Issues in the News | Eastern NC Now

Issues in the News: What Return America Supporters Should Know
by Dr. Mark Creech
Director of Government Relations
Return America

Sometimes an issue moves through the General Assembly, disappears from the headlines, and then resurfaces later in a way that reminds us why it mattered in the first place. At other times, developments outside the legislature reinforce concerns Christians have been raising for years.

Several such stories have surfaced in recent weeks. Some involve legislation Return America has followed closely. Others involve abortion, alcohol, marijuana, gambling, privacy, and elections. Taken together, they are worth our attention.

A Five-Pound Baby Survives a “Toilet Birth”

One of the most disturbing recent stories comes from Durham.

According to a Christian Post commentary published on August 20, an 18-year-old woman in North Carolina, reportedly about 31 weeks pregnant, obtained abortion drugs from out of state and later delivered a premature baby into a toilet. The child, weighing approximately five pounds, was barely alive when emergency personnel arrived but survived after receiving medical attention. The young mother and the baby’s father were subsequently charged in connection with the incident.

Whatever ultimately comes of the criminal proceedings, the case exposes a troubling reality about the mail-order abortion-pill system. Drugs intended for use early in pregnancy can be obtained outside the normal doctor-patient setting and may cross state lines into jurisdictions with different abortion laws. The Durham child survived, but the circumstances ought to cause lawmakers and citizens great concern.

The most important fact should not be lost amid all the legal arguments: this was not simply “pregnancy tissue.” A living child was delivered, fought for life, and, by God’s grace, survived.

Sports Gambling: “I’d Like to Have This One Back”

Few recent articles have so dramatically vindicated the concerns many Christian conservatives raised about sports gambling as an August 14 piece in The Assembly by longtime sports columnist Luke DeCock.

Before North Carolina legalized mobile sports wagering, DeCock supported it. His reasoning was familiar: people were already gambling, so why not regulate it, tax it, and use the revenue for public purposes?

Two years later, he says that he was wrong.

North Carolina’s sports-wagering tax has already generated more than $300 million, but DeCock says the system that emerged was not what many legalization advocates envisioned. Instead of occasional wagers tied to sporting events, gambling apps now allow continuous betting on pitches, plays, points, and contests worldwide. What was supposed to be an occasional activity became something available constantly in the palm of a person’s hand.

DeCock calls his article a “mea culpa” and says, “I’d like to have this one back.” Perhaps the most telling line is even shorter: “Gambling never is” a no-lose proposition.

Return America warned that legalization would not merely capture gambling already taking place. It would normalize it, advertise it, expand it, and create new gamblers. Unfortunately, that appears increasingly difficult to deny.

The Old Story About Alcohol’s Health Benefits Keeps Crumbling

For years, Americans were repeatedly told that moderate drinking was beneficial to them, particularly for the heart.

That claim is becoming increasingly difficult to sustain.

A new study published in Public Health in July examined recent alcohol research and concluded that many reported cardiovascular benefits of low or moderate drinking were heavily influenced by methodological problems, including questionable comparison groups, misclassification, residual confounding, and selective reporting. The researchers concluded that purported health benefits often stemmed largely from flawed methodology rather than strong evidence of protection.

A separate 2026 Nature Health analysis reviewed hundreds of studies across 20 health outcomes. It found that alcohol consumption was associated with increased risks of numerous cancers, liver disease, pancreatitis, atrial fibrillation, and other conditions. At very low consumption levels, the picture can vary by disease, but the old sweeping claim that a daily drink is somehow a prescription for good health is significantly flawed.

Scripture has always warned about the dangers of intoxicating wine or alcoholic beverages (Proverbs 23:29-35). Yet it is noteworthy that modern science is beginning to strip away the cultural mythology that alcohol is practically a health food.

Marijuana: More Evidence That “Harmless” Isn’t Harmless

Marijuana legalization has often been sold on the reassuring claim that cannabis is relatively harmless and not seriously addictive.

Recent research suggests otherwise.

A new study published this month in JAMA Psychiatry found rising cannabis use among American adults and growing evidence of difficulty cutting back or quitting. Researchers reported symptoms of cannabis use disorder among a significant portion of users. Experts also highlighted today’s higher-potency THC products as a particular concern.

This matters because public policy does not operate in a vacuum. When the government legalizes or normalizes a substance, perceptions of risk tend to decline. Availability then increases. Commercial interests then have every incentive to produce stronger products and attract more customers.

North Carolina has wisely resisted legalizing recreational marijuana. Emerging evidence gives lawmakers yet another reason not to follow states that turned another intoxicant into a commercial industry and only afterward began asking what the social costs might be.

Intoxicating Hemp: The Fight Is Not Over

The marijuana debate also connects directly with something Return America has been watching closely: intoxicating hemp products.

HB 328- Regulate Hemp-Derived Consumables sought to address the proliferation of THC products being sold in gas stations, vape shops, and other retail establishments across North Carolina. Some products are packaged and flavored to make them especially attractive to young people.

The Senate approved substantial restrictions, but the House did not act before lawmakers left Raleigh. During the legislature’s brief return this summer, hemp businesses and their supporters descended on the capital to oppose the proposal. House Speaker Destin Hall said lawmakers were unlikely to finish the matter before returning after the November election.

That means the issue remains unresolved.

North Carolina did not deliberately create a statewide recreational marijuana market. Rather, that market developed largely through a loophole in the 2018 federal Farm Bill, which legalized hemp production but unintentionally opened the door to intoxicating THC products derived from hemp. State lawmakers must now decide whether to allow that loophole – and the market it created – to continue.

152 Million License Plates Recorded

Another recent North Carolina story raises a different kind of public-policy concern.

Automatic license plate readers have proven useful to law enforcement. Cameras capture license plates and compare them against databases involving stolen vehicles, wanted persons, missing people, and other police alerts. North Carolina’s pilot program produced real results, including arrests and recovery of stolen property.

But the scale is striking.

According to an August 7 Carolina Journal report, just 140 roadside cameras recorded more than 152 million license plates by March. The General Assembly has now made the program permanent.

The question is not whether law enforcement should use modern technology. It should. The question is whether safeguards are strong enough to protect law-abiding citizens from being tracked simply because the government can do so.

For Christians, that concern is not theoretical. A system capable of tracking where millions of people travel could also reveal who regularly attends a church, a pro-life gathering, a Christian school, or a religious-liberty event. In the hands of responsible officials, that information may never be abused. But laws and technologies should not be built on the assumption that every future government will use them wisely. Support for law enforcement and concern for religious liberty are not in conflict. Government should have the tools needed to apprehend criminals, but those tools should be constrained by clear limits, accountability, and protections against surveillance of people who have done nothing wrong.

Read Dr. Creech’s editorial: When Big Brother Comes to North Carolina Highways

Governor Stein and Election Safeguards

Election law remains another active battleground.

On August 17, Gov. Josh Stein vetoed HB 958, which contained several election-law changes. Among other provisions, the bill would strengthen citizenship-related affirmations, modify voter-roll procedures and election audits, prohibit ranked-choice voting, and shorten early voting in primaries and certain other elections from 17 days to 10 days. The House had approved the final legislation 62-47.

Stein characterized the measure as “anti-voter,” arguing that it would make voting more difficult and make it easier to challenge ballots after Election Day.

But reasonable election safeguards are not inherently “anti-voter.” Eligible citizens should certainly be able to cast a ballot. That should be beyond dispute. But confirming eligibility, keeping voter rolls accurate, auditing election systems, ensuring competent administration, and examining potentially unlawful ballots are not attacks on democracy. When properly administered, they help protect it.

The debate over HB 958 – Election Law Changes is likely not finished. Lawmakers may revisit the governor’s veto when they return.

The Larger Picture

These stories may seem unrelated.

A premature baby survives an attempted chemical abortion. A former sports-gambling advocate admits that legalization created something far more pervasive than he anticipated. Research challenges longstanding claims about alcohol and marijuana. North Carolina struggles with intoxicating hemp products that entered through a legal loophole. Police technology raises privacy concerns. Election laws ignite another partisan fight.

Yet there is a common thread.

Public policy has consequences.

Ideas once dismissed as alarmist can become realities. Industries promise regulation and restraint, then push for expansion. Technologies designed for legitimate purposes can outgrow what citizens originally understood. Personal freedom can become commercial exploitation. Once government creates or permits something harmful, reversing course becomes exceedingly difficult.

This is why Christians cannot afford to disengage from public life.

Scripture teaches that civil government has a legitimate role in restraining evil and protecting what is good. It also teaches that human beings are fallen, so neither government nor private industry should ever be trusted with unchecked power.

We should therefore remain vigilant, prayerful, and engaged.

The headlines change.

God’s Word does not.

 
Rev. Mark Creech
Rev. Mark Creech is a longtime pastor and former executive director of the Christian Action League of North Carolina. He now writes and speaks on issues of faith and culture and serves as Director of Government Relations for Return America.