The irony of Republicans complaining about unfair treatment by corporate American and the national media is just too rich. The people who just passed a law allowing discrimination against a segment of our population is whining that they’re victims of discrimination. It’s a shame they lack the self-awareness to make the connection.
They’re not being treated unfairly, though. Other states might have laws on the books, but they didn’t just write them in 2016 and they didn’t overturn local governments’ right to protect the LGBT community or deny people the right to sue over discrimination. The Western world, including corporate America, is moving toward tolerance while North Carolina Republicans seem to be moving in the opposite direction.
Republicans in North Carolina have also lost credibility when it comes to issues of fairness and discrimination. The whole episode followed the pattern of the voter suppression bills. They find a “problem” and use it to achieve other, more nefarious, political goals.
Back in 2013, Republicans claimed they wanted to reduce voter fraud but overreached to make voting more difficult for people who don’t agree with them. They could have passed a simple voter ID bill and moved on. Instead, they passed a wide-ranging bill that limited the types of identification, reduced early voting days, eliminated same-day registration, ended pre-registration in high schools, and moved early voting sites away from college campuses.
Similarly, Republicans in 2016 could have addressed the so-called “bathroom ordinance” in Charlotte. Instead, they used it as a Trojan Horse to push much further reaching legislation including limiting local governments’ ability to raise the minimum wage. With their long history of overreach and targeting people who have less power and influence, the GOP in North Carolina no longer gets the benefit of the doubt. That’s how politics and the world works.
Finally, as the twitter hashtag says, “We are not this.” Over the past fifty years, we’ve become accustomed to seeing ourselves as an open-minded, tolerant state welcoming of all people and new ideas. The current GOP leadership is hanging onto narrow-minded views while using disparaging and divisive language unbecoming of state leaders. They are more reminiscent of George Wallace than Terry Sanford. In just a few short years, they’re destroying a reputation that took decades to build.
The saddest part of this story is that leaders like Phil Berger don’t seem to care about the state’s reputation. They’ve created a delusional narrative about an ultra-liberal state outside of the mainstream and supported by a biased media establishment. They can’t get outside of their own bubble to see how ridiculous they sound or the long-term damage they are doing. Until they’re stopped, the rest of the country will continue to ask, “What’s wrong with North Carolina?” What a shame.
Thomas Mills is the founder and publisher of PoliticsNC.com. Before beginning PoliticsNC, Thomas spent twenty years as a political and public affairs consultant. Learn more >
Door Mat Pat is starting to remind me of Richie Tenenbaum … pre-meltdown Richie but still well on his way to 72 unforced errors. For a guy as thin-skinned as McCrory, having a prominent challenger who routinely gets his own publicity (often times thanks to the GOP, of course) appears to have really gotten into his head. The more he whines about Cooper, the more vulnerable he becomes.
Aside from the horribleness of the bill itself, I’m equally horrified at having been told by my so-called Representative in the GA, “Bob” Steinberg, that the NC General Assembly has the power to rescind any law or ordinance passed by any town, city, county or other subdivision of the state. I note that like everyone else who grew up here, I had to take a one-year class on North Carolina history: I was a pretty good student, and I don’t remember this total dictatorship by the GA ever being mentioned in class. So apparently the only protection we have from any cockamamie law rammed through the GA is the hope of of a gubernatorial veto: and in that regard, “Pat” McCrory is the weakest of weak reeds. Maybe it’s time for a revolution: we’ve clearly got taxation without representation, and we’ve been gerrymandered to the point that the voices (and votes) of at least half our citizens might as well never be counted.
There’re a lot of lemmings out there waiting to be led J.C. You can’t just call for a revolution, you need a leader who they’ll follow over the proverbial cliff.
It’s a parable, D.g. But you’re gonna have to figure it out on your own.
Sorry that one flew over your head, D.g. In the future, I’ll try to post something a little more rudimentary for you.
Just keep contemplating, D.g. It may come to you yet.
McCrory is like Ted Nugent. Only Republicans can remember why anyone ever liked him.
We, the people of North Carolina, we are no longer their constituents. They do not answer to us.
Yes you ‘are this.’ Grandma said ‘Lie down with the dogs, rise up with the fleas.’
No, sorry, we are not. The circumstance of living within the arbitrary perimeter line that defines the state boundaries does not provide any information about the character of a person.
Our character is revealed by our words and actions, not the state we happen to reside in. When as a North Carolinian I say #WeAreNotThis I reveal something of my character and how I feel about HB2. My state of residence does not somehow negate my character or credibility in making the claim. The fact that I choose to remain here and fight to fix the issues rather than flee to a friendlier jurisdiction doesn’t mean I lay down with dogs.
We in Charlotte are obviously ‘not this’ since we passed the ordinance that the state legislature overturned with HB2. There are a great many people throughout the state with similar views and collectively #WeAreNotThis despite our NC addresses and your grandmother’s wisdom notwithstanding.
Hubris is generally speaking a bad habit for those responsible for governing. Every example in the analysis shows that habit over and over again. As for McCrory’s performance yesterday, dialog is a two way street and he is also quite late in suggesting all of us go down the street together. More importantly, why would I trust any of those who rushed to pass HB2? Can someone give me an example of thoughtful listening to Charlotte, or many other parts of the state over the past few years? Where has there been any compromise between the disparate views in this state lately? Even a court order to re-draw districts was used deliberately and openly to maintain a voting structure that creates inequality among voters. These choices reflect much more than rural versus urban viewpoint. The GOP control of Raleigh and their actions demonstrate a fundamental antipathy to equality in every area of life that they can touch or legislate.