Missing Connection: WRAL and Blueprint NC, $1.7 million in support
When reporting on Blueprint NC’s leaked documents, WRAL was all over the story, with one exception: It somehow failed to mention in any of its stories that the owners of the station are deeply entangled with the left-wing group and some of its allies. A strategy memo from liberal policy group Blueprint North Carolina details [...]
A Tale of Two Bridges
This article originally appeared in the Fayetteville Observer. Many scandals are about crimes and money, but equally destructive are scandals that corrode our sense of honor. Consider this sad moment from the waning days of Gov. Bev Perdue’s administration: Last week a bridge in Wilmington was named the Lanny T. Wilson Bridge. “To name a [...]
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NC SBE – Who is really in charge and who do they work for?
The North Carolina State Board of Election (SBE) is really two different organizations. To the public it is the appointed State Board of Elections consisting of political appointees of the governor representing the two major parties in North Carolina. More importantly, it is the bureaucratic staff that dominates both the election machinery and increasingly the [...]
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Donations to State Treasurer Raise Red Flags
A similar version of this article originally appeared in the Fayetteville Observer Janet Cowell’s primary responsibility as State Treasurer is to oversee the pension fund for retired North Carolina teachers and state employees. So why does her campaign receive so many contributions from far-away states like New York, Pennsylvania and California? Didn’t Cowell learn anything [...]
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A Progressive Paradox
College Students are often thought of as two things: eager and broke – and a far-left extremist campaigning organization bases its whole process on this notion. Grassroots Campaigns, Inc. (GCI), a third-party progressive organization, is hired by the likes of MoveOn, Greenpeace and other leftist groups to do their bidding. Young, perhaps well-intentioned liberals are [...]
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Dropout Prevention Grant Reports Reveal Limited Accountability For All Grants
(RALEIGH) – Documents obtained by the Civitas Institute reveal reports filed by those receiving state and federal grants are limited in length to little more than three tweets – raising questions about how well that spending is being tracked and evaluated. The software used by the Office of State Management and Budget (OSMB) cuts off [...]
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Reichard Pleads Guilty
One of three former campaign staffers for Gov. Bev Perdue pleaded guilty to a felony December 14. Matt Willoughby has a video report on the proceedings. Also available are three raw video files from the courtroom. One is Peter Reichard accepting the plea agreement. Another is Judge Donald Stephens admonishing Reichard. The third is Wake [...]
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Perdue Bringing “Solyndra” Politics to North Carolina
Documents obtained by the Civitas Institute suggest Gov. Bev Perdue is attempting to strong-arm North Carolina’s three major utility companies into supplying more expensive energy to their customers in the northeastern part of the state. In a political power-play to reward big business reminiscent of the handling of the Solyndra debacle that embarrassed the Obama [...]
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Three Former Campaign Staff Members of Governor Beverly Perdue Indicted by Grand Jury
A Wake County Grand Jury indicted three former staff workers on Bev Perdue’s campaign committee for obstruction of justice and making false reports. The indictments are based on investigations by the State Board of Elections and the State Bureau of Investigation. Perdue’s former finance chairman, Peter Anthony Reichard, was indicted for obstruction of justice. He [...]
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Dirty Deals for Durham Gov’t Jobs?
There is a dark cloud of controversy hanging over Durham County following a recent decision to fire a high performing Department of Social Services (DSS) Director – Gerri Robinson – and replace her with a member of the DSS Board who voted to fire her. Durham County DSS is entrusted to handle $390 million of [...]
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Analysis of State Grant Programs Shows Need for Changes in State and Federal Law
The Money Maze of State Grants An analysis by the Civitas Institute of state government grant oversight shows a need for more transparency, easier access to public records and stricter state and federal laws. State Grants are not loans but state and federal funds awarded to organizations and companies with no repayment required for performing [...]
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Public financing of political campaigns: Sinful and tyrannical
“To compel a man to furnish funds for the propagation of ideas he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical.” Thomas Jefferson said these words roughly 200 years ago. Sadly, however, modern-day North Carolinians have been subjected to this “sinful and tyrannical” practice for the last nine years in the form of taxpayer-financed political campaigns. [...]
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Blueprint NC: Paying to Play?
Do you know where your news comes from? You might not realize that much of the news you consume has been placed by public relations strategists. Many of the news organizations that citizens know and trust have been duped as well. Public News Service (PNS) is a private Colorado company that bills itself as “a [...]
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Golden LEAF: A Web of Political Cronies and Corruption
When Golden LEAF was created, then-Governor Mike Easley (D) declared that the foundation will be “one that operates outside the grasp of political pressure.” Likewise, Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand (D – Cumberland) stated: “A charitable trust shouldn’t have anything to do with politics.” These proclamations quickly proved to be a sham.
Weekly Newsletter
@NCCivitas
- FY 2013-14 Senate Budget Proposal: Large Tax Cut, Spending Nearly Identical to McCrory’s Plan http://t.co/B9CvVAKPa8 #ncgov #ncga
- How much do you know about NC's public campaign financing program? Take this week's quiz and find out: http://t.co/dUCI544VQc
- Senate Releases FY 2013-14 Budget Plan. http://t.co/FvmwuuflJx
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