The way forward for Cooper’s budget

by | Mar 1, 2017 | Politics | 3 comments

Roy Cooper has released a fiscally conservative budget. The spending targets stay within constraints imposed by Republican tax reductions. It does not seek to recover all that has been cut. To the extent that this budget looks expansive–rather than moderate–it’s through contrast to years of GOP beast-starving.

That’s a little disappointing to some Democrats, especially on the liberal wing of the Party. They would like to see a return to the time when we funded government at unapologetically robust levels. But Cooper decided to operate within the new world of state governance, not try to change it, and that’s why there is a way forward.

To translate some of his budget into law, Cooper needs to succeed at something McCrory tried to do but couldn’t. That is to say, he needs to forge a Governor-House alliance against the Senate. His first point of contact should be Nelson Dollar, a relative pragmatist who has drawn heat from the extreme wing of his party. Together, they can find areas of agreement which they can push in negotiations with the brutish Senate.

Cooper’s most promising avenue is to identify specific line items which he and Dollar can jointly pursue. First, both the Governor and some House Republicans have called for a teacher scholarship program. This is a political and policy winner. Dollar has repeatedly pushed for state employee raises, another potential area of agreement. Although the House will undoubtedly pursue a much more conservative line than Cooper wants, the administration can score some strategic victories through an alliance.

Make no mistake, the final budget will be disappointing. But it doesn’t have to be all bad, nor does Cooper have to be irrelevant to the process. He just needs to make the right friendships on Jones Street and play his cards well.

3 Comments

  1. Stephen Lewis, Sr.

    Governor Cooper actually served in the legislature for 14 years 4 in the house and 10 in the senate. He was actually once the majority leader. During his time in the legislature he was know as a Moderate-Conservative Democrat who often worked across party lines. He was one of the Maveretic 20 and following the 1994 elections the GOP even approached him about crossing the aisle. Of course this is a different breed of Republicans so it will be interesting to see how this works out.

  2. Progressive Wing

    Cooper’s decision –to have his budget work within the confines of what the state’s ultimate appropriators have mapped out in terms of incoming revenues– makes sense. It shows his sense of reality and pragmatism in the face of the GOP’s NCGA super-majority power.
    It also shows a governor being realistic about the opposing majority party’s perpetual aim to make state government smaller, at least on a fiscal level (the NCGOP has already achieved the goal of making NC “smaller” on a moral level with HB2, its voter suppression act, and its extreme gerrymandering, just to list a few examples).
    Lastly, it shows a governor who, unlike his predecessor, may actually have a thought-out plan on how to deal with a radical legislature.

    • JoanNe

      I agree with you. He cannot do very thing that is needed the first year especially with Repiblicans having almost totally control.
      A small step at the beginning goes a long way. Cooper is using very good sense to take it slow and easy. Little steps go a long way.
      I think Cooper is going to make a great and thoughtful governor and I think he will get a lot done considering the circumstances.
      I wish him well.

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