most cherished leaders on the same day: military commander Saleh al-Arouri, and Harvard President Claudine Gay.
President Joe Biden’s brother told the Internal Revenue Service that Hunter Biden told him he was in business with a “protege of President Xi,” referring to the leader of China, according to notes by an IRS investigator that were divulged during a congressional interview of Jim Biden.
Gov. Roy Cooper seeks a temporary restraining order to block a law changing the composition of the State Board of Elections.
X owner Elon Musk mocked a news segment from ABC News this week that promoted President Joe Biden’s talking points about the Democrat-led Senate’s failed border bill, which critics and many experts have said would make the situation on the border worse.
That’s the question Marguerite Roza of Georgetown University’s Edunomics Lab sought to answer in a recent webinar on the topic.

HbAD2

 
Back to Top