Governing in the age of social media

by | Dec 29, 2016 | Editor's Blog, HB2 | 12 comments

When the conversation about repealing HB2 began, the deal was clear. Charlotte would repeal its nondiscrimination ordinance and then the General Assembly would come back in a special session to repeal HB2 in full. President Pro-Tem Phil Berger felt sure he could deliver his caucus but House Speaker Tim Moore would need some Democrats. Governor-elect Roy Cooper believed he, with the help of legislative leaders, could deliver that.

However, between the time Charlotte met to rescind their ordinance on Monday morning and the time the legislature convened on Wednesday, the deal was already falling apart. Everyone, including members of the legislature, was caught by surprise. Berger, Moore, Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts, and Cooper had successfully prevented any leaks during weeks of negotiations, but the 48 hours between Charlotte’s move and the General Assembly convening was too much in the age of the internet.

Within hours of Charlotte’s meeting, social media lit up partisans of both sides. A Durham City Council member tweeted that with repeal of HB2 the city could put in place ordinances and “will stand with our trans brothers and sisters.” A state Representative went on national television to discuss the upcoming session and suggested that repeal of HB2 would open the door for “comprehensive non-discrimination” ordinances in cities across the state.

When Republicans discovered that Charlotte had only removed the part of their ordinance addressing transgender bathrooms, conservatives thought they were being duped. Lt. Governor Dan Forest immediately issued a statement on Facebook and twitter calling on the GOP to reject the deal, saying, “If HB 2 is repealed, there will be nothing on the books to prevent another city or county to take us down this path again.”

By the time the legislators were in Raleigh, the deal was already in trouble. Berger tried to salvage the deal by adding a moratorium on non-discrimination ordinances to calm his caucus down. For Democrats, that provision was a non-starter. They had seen too many moratoriums prolonged indefinitely. The agreement was to put the state back where it was before the Charlotte ordinance was passed. Since HB2 had voided non-discrimination ordinances that were in place in other cities before the Charlotte action, the moratorium prevented those ordinances from going back into effect.

Berger called the moratorium a “cooling off period” that would give the legislature time to find a long-term solution. He even suggested that it last until 30 days after the long session of the legislature adjourned in 2017, meaning that the moratorium could only be extended with another special session. It wasn’t enough for either side and the measure failed, leaving Berger shaken and his caucus divided.

In the days before social media and 24/7 cable news shows, the deal might have survived. Back then, quotes from local officials and legislators might have shown up in local newspapers in a matter of days, but twitter and Facebook instantly turn them into rumors that spread rapidly through the political community. It’s hard to put context around a few hundred words on social media so in the polarized political environment, both sides draw their own conclusions. In this case, those conclusions upended a deal that had been worked out in private. Forty-eight hours was too much time between Charlotte’s action and the special session.

Otto von Bismarck famously said “Laws are like sausages. It’s better not to see them being made.” Today, we’re all in the sausage factory. Social media provides platforms for blow-by-blow updates of the legislature and for rumors that were once confined to the legislative complex to spread across the state. We live in a new age of communication. Successful leaders will learn to navigate it.

 

 

12 Comments

  1. morris

    Thanks for a pretty fair and accurate account of the special session and disintegration of the HB2 agreement. It is clear BOTH sides came apart on this deal.
    But the bad news is now, with Cooper installed, the chances of a improved HB2 bill are greatly reduced. The legislature is not inclined to work with Cooper on this issue. After all the Republicans gained legislative power and HB2 has more grassroots support than you seem to understand.
    That’s why I say “improved” HB2 bill. Even a social liberal (Libertarian) like me saw the Charlotte ordinance for what it was. A ridiculous and vastly over-reaching ordinance designed to “gather the liberal troops.” There were no people who were having actual trouble using bathrooms behind the ordinance. Certainly the state legislature responding by over-reaching themselves with HB2. But sane, middle of the road, North Carolinians do not believe men belong in women’s restroom and locker rooms unless they are truly transgender – i.e. the women don’t know they’re there because they look like women as it has always been.
    Unfortunately now there is little chance for improvement. And the bad news for the Democrats, those same middle of the road people in this state are not going be pushing for repeal because even with the over-blown “loss of business” rhetoric coming from the left, business continues to improve in NC overall – as do state budgets.
    Hope I’m wrong, but I believe fixing HB2 is quite dead.

    • Troy

      Social liberalism
      Social liberalism is the belief that liberalism should include a social foundation, implicitly on a collective basis. Social liberalism seeks to balance individual liberty and social justice. Like classical liberalism, it endorses a market economy and the expansion of civil and political rights and liberties, but differs in that it believes the legitimate role of the government includes addressing economic and social issues such as poverty, health care and education. Under social liberalism, the good of the community is viewed as harmonious with the freedom of the individual. Social liberal policies have been widely adopted in much of the capitalist world, particularly following World War II. Social liberal ideas and parties tend to be considered centrist or center-left…. A reaction against social liberalism in the late twentieth century, often called neo-liberalism, led to monetarist economic policies and a reduction in government provision of services. However, this reaction did not result in a return to classical liberalism, as governments continued to provide social services and retained control over economic policy.

      Libertarianism
      A political philosophy maintaining that all persons are the absolute owners of their own lives, and should be free to do whatever they wish with their persons or property, provided they allow others the same liberty.

      Frankly, HB2 is bad law, pure and simple. The only fix is a repeal. If, and I mean if, the legislature feels it necessary to address the high crime of bathroom going by someone whose gender may not be as it appears, well, then they should work with their staff in order to draft something that doesn’t give rise to ridicule and provides protection of their due process and equal protection rights because that’s what Government is supposed to do; protect all the people, not just the few, or the select, or the majority.

    • Ebrun

      Morris,-you’re-dead-on,-but-that’s-hersey-on-this-blog.–The-natives-who-post-here-don’t-want-to-listen-to-any-realistic-analysis-of-the-current-state-of-affairs.–(Sorry-for-the-hypens,-the-space-bar-on-my-keyboard-has-just-quit-functioning.

      • Troy

        Au contraire mon ami. When you have some realistic analysis to offer, I’ll give it due consideration.

        Amazing though how you coming blowing through here proclaiming you’re right and we’re sooo wrong. Your arrogance knows no bounds at times.

      • D J B

        So I guess you moved there and the people already here are wrong. Why did you move here?

  2. smartysmom

    everybody who cares about not discriminating has no comprehension of how the left side of the bell curve thinks (or doesn’t think?)

    • Norma Munn

      I have absolutely no idea what you mean.

  3. Norma Munn

    Putting aside for a moment, the difficulties that HB2 has brought to NC as well as the acrimony in Raleigh toward Charlotte, the process that derailed the “agreement” between GOP leaders and Cooper/Roberts & Charlotte City Council demonstrates how hard it has become to conduct the business of government. Reactions to inaccurate information cannot be overcome in this era of social media and Twitter. Add more than a dollop of mistrust, some genuine dislike, and a naive belief on the part of too many (citizens and legislators) that any and all forms of secret discussions are deceptive & wrong, and you get a witch’s brew. I suggest a New Year’s resolution for all legislators (state, local, federal) – cancel your Twitter accounts, stop your instant messaging, and do not fire off emails to anyone on any subject (other than telling your loved one you care about them). Yeah — it’s a fantasy, but do consider how much damage has already been done this year and what is likely to come.

    • Ebrun

      And urge them all to read the NC Politics blog to get an accurate, fair, nonpartisan and unbiased account of what’s really happening around the state. LOL

  4. If they only had a brain

    It boggles my mind that the self-righteous, morally superior (what a joke) Republicans are afraid of “anti-discrimination” legislation. Using the logic courses that I studied at UNC I’m pretty sure that makes them “pro” discrimination. It is morally void, intellectually vacuous, socially irresponsible, and politically authoritarian. In other words, they are PATHETIC! It is truly a shame that there is no cure for stupid.

  5. ty

    i ma totally convinced that many in the GOP did not want HB 2 repealed..it was just another one of their games to mess with opponents… donald trump type childish nonsense. and to be clear tammy fitzgerald who was a force behind the bill in the first place made it very clear she and her values collation did not want it to happen. and now she is claiming victory. as long as ms tammy has so much power and uses ignorance and misinformation on sheep like followers in God’s name, HB2 will be on the books for decades. ignorance hate and prejudice is now called religious freedom and NC is a very religious state. get used to this kind of hate being legislated and get used to God’s love being used for evil

  6. Eric Smith

    Tom — This is an excellent chronology of the sequence of events. One positive outcome of the resistance to HB2 is that trans folk have had an opportunity to tell their stories. This is so important since the natural impulse of the transitioning person is to want simply to be perceived in a way that is consonant with his/ her gender identity and not to have the transition itself become a focal point. As a consequence trans stories become obscured. When the deal was within grasp, perhaps the progressive city councils should have been asked by the governor elect to abide by a good faith agreement not to pass new ordinances for say 6 months or more. That process might also have resulted in the Charlotte City Council being more forthright about which sections of their ordinance were not being rescinded. Pat McCrory was correct that the ultimate resolution will be in the courts at which time there will hopefully be legal protections for trans use of bathrooms and locker rooms and the need for protective ordinances on that matter will be obviated. There would have been no need for the local municipalities to spike the ball following repeal by approving bathroom ordinances. In the meantime, following repeal previously existing ordinances would be operative once again for both LGBT protections and minimum wages.

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