Anatomy of a failed deal

by | Sep 20, 2016 | Editor's Blog, HB2, NC Politics | 30 comments

A deal over HB2 less than two months before an election was always a long shot. Both sides are locked into a campaign narrative and changing it at the last moment adds chaos to an already unpredictable political environment. It was torpedoed, though, before it even got a good vetting.

The North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association and the Charlotte Chamber of Commerce wanted the deal the most. And they wanted it for the right reasons. Their members are losing business and money because of boycotts. The state, too, will lose a lot of revenue because of the consequences of the bill.

The business groups, though, didn’t seem to handle the situation as well as they should have. Apparently, they were talking to the Governor’s office without talking to other stakeholders. To succeed, everyone needed to be at the table before the public knew very much.

When news of the deal came to light on Friday afternoon, Speaker Tim Moore and President Pro Tem Phil Berger were clearly out of the loop. So was Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts. The stakeholders, particularly EqualityNC, were also in the dark. For the deal to work, all of those folks probably needed to be at the table.

By Saturday, Moore all but killed the deal. He issued a statement calling on Roberts and the Charlotte City Council to “fully and unconditionally repeal their ordinance” without promising anything in return. He also blamed them fully for the current controversy. On Sunday, Berger had joined Moore in pointing fingers at Charlotte and calling on them to act first with no assurances.

Instead of offering an olive branch, the GOP called for full surrender from the group that has the upper hand. House Bill 2 is widely unpopular and the GOP is seen as responsible for it. Democrats and leaders of the LGBT community showed they could dig in just as hard. By Monday morning, the deal was over when Roberts announced repeal of the ordinance would not be taken up at the council meeting that evening.

The Governor, the NC Restaurant and Lodging Association and the Chamber should have been a little more patient and strategic, but the GOP really scrapped the deal before it had a chance. The appropriate response was silence, not calling for capitulation. Either they didn’t want a deal or they’ve lost the art of governing after so many years with so much control.

In the real world, Charlotte could repeal their ordinance and it would have no impact on the boycotts facing the state. Repeal of HB2 is the only way the economic pressure will be relieved. The responsibility for fixing the mess is with the Governor and the legislature, not with Charlotte.

30 Comments

  1. Ebrun

    You must be kidding or totally ignorant. Middle class tax payers paid a top rate of 7.5 percent when the Democrats were in control. Now I realize you’re not too swift at mathematics, but surely you can see that 5.6 percent is lower than 7.5 percent. In fact, it’s 25.3 percent lower.

    And here some more federal data that you no doubt will try to ignore. Over the past three years, NC has enjoyed highest median household income growth in the U.S. The rate was 18.42 percent, more than twice the U.S rate of 7.31 percent.

    In contrast, between 1997 and 2012, N.C.’s median household income growth rate was 49th among the 50 states. Now maybe you’ve conveniently forgotten which party was charge in NC during those 15 years, so here’s a hint–it wasn’t the GOP.

  2. Ebrun

    Hollywood studios feeding at the public though have left NC? What a shame! Good thing the state has enjoyed the creation of 300,000 new, non-subsidized jobs since 2013.

  3. Ebrun

    D.g, while you have a lot of competition from the radical leftists who post here, you deserve the prize for posting the most venomous hate talk. It seems that frustration with politics can lead to a depraved psyche.

    • Ebrun

      Wow, another long diatribe! Your frustration seems to be driving you over-the-top. It’s must be hard on one’s psyche to always be “Disgusted”.

  4. Thomas

    Mccory single handedly destroyed the film industry too. Union busting at its finest, forcing thousands of NC familys to leave the state and costing the state hundreds of millions in revenue. If he really is a religious man, hell will be waiting for him.

    • Someone from Main Street

      This is all about the power of Franklin Graham and his many followers. Curious to see how huge this segment of the NC population truly is. We’ll find out in November…

      • larry

        Ya suppose Franklin Graham is just in the closet and terribly repressed? Its apparent he is a racist so just wunderin bout the other thing…you know the closet thing. So Franklin…or is it Frankie…whats the story?

        • Ebrun

          OMG, even playing the race card on Franklin Graham? What a futile canard. Your frustration must be overwhelming.

    • Ebrun

      Wow, first libs claim McCrory is an ineffective, bumbling executive who is a puppet for the far right. Now, he is so powerful he “single handedly destroyed the film industry.” Seems progressive fantasyland provides a much needed placebo for frustrated liberals.

  5. Norma Munn

    The only way I will ever look at this HB2 debacle with anything other than weary, fed-up, anger is if it causes the GOP to lose the statehouse and at least a significant number of legislative seats. Trust the GOP legislative leadership? On what planet? In what universe? Not this one.

  6. Jay Ligon

    The Redneck Machiavellians in Raleigh have put their racist, bigotted agenda over the interests of North Carolina business. It is an election year and the GOP hopes to drag enough hatred through the trailer parks to garner the votes necessary to stay in power. HB2 is an unnecessary, unenforceable, unconstitutional measure with no possible enforcement provisions. A bill written by idiots causing all this sound and fury, signifying nothing but business losses.

    The GOP has focussed on the genitalia of our citizens too long, and we are disgusted with their feeble, perverted obsession. Yet, they feel they are astride the Democrats on this issue, and they want to hear them squeal like pigs.

    A no-nonsense business community should stand up and throw them out. Let them ponder their deep sexual thoughts at home staring into their outhouses. Why do they put those half-moons on the door anyhow?

  7. Arthur Dent

    I’ve already said all I can say on this topic but it keeps on floating around the bowl and won’t flush away, so here goes:

    HB2 addresses a “problem” that (1) is completely imaginary with regards to behavior of transgendered persons, and (2) is already covered by existing laws against indecent exposure and sexual assault, the second of which is already poorly policed and prosecuted. It served to awaken fears in people who are already excessively afraid of other imaginary threats to our way of life.

    It is an utterly cynical and authoritarian way of doing the peoples’ business under the color of the law. Their time would have been equally well spent passing an ordinance making it unlawful for unicorns to poop on the Governor’s mansion grounds. If any of them have a conscience, I hope it keeps them up at night. I fear that they do not, and for that reason, if no other, they should be gone from their posts.

  8. Big Es

    Charlotte city council, the HRC and Mayor Roberts are to blame. They all could care less about Charlotte residents. Roberts continues to hose her friends, neighbors and constituents by carrying water for the HRC.

    • Scott Bryan

      If the NDO were illegal, then you would have a point.

    • Mister S

      And how many corporations and athletic events boycotted over the Charlotte ordinance? An ordinance in 200 other cities? Seems like the trouble didn’t start until the NCGA overreacted with HB2. Besides, why would Charlotte, or any North Carolina city, trust McCrory and the GA?

    • larry

      what or who the hell is “the HRC”?

      • Norma Munn

        HRC Hillary Rodham Clinton

  9. Apply Liberally

    That’s the reality of it, but the NCGOP will only spin their bizarro-world version of it….

  10. Dallas Woodhouse

    According to this article, the democrat Charlotte city council and the Governor along with the legislature had struck a deal to repeal both the Charlotte City ordinance and the HB2 bill passed by the state

    Now legislative democrats were caught red handed killing the deal which would have repealed the very piece of legislation they have been screaming to repeal.

    Despite the Possibility the NCAA and Acc could reverse course and bring their games back to North Carolina, The Cooper/Legislative democrats told the city council they “needed” the issue for the election.

    Democrats killed a compromise that would help working families most impacted by the very boycotts they themselves
    conjured up !!!!

    http://m.wbtv.com/wbtv/db/330726/content/3uZvg08I

    This is the second time democrat candidate for Governor Roy Cooper and his allies have been caught working against finding a solution for their own political games

    http://ijr.com/opinion/2016/07/257479-bipartisan-compromise-hb2-works-roy-cooper-bullied-democrats-killing/

    • Someone from Main Street

      Dear Mr. Woodhouse,

      YOUR party called a special session – and spent a fortune in doing so – to craft this bill and shove it down our throats.

      Businesses are refusing to do business with NC because of HB2, not because of the Charlotte ordinance. Blaming Charlotte for this mess is stupid, and yet that’s what NCGOP is doing.

      The Republicans are motivated by riling up the extreme religious right wing. It is clear that NCGOP has no intentions of repealing this very, very damaging bill that codifies discrimination into law, makes it impossible for local authorities to make changes to minimum wage, and prevents NC residents from filing discrimination suits in NC courts.

      I wish NCGOP would stop lying and spinning and take real action to protect NC from the catastrophic loss of business HB2 has caused the state. But instead, they blame others for their catastrophic policies. Truly awful!

    • Apply Liberally

      Dallas, Dallas, Dallas…….

      So, apparently, your well-known partisan-driven intolerances have now expanded to wholesale opposition to votes by elected bodies, to intra-party deliberations, and to governing bodies’ by-laws.

      First, only the mayor, interim mayor, or unanimous council vote could have put any repeal motion up for a vote, and then 6 votes would have been needed to pass the motion unless Roberts vetoed it (in which case 7 votes would have been needed). Them’s the rules, and the votes weren’t there. Reminder to you: we live in a democracy.

      And if conversations between Carney and council members caused reconsideration of members’ votes, well, isn’t that the American way and “just politics” that you so loudly supported when you tried to get local election boards to reduce/relocate voting sites a few weeks ago?

      And why is it that when folks like Dem Carney deliberate with such local elected officials in the same party on the issue, folks like you assert that they “killed a compromise,” or that they “were caught red-handed,” or that they were mischievously lobbying, whereas when a GOP pol does so, you label it as “counseling” and “advising.”

      And finally, you actually cited a piece by “SISTER TOLDJAH” from the IJR? The IJR? Really? Please try to get out of your little echo-chamber more often!

      Frankly, the only thing more outrageous and beyond forgiveness than your your leadership, logic, writings, and partisan rants is your hair…..

    • Ebrun

      It’s obvious the Democrats don’t want HB2 repealed before the November elections. They believe it gives them a political advantage. But since the NCAA and ACC announced boycotts, McCrory’s approval rating has reached 51 percent and he has jumped ahead of Cooper by two to three points. The Dems and their militant LGBT allies may just have to reap what they have sown.

      • Someone from Main Street

        FYI – the people who can repeal HB2 – the bill that has caused significant cancellations of high profile events in NC – are not Democrats… Super-party is in control of this one, not the Democrats. And of course NCGOP is punting this – badly.

      • Apply Liberally

        Why do you twist the truth in your posts so much?

        Give us the link that shows that McCrory has jumped to a 3 point lead over Cooper in any poll that was fully conducted after Sept 14 (the date the ACC withdrew the games from NC, in the late afternoon; the NCAA withdrew theirs on Sept 12, in the early evening)?

        The most recent Elon Poll’s field dates were Sep 12-16, meaning that a good portion of the polling was conducted BEFORE the NCAA/ACC announcements hit the news?

        And the other most recent poll was from right-leaning Civitas, and concluded at around the same time the NCAA made its announcement.

        So show us the links.

        • Ebrun

          They’re easy to find. Civitas poll (Conducted by National Research) had McCrory up by two, Elon poll taken has McCrory up by three and Fox news NC poll out today has McCrory up by three. You can verify this at Real Clear Politics. It also has Trump up by five and Burr up by six.

          • Apply Liberally

            You are a hopelessly-biased, cherry-picking poster. As proven by RealClearPolitics…….

            As of today, two NC gubernatorial polls have been conducted in which all of the polling fieldwork happened AFTER the NCAA and ACC game cancellation announcements: Fox and PPP. Fox had McCrory up by 3; but PPP had Cooper up by +7.

            And, Aug 4-Sep 20, the RealClearPolitics cumulative average of NC governor polls show Cooper up +3.5.

            And, in your typically misleading fashion, you mention Trump up +5 in NC in the most recent FOX poll, but you failed to mention the Trump-Clinton tie found in the PPP poll for the same time period. And you did the same misleading thing with the Burr-Ross race; while Burr is up 6 in the FOX, PPP has them tied.

            And, I’ll put this cherry on top: the two most recent national polls (NBC/WSJ and The Economist) on Trump vs Clinton have Clinton up +7 and +1 respectively.

      • larry

        HB2 was never going to be repealed by the GA no matter what Charlotte did or did not do. And the Democrats are not the ones wanting HB2 left in place. The NCGOP from day one thought HB2 was a wedge issue they could use to take keep McCrory in office and take some of the Council of State offices by getting there base to the polls. But Ebrun you believe whatever makes your world continue spinning on its warped axis.

        • Ebrun

          Right now, I am believing what the public opinion polls show. Guess they’re not enough to burst your bubble, so keep on believin’ if it makes you feel better.

          • Apply Liberally

            Since about 2 weeks after HB2 was enacted, most every public opinion poll on HB2 has shown more NC’ers opposing HB2 than supporting it. The most recent poll (Elon) showed that 49% opposed to it, and 39% for it. Sorry if that bursts YOUR bubble….

    • Robert Hodgman

      Seems to me Dallas Woodhouse has already been caught red handed and red faced once this month already, even by his own brother who pointed out the blatant efforts of the state GOP and his secret recommendation to continue to rig elections through voter suppression on the county level by recommending the GOP controlled elections boards of each county set voting plans according to the Republican plans rather than in a neutral way designed to encourage the highest level of voting.

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