As a native North Carolinian, I know too well the devastating impacts flooding and natural disasters can have on our coastal communities. I also know the positive impact visionary projects can have in helping protect these communities.
All in Opinion
John Hood: Give peace a chance - on trade
Former President Donald Trump has proposed an across-the-board tariff tax of 10% on all imports. How would such an increase in protectionist central planning affect our economy?
Op-Ed: Sowell laments progressives' history of certainty, dismissiveness
Progressives differ in substantial ways from those who carried the same political label 100 years ago.
John Hood: UNC Professor shaped modern journalism
In 2005, the veteran journalist and professor spoke at an academic conference in San Antonio. “The demassification of the media did not start with the Internet,” he told a room full of people who’d long assumed otherwise.
John Hood: Inflation remains a potent political issue
Democrats are puzzled and frustrated. Jobless rates are low, wages are rising, and growth in gross domestic product last quarter was sizzling. Why do voters remain so dissatisfied with the current economy? And why do most of them disapprove of the economic stewardship of President Joe Biden and his Democratic Party?
John Hood: Ballot will feature many competitive races
It goes without saying that North Carolina’s 16 electoral votes for president will, as usual, be heavily contested next year by the two major-party nominees, who are presumed to be Democrat Joe Biden and Republican Donald Trump.
John Hood: America’s Founding Deserves Our Gratitude
In her classic novel Little Women, Louisa May Alcott has her character Margaret gaze bitterly at the family’s frostbitten garden and proclaim that “November is the most disagreeable month in the whole year.”
John Hood: Republican Polls Split on Mark Robinson
In the latest Civitas Poll, 49% of North Carolinians likely to vote in the Republican primary say they’d pick Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson to be the GOP nominee for governor in 2024. Of the remaining voters, 41% are undecided and the rest support other candidates such as State Treasurer Dale Folwell or former congressman Mark Walker.
John Hood: State Budget is bigger than reported
RALEIGH — Last month, the North Carolina General Assembly passed a $30 billion state budget for the 2023-24 fiscal year. Gov. Roy Cooper, disappointed with many provisions but keen on the bill’s expansion of Medicaid, allowed the $30 billion budget to become law without his signature.
A toxic combination of the shameless, delusional and opportunistic threatens our democracy
Donald Trump knows he did not win the 2020 presidential election. The man has long displayed a malignant and all-consuming narcissism, but he’s no dummy. Uttering statements and making claims that sound at least plausible to some and that he wishes in his heart were true (but that he knows to be false) has always been his stock-in-trade.
NC’s Growing Spanish-Speaking Community Needs Bilingual Crash Reports
As a personal injury attorney, I often work with Spanish-speaking clients who have been seriously injured in car accidents. Seeking compensation for your injuries is confusing, and this confusion is often exacerbated if you’re not proficient in English.
John Hood: To fix our politics, try conversation
At the start of each North Carolina Leadership Forum, we ask our participants to introduce themselves by telling a story about a person or experience that helped make them who they are today.
John Hood: Most workers say they're satisfied
Most North Carolinians aren’t happy with the way things are going in the country. They are dismayed by recent increases in the cost of living. They are discouraged by recent declines in student attendance, classroom discipline, and academic performance in our schools, among other negative social and cultural trends.
John Hood: Washington won't fix health care
North Carolina’s Medicaid program will expand on December 1 to offer fully subsidized health plans to virtually every legal resident whose household income is at or below 138% of the federal poverty line.
John Hood: Budget Achieves big Conservative Wins
Now that the North Carolina General Assembly has finally passed a state budget for the 2023-25 biennium — and Gov. Roy Cooper has decided not to veto it, allowing it to become law without his signature — conservatives have a great deal to celebrate. The bill achieves major victories for fiscal restraint, tax and regulatory relief, and education reform, among other important causes.
Legislators will vote on a state budget with Medicaid expansion and without casinos
The Republicans’ Frankenstein experiment that sutured promised Medicaid expansion in North Carolina to expanded legal gambling has failed.
Senate leader folds his hand. Casinos will not be part of the North Carolina budget
Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) rarely loses a hand in the political games that play such a prominent role in the work of North Carolina General Assembly.
John Hood: Residents Flock to Country’s Freest Cities
Charlotte and Raleigh certainly have their problems — as discussed regularly in, among other places, this very spot on the opinion page! But as someone who grew up near Charlotte and now lives near Raleigh, I will also say there’s still more going right than going wrong in our state’s two most-populous communities.
John Hood: Freedom Fosters a Culture of Giving
When natural disasters or other emergencies hit our state, North Carolinians respond in droves — and I’m not just referring to the crucial and praiseworthy work of public employees who work in emergency management, public safety, and public works.
How much influence should college students have over local elections?
In the waning days of the 2023 legislative session, there seems to be no shortage of ideas of how to reshape North Carolina’s elections. From ballot signature verification to giving the General Assembly appointment power to the State Board of Elections, Republican legislators maintain their changes will instill voter confidence in the system.