The GOP’s false narrative

by | Mar 1, 2023 | Editor's Blog | 32 comments

Republicans have a narrative about how they saved North Carolina. To hear them tell it, North Carolina was a spiraling hellhole of bloated government and over-regulation that kept businesses from moving here and taxes too high. In reality, everything that’s made North Carolina one of the most desirable states in the nation was built by 50 years of Democratic and moderate Republican rule. 

Republicans have been crowing as magazines like Site Selection name North Carolina a top-state for business, but we had that designation going back into the 1990s when Democrats were firmly in control of the state. 

In fact, while North Carolina’s business climate has stayed strong over the past decade, we’ve lost in other areas. In decades of the 1990s and 2000s, North Carolina was the sixth fastest growing state in the nation. Since 2011, when Republicans took control of state government, we’ve dropped to 14th fastest growing state. In addition, our GDP was lower over the past decade than it was in 1990s or 2000s. 

From the 1960s to 2010, North Carolina emerged as a leader in the South, both in terms of economic development and education. We were steadily attracting businesses and people to the state and our state university and community college systems were among the best in the nation. In a Brookings Institute study in 2000, the think tank said, “A very important part of what draws these people—almost one million from 1990 to 1998—and the businesses for which they work, is the state’s quality of life. ‘Quality of life’ is a hard thing to quantify precisely. It encompasses everything from schools to the environment to jobs to the cost of living to the number of symphony orchestras, colleges and universities, and recreational opportunities.”

Democrats and moderate Republicans like Jim Martin and Harold Brubaker, who served as Speaker when the GOP controlled the House chamber after 1994, built the infrastructure that created this “quality of life” factor. They made investments in our schools and university systems. They reached a balance that protected the environment while allowing economic development. They kept taxes moderate and progressive. The economy soared while we remained an affordable state. 

Those ill-defined measures of quality of life are what the current GOP leadership has in its crosshairs. They don’t believe that good schools, a healthy environment, or, God forbid, symphony orchestras, attract people and businesses. They’ve set about slashing our investments in those attractions while focusing only on cutting taxes for the wealthy and  corporations. 

It took over thirty years to build the infrastructure and quality of life factors that set off the boom of the 1990s and 2000s. Republicans are systematically dismantling it. We’re just starting to see the damage. The slower economic and population growth are likely due to the negative perception much of the country has of the state. We probably won’t know the full extent of damage for another ten years or so.

After a decade of policies like Amendment 1 and HB2 and the controversies that have rocked our once-vaunted university system, North Carolina is in a slow slide. We will never know how many companies took a pass on North Carolina because they believe it is less welcoming to their employees. We won’t know for another decade or so how many researchers and top professors decided against coming to North Carolina universities because of the meddling of state legislators. 

Now, with a huge surplus, the GOP legislature is moving forward with more tax cuts at the same time our schools can’t find enough teachers or staff to serve our children. Those corporations aren’t moving into poorer, rural counties where schools are struggling the most. They are coming into the Triangle, the Triad, and Charlotte. The counties that make up those regions subsidize poor teacher pay with local taxes paid by their wealthier residents. Counties like Greene, Anson, Gates, and Surry can’t afford to offer subsidies for their teachers. 

How do people like Representative Chris Humphrey who represents Greene County or Representative Mark Brody who represents Anson vote for tax cuts that deny resources to their schools while encouraging economic development in wealthier areas? Do they just see their constituents as rubes the way Donald Trump sees his supporters? Or are they so ideologically blind that they can’t see that they’re voting against their districts’ interests? Or are they just too dumb to know better? It’s a hell of question. 

One thing, though, is obvious. Republicans have bought into a false narrative about saving the state. They took over a state that was on a solid foundation because of the people who ran it for the 50 years prior to their victory in 2010. Since then, they’ve eroded our quality of life, slowed our economic growth, and discouraged people from moving to the state. Now, they want to further shift the tax burden from the wealthy to working class. They will shift money from struggling counties while encouraging growth in wealthier ones. And the people who represent those poorer counties are along for the ride.

32 Comments

  1. Wayne

    After reading all of the articles on this website, along with the reader’s comments added to them, I’ve come to the conclusion that there is one, single, driving mindset which characterizes the Democrat Party:

    It is a political ‘machine’ whose ideology inspires lying, encourages members to play the victim, promotes false innuendos designed to preemptively smear opponents (with no justification), staunchly demands political correctness from everyone, and smugly and self-righteously engages in virtue signaling, deception, and outright attempts at subversion.

    These are the hallmarks and the characteristics of today’s Democrat elites, and of all their dutiful little foot soldiers. With no moral constraints whatsoever, and with the full complicity of the liberal media, Democrat leaders normalize anti-social behavior in order to disrupt good social order, and they do so with not a shred of any sense of moral responsibility or conscience. (can anyone say Maxine Waters or Adam Schiff…?? Those two are the poster children for lies!)

    The Democrat Party seems to have no awareness whatsoever that they are sick. There seems to be no self-awareness that the ideology which they so aggressively promote is, at its core, wholly destructive to the American republic. Democrats, like the hell-bent Stalinists and Communists before them, will clearly stop at nothing to acquire as much authority, power, and control over America as they possibly can.

    Despite the few moderates in its ranks, as a national political party Democrats have sold out America. Instead, Democrats have become a criminal enterprise, characterized by traits known to be sociopathic, such as a lack of moral conscience (witness your gross support for abortion), a reckless disregard for traditional societal rules and norms (can anybody say ‘Antifa’, or ‘BLM’…?), and the compulsive support of aggressive and destructive acts, such as we saw for over a year and a half in Democrat-led cities across the country, which were looted, burned, and destroyed by the aforementioned anarchist groups.

    Regardless of the few accomplishments which you tout, the Democrat Party has become a force for evil. It is a party noted for its radical extremism, and—not unsurprisingly, and using Saul Alinsky as its mentor—it deflects every criticism, and instead, brings its radical, anarchist disciples to bear on its perceived adversaries (i.e., conservatives), and leverages every tactic at their disposal to destroy those conservatives. For Democrats, there is no such thing as ‘bi-partisanship’; for Democrats, it is all or nothing. The Democrat Party will prove to be the end, and the undoing, of our constitutional republic.

    • cocodog

      So, you spent some time reading them all and this is what you produced! Well Wayne, with very few exceptions, your comments have no bases in the truth. You are attempting to disseminate misinformation of the most vial type. You are not telling the truth. To spread ideas, alternate facts, or allegations designed to further your nefarious cause is injurious to our democracy. Conspiracy theories and misinformation have no other purpose than to drive a wedge into the truth. The best example is Republicans spreading the false notion that Trump was the victim of election fraud. Filed numerous lawsuits in hopes that at least one court would buy into the big lie and reverse an election outcome. It did not happen, in fact the lawyers involved in these shenanigans were disciplined by their local bar for starting lawsuits without a good reason. The Most notably, “American’s Mayor” Rudolph William Louis Giuliani. Not one of the cases Republicans filed made it past a motion to dismiss. For the simple reason, there was no fraud. Trump was defeated fairly. (As he will be again if he receives his party’s nomination to run in 2024).

  2. cocodog

    To Wayne: there are a basic notions here that are worthy of consideration. (1) Republicans are losing elections nationally. (2) Democrats are winning elections nationally.
    Could Republicans be losing because they advocate, privatizing the safety net, or doing away with it altogether? Suspect these points weigh heavily on the minds of Republicans considering whether to put their local Republican wing nut back in office. Perhaps, some Republicans find beating up Capital Police, defecating in the halls of the capital and advocating lynching the vice president a bit too far. Perhaps that high pitched whining voice off an overweight bleached blond-haired person, with five pounds of makeup is a bridge to far. Maybe that 15 round vote to elect a speaker in the House was embarrassing. Perhaps embattled speaker McCarthy sending the 1/6 tapes to a Fox News wing nut giving away all the security cameras was unacceptable. Who knows what the tipping point may be, but Republicans are now backing Democrats.
    Get used to it, your lies is not acceptable to a voter who has seen an escalation of his or her Social Security benefits, Medicare and Obama Care under Biden. Calling Biden Sleepy Joe, or attacking me may full fill your elementary school sense of getting even, but it does not cut the ice in the overall scheme of things. You have not supported any of your accusations with evidence. You just rave and rant like any true believer and some other unpaid individuals.

  3. Wayne

    Lest Democrats forget (and they have), how about we remember some of Biden’s more notable failures, shall we? Might be useful to highlight some of them right about now:

    For example, how about those 12 dead American Marines and one Navy Corpsman in the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan. Remember that one? OH—and let’s not forget the BILLIONS of dollars of military equipment that Biden’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan left behind for the Taliban! Can’t deny THAT one, now, can you? Talk about incompetence, and empowering the enemy! Whose side is Biden on, anyway??

    And how about the U.S. southern border? Biden and his lackeys REFUSE to even LOOK at it! It was—and still is—porous, and remains unsecured. Our national sovereignty has been breached, and we are being invaded by foreign forces. Meanwhile, thousands of American families mourn loved ones who have overdosed on fentanyl and other illicit drugs that have poured across the now non-existent border, all while criminal drug cartels make billions of dollars. This is not on Republicans—this is BIDEN’S failure.

    The Biden Crime Family continues to shamelessly scam the American public. Hunter Biden’s laptop is just one more despicable chapter in the never-ending saga of a sycophantic, corrupt media failure to report the truth, along with its relentless habit of outright lying to the American people. Hunter’s laptop has now been VERIFIED to be legitimate, but Democrats mysteriously still do not want to acknowledge the appalling levels of corruption that it reveals about them on an international scale. The corruption extends to the President’s son, his brother, and we even have documented proof (which the FBI has tried to bury) that Biden himself is a closet pervert—showering with his own daughter. The whole family is SICK.

    This Democrat-led administration (regime!) routinely and relentlessly tramples on Americans’ constitutional rights of free speech, freedom to assemble, and the right of due process, all while exhaustingly accusing Republicans of that most heinous of crimes (gasp!): —disagreeing with the Democrat narrative and Democrat propaganda! (“Calling Adam Schiff and Chuckie Schumer….!”)

    Look–Spare us all your moral outrage, your posturing, and your lies. The Democrat Party has no moral high ground, no ‘lock’ on truth, and you certainly possess no virtue with your endlessly shameful displays of outrage. It’s just ‘political theater’—it’s tiresome—and clearly, it is only meant for Democrats to be able to claim that Democrats are doing ‘something’—ANYthing! It’s just cheap grandstanding, right out of Saul Alinsky’s playbook, to eliminate Republican competition because—let’s face it–you have nothing to run on in 2024! Biden and his flunkies have enjoyed little to NO success, and they have nothing good to report to the American people! We have effectively LOST our leadership on the world stage—all entirely due to a feckless, incompetent President and his abysmally incompetent staff.

    Democrats, their loyalists, and their media mouthpieces, cannot face the truth, nor can they proclaim any successes for the good of America. Democrats have nothing. They have accomplished only destruction. The enemy is at the gates, and we no longer have a sovereign country, nor a serious military, to save our constitutional republic. Under Democrat governance, America is finished.

    • cocodog

      Wayne, your claims are perversions of the truth. In a party that believes in lizards from outer space they may have credibility. But in the light of day, they are just BS.
      Winding down a war started by Republican President Bush and lasting for over 20 years was no easy task. But the war needed to end. Over 2400 members of the military lost their lives and 20 thousand plus were wounded. In addition, there were 1,822 civilian contractors killed. The public coffers were being drained supporting a war that seemed to go on endlessly. If you know anything about history, you would have been aware of the losses Russia suffered trying to control that country. Of course, any death is unacceptable, but occurring during the pull out is foreseeable. The fact the numbers were small is amazing and less than those suffered by the Russians.
      The INFAMOUS TRUMP BORDER WALL: Other than being a scam for such folks as Trump supporter Steve B., it was never anywhere near being built. In Fact, Newsweek reported that Trump’s claim the wall was almost finished was “absolutely not true”. Miles of privately owned property in South Texas needed to build the wall were tied up in court. In fact, Trump’s claims to have built any portion of the wall do not stand up under scrutiny. He was BSing folks like you who are too lazy to do the research.

      Border line Fentanyl seizures spiked during the Trump administration. In June of 2020, under Trump, the Border Patrol (CBP) seized over 713 lbs. of the drug, which was a 200 percent increase over the previous month. All this occurring under Trump’s watch.

      The laptop belonging to Biden’s son, unlawfully obtained, and later exploited is just more Republican BS. The matter was fully investigated, and no charges were made. Moreover, it occurred years ago.
      I have no idea what your personal life is, nor do I care, but every family has problems. Hunter had issues, like any father worth his salt, Joe is going try to help his son. I am sure most fathers would do the same.

      Here the thing, legitimate criticism is very much part of free speech. But dragging up an aspect of the Democratic Party that occurred over 100 years ago and claiming it to be the current situation is intellectually dishonest.

      • Wayne

        As is the case with most Democrats, your narrative is weak, and—predictably–it deflects from the original post. Alas, there is none so blind, as though who will not see. I don’t mind engaging you in a battle of wits, but I see you are unarmed, so… I’ll go easy.

        I am not arguing the point that the war in Afghanistan needed to end. Clearly, it did. But the MANNER in which it was ended (abruptly, like overnight?) was pathetic. It was not an orderly military withdrawal in any sense whatsoever. None—it was chaotic–and as a result of poor planning and military incompetence, we left 85 BILLION dollars in high-priced, high-tech equipment behind for the enemy. We left Americans behind, and we left Afghani-American cooperatives behind as well. Taking our troops out of there FIRST was an unmitigated disaster, and no Commander-in-Chief with an ounce of common sense would do that. But, of course—Biden did. Thanks, Joe—and thanks to your ‘woke’ military advisors, because it was THEIR feckless idiocy that directly contributed to the deaths of 13 Americans. Fools! No comment on losing 85 Billion in military arms to the enemy? No accountability for the lives lost?

        And then! —the non-existent border wall—the one that was designed to enable the U.S. to retain some semblance of law and order at the border? The one that was intended to help stem the flood of illegal drugs across the border? The one that was intended to provide some form of structure, so that U.S. Border Patrol agents could competently administer a legal means for immigration into the U.S.? Alas—Sleepy Joe decided to issue one of his famous Executive Edicts that ENDED any semblance of order to the administration of the immigration process, and now we have MILLIONS of illegal, undocumented aliens from SCORES of countries flooding unhindered into America. We ARE being invaded, and the Mexican Cartel CLEARLY has control of our U.S. border—the U.S. does not, and VP Kamala Harris is a monumental joke. So—are Democrats going to continue to DENY that there really IS an invasion going on? Is Biden going to simply IGNORE the fact that illegal opioids are FLOODING thru our ungoverned, non-existent border? What’s his game plan?? Democrats OK with no sovereignty?

        The infamous Hunter Biden laptop was NOT illegally obtained. The guy is an idiot, and he left it unclaimed at a repair shop. Period. The information on it IS being investigated, and Hunter WILL eventually face a congressional investigative committee regarding his now-known ties to foreign governments, along with his (and the Presidents) financial ties to those governments. Don’t whine to me that “Well, gee—all families have their problems.” The Biden family is not your ordinary family, and the Bidens (especially Hunter) shamelessly traded on the Biden name for influence and financial gain. This isn’t ‘Republican BS’; it is a political debacle that exposes political corruption and collusion at the very highest level of our government. Hmmm…’Russian Collusion’…sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Yeahhh….and the reason is because (as usual) whatever Democrats hysterically accuse Republicans of, it’s because Democrats are trying to hide from, and deflect from, their OWN actual collusion! We see how the game is played, folks. The Democrat Party was—and continues to be—awash in corruption, racism, and an ideological dysfunction that threatens the very foundations of our constitutional republic. At this rate, pretty soon our government will have ‘Made in China’ stamped on it.

        • Randy Guptill

          Wayne, give it a rest.

          • Wayne

            Democrats don’t like it at ALL when THEIR leadership is found to be criminally corrupt or ethically challenged, but by golly—they sure can dish it out when a Republican stumbles or falls! Yeahh…we see how Democrats ‘play the game’, and Republicans are wise to it.

            While Republicans continue to naively believe that politics is fundamentally all about good governance, the Democrat Party leverages every single legal or illegal means possible to increase the scope of their entrenched power and authority. For Democrats, ‘good governance’ has nothing to do with it. For the Democrat Party, it’s all about wielding authority, and assuming as much power unto themselves as they can possibly get. The public be damned, and woe is you, if you think that the Democrat leadership actually cares about you.

            If, in fact, Democrats DID fundamentally share a concern for their constituency, and actual, responsible leadership were important to the Biden White House, Democrat leadership would have been ’on the ground’ from Day 1 in East Palestine, Ohio, assessing the railroad disaster and organizing a coordinated response to the environmental and air quality pollution that their administrative failure (along with Norfolk Southern railway’s failure) had caused.

            But—no. No… Mayor Pete had to have his ‘personal time’ (HIS words!), and that was evidently more important than the devastating impact of a chemical spill that destroyed an entire town. Yep—that’s what Democrats call ‘leadership’. You can argue with me, but you most definitely cannot hide from the sheer incompetence, arrogance, and poor response exhibited by the President, the VP, and the administration’s Transportation Secretary over their abysmally pathetic response.

            On a sidebar note—it’s interesting to note that former Prez Donald Trump showed up—the day BEFORE anyone from the Biden White House showed up—and—notably—he brought pallets of bottled water for the residents to safely drink. But what did the mainstream Democrat-led media say about that personal effort…?? They mocked him for bringing ‘Trump water’! Not a word about the fact that Trump provided (out of his OWN pocket) what the Federal government could not, and DID not. But the next day, of course, Mayor Pete shows up, and what did HE bring to help…?? Nothing. Nada. All he brought was BS and propaganda blather. Thus the difference, and you may be dead certain that the beleaguered victims of the East Palestine railway disaster will remember who helped them, and who did not.

        • cocodog

          Wayne, red neck logic will get you so far! However, it could take you further if you pay attention to your spelling and correct the 10 or so grammatical errors and learn how to research your ravings. Aside from these obvious short coming there remains the alleged facts or lack thereof which detracts from your points.
          You attack Biden for poor planning but overlook the fact Trump signed a withdrawal plan well before leaving office which did not take into consideration Afghanistan political leaders would give up and flee the country. The Afghan military collapsed, sometimes without trying to fight. Biden was forced to carry out the Trump plan. He did the best he could do given the lack of insight on the part of Trump and his marry little band of grifters and near do wells. Biden had to make some difficult decisions knowing overnight, the US and its allies were cast into a precarious position of withdrawing without adequate cover. Of course, a civilian with your vast military training and experience could have pulled off the withdrawal with far greater expertise. You otter space lizard followers are capable of far greater feats than us mere mortals. You are obviously unaware of the Russian withdrawal on Feb. 15, 1989 that was plagued with losses far greater than we suffered. Moreover, the Russians left massive amounts of military equipment behind.
          The Hunter Biden Laptop: the laptop was real in the sense that it exists, but it does not prove much as nothing from the laptop revealed illegal or unethical behavior by Joe Biden as vice president with regard to his son’s tenure as a director for Burisma. Of course, we as Democrats would be interested if you could point to a specific piece of solid evidence which ties Joe in any way to the activities of his son! Lacking solid evidence, your ravings lack authenticity and reinforce your lack of intellectual honesty. In other words, you are just repeating the lies you heard on some conservative broadcast or podcast
          I am sure the House Republicans will conjure up a hearing, led by your loudmouth intellectual icons which will find that for a fact Hunter owned that laptop. From that piece of evidence, voters will be asked to accept the notion Joe was guilty of insurrection, setting forest fires in California and used threats directed to the Ukraine President to withhold military aid, if Zelensky did not dig up something he {Biden}could use to defeat Trump! One last suggestion, try to refrain from addressing Biden with those childish school yard style names developed by now disgraced for profit talking heads over at Fox. Your stuff may be far more acceptable and not reflect negatively on your party. A party that has taken on the appearance of insurrectionist and hate mongers.

          • cocodog

            Wayne, so far Republicans have the coroner on the market when it comes questionable behavior. Trump has set records when it comes to indictments and post presidency investigations. Moreover, many of his marry little band of supporters have found their way into criminal justice system. Why not name names, point to specific Democrats that engaged in criminal behavior during the Obama or Biden administration. Trump has a plethora of folks who engaged in questionable behavior or were convicted of crimes surrounding him. The Folks in Trump’s orbit over these past five years who has run afoul of the law over these past 5 years. Steve Bannon: Trump’s political Svengali, charged with Fraud for a fundraising scam tied to raising dollars to build Trump’s border wall. Tom Barrack: Barrack was charged on seven counts failing to register as a foreign agent. The allegations, according to the indictment, center on the notion that Barrack used his closeness to Trump to “advance the interests of and provide intelligence to the UAE while simultaneously failing to notify the Attorney General as required by Federal Law. Elliott Broidy, a top fundraiser for Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, pleaded guilty in October 2020 to conduct a secret lobbying campaign in exchange for millions of dollars. Michael Cohen: The one-time fixer for Trump got 3 years in the slam for a series of crimes, most notably secret hush-money payments made during the final months of the 2016 presidential campaign. Michael Flynn was Trump’s national security adviser before being forced to resign after he failed to disclose the depth and breadth of his contacts with Russian officials. In addition, he lied to FBI Agents during the investigation to obstruct justice. Trump later pardoned him. Paul Manafort, who chaired Trump’s 2016 campaign and worked as his campaign manager, was indicted along with hos Deputy Rick Gates in October of 2017. They found guilty of tax fraud and bank fraud, money laundering, and witness tampering and lobbying violations. {Trump pardoned them} Of course there is Trump. Currently under investigation for numerous crimes connected to his activities while in office. There are others, but at some point, it becomes redundant.

          • Wayne

            CocoPup – your last two posts—from 5:21PM and 6:16PM—are so riddled with syntax, grammatical, and punctuation errors, that I find it laughable and preposterous that you have the unmitigated gall to critique MY posts for the same?? As one of your cohorts just wrote—‘Give it a rest’.

            But to return to an original point—Mills makes the observation that Republicans have bought into a ‘false narrative’. To that point, I submit to you that it is the Democrat Party which is wallowing in false narratives and outright, unsupportable lies. Worse, the Democrat Party peddles their obnoxious ideological notions as though they represent settled wisdom from on high—which they most certainly do not. Right now, Democrats are not doing a very good job at convincing mom and pop voters that the Democrat Party is going to improve their lives, make America better and stronger, and secure the future of our country for the next generations. Certainly, on an international scale, Democrats are failing miserably. We’re not talking Trump here—we’re talking Joe Biden, and what Biden has done since taking office. Biden’s actual accomplishments are weak.

            Further, Mills makes the claim that it is Republican initiatives which have eroded the quality of life in North Carolina. He further alleges that it is Republican malfeasance and mis-performance which has slowed our state economic growth, as well as discouraging people from deciding to move into NC. This is more of Mills’ usual sleight-of-hand, jockeying certain numbers to make it appear as though it is only those dastardly Republicans causing our state to appear low on the list, while the Democrats are otherwise occupied adjusting their halos. Yeahhh…like I said before: we see how you play the game, and we’re on to it!

            Bottom line: the Democrat Party is working overtime to do everything that it can to disparage and dismantle America. The Marxist Leftists running the Democrat Party are angrily trying to re-write our history, eliminate our Constitutional protections, attack free enterprise and those who work hard, attack our merit-based economy, eliminate the right to private property ownership, and ultimately, dismiss our Bill of Rights as though it is racist, and based on oppression. These are some of the ideological points which identifies the Democrat platform of today, and mainstream voters simply aren’t buying it. Democrats will have to come up with someone better than Biden and his coterie of fools, or they will never occupy the White House or the State House ever again!

  4. Jim Neal

    Re. “North Carolina as a top state for business.”

    That’s been a non-partisan claim amongst politicians in North Carolina – and its neighbors to the north and south- for decades. Democrat and Republican leaders routinely cite businesses growth an immigration as a win for all Tar Heels.

    And North Carolina has solid, historical bona fides as a friendly magnet to businesses- from manufacturing to high-tech to finance. In spite of all the crowing, the narrative about NC as a great business in which to do business ignores the realith that North Carolina is a terrible place to be a worker. Herersy?

    The global non-profit OXFAM has been tracking which states (including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico) are best and worst for workers since 2018. It’s a fascinating study that I came across back in 2020. OXFAM ranks worker conditions based on three variables: wages, worker protection and the right of workers to organize. So where does North Carolina rank? In 2020-2022, North Carolina ranked dead last- #52. Three years in a row. The worst state in the nation and the District and Puerto Rico in which to be a worker. And I daresay had the study been conducted earlier that reality would not have changed materially. It should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone that the political leaders in North Carolina have put the interest of business first and the interest of workers last. When it comes to the interests of North Carolina businesses, the law and political climate has rolled out the red carpet; for workers it’s “let then eat cake”. Heres a link to the study- check it out.

    https://www.oxfamamerica.org/explore/countries/united-states/poverty-in-the-us/best-states-to-work-2022/

    It’s non-partisan. It’s an attitude and perscpective that’s part of the state’s DNA. Democratic and Republican polticians both herald how friendly North Carolina is to business, yet I am unaware of a Democrat or Republican leader who addresses (much less redresses) the embaressing fact that North Carolina is the worst place in the United States for working class people. I presume most people would agree that we are living in an age of escalating income and wealth inequality, as well as deeply-rooted socio-political divisions amongst urban dwellers (who tend to be higher paid) and rural North Carolinians (who tend to be lower paid). Workers and poorer North Carolinians have every reason to be cynical. They have been left to wither on the vine for decades and decades.

    I’d offer that if the Democratic Party hopes to win back rural voters who have jumped to the GOP, they might deign to grapple with the reality that working class people in North Carolina are getting the shaft. Politicians and pundits far wiser than I read this wonderful site- but I would suggest that the reprehensible station of working class North Carolinians is a stain on both parties.

    • Jim Neal

      Re. “North Carolina as a top state for business.”

      That’s been a non-partisan claim amongst politicians in North Carolina – and its neighbors to the north and south- for decades. Democratic and Republican leaders routinely cite businesses growth as a win for all Tar Heels. To wit, North Carolina has solid, historical bona fides as a friendly magnet to businesses- from manufacturing to high-tech to finance. In spite of all the crowing, the narrative about NC as a great location for business ignores the realith that North Carolina is a terrible place to be a worker. How bad? The worst.

      The global non-profit OXFAM has been tracking which states (including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico) are best and worst for workers since 2018. It’s a fascinating study that I came across back in 2020. OXFAM ranks worker conditions based on three variables: wages, worker protection and the right of workers to organize. So where does North Carolina rank? In 2020-2022, North Carolina ranked dead last- #52. Three years in a row. That’s right North Carolina is arguably the worst state in the nation and the District and Puerto Rico in which to be a worker. I daresay had the study been conducted earlier than 2018 that reality would not have changed materially. So it should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone that political leaders in North Carolina have put the interest of business first and the interest of workers last.

      Heres a link to the study- check it out.
      https://www.oxfamamerica.org/explore/countries/united-states/poverty-in-the-us/best-states-to-work-2022/

      I conted that this state of affaris is not a partisan development, rather it is reflective of an attitude and perscpective that’s part of the state’s political DNA. Democratic and Republican polticians both herald how friendly North Carolina is to business, yet I am unaware of a Democrat or Republican leader who addresses (much less redresses) the embaressing fact that North Carolina is the worst place in the United States for working class people. I presume most people would agree that we are living in an age of escalating income and wealth inequality, as well as deeply-rooted socio-political divisions amongst urban dwellers (who tend to be higher paid) and rural North Carolinians (who tend to be lower paid). Workers and poorer North Carolinians have every reason to be cynical. They have been left to wither on the vine for decades and decades.

      I’d offer that if the Democratic Party hopes to win back rural voters who have jumped to the GOP, they might deign to grapple with the reality that working class people in North Carolina are getting the shaft. Politicians and pundits far wiser than I read this wonderful site- but imho the reprehensible station of working class North Carolinians is a stain on both parties.

  5. Paul

    Well said, Thomas.

  6. Wayne

    So—let me get this straight: According to Mills, President Trump merely saw his supporters as ‘rubes’?

    And–according to Mills–Republicans are ‘ideologically blind’…?

    And, again—according to Mills—Republican voters are ‘just too dumb to know better’…?? Republicans have ‘bought into a false narrative’…?? (blah blah blah)

    But, in the meantime—we’re supposed to overlook the contributions from the staggering incompetence of the Biden administration…? We’re not supposed to remember that—on Day 1—Biden officially ended American energy independence?? We’re not supposed to realize that, by doing so, Biden effectively enfranchised corrupt, totalitarian regimes like Russia and Venezuela, mandating that our oil supplies should come from those countries, all while grossly depleting our own Strategic Oil Reserves, and coercing and forcing American industry into embracing dysfunctional ‘Green New Deal’ initiatives that have quite clearly proven grossly inefficient and simply not capable of supplying American energy needs??

    We’re supposed to overlook the chaotic crime rates in major cities all across the country—most of them in Democrat-led regimes—and not question their feckless, corrupt lack of leadership?? We’re not supposed to remember that one of the constant mantras of the Democrats has been ‘Defund the Police’?? Yeahh—tell us how well that’s working, okay?? Sure didn’t seem to work well for the zombie Mayor of Chicago, now, did it? The voters in Chicago spoke, and the Lightweight of Chicago is out!

    Biden repeatedly claims the State of our Union is strong, but he’s such a dementia-addled old fossil that virtually all that he can conceivably do anymore is to mouth whatever platitudes his handlers write out for him. Our southern border is non-existent, and the U.S. has unquestionably been invaded by foreign forces. But Biden dithers and shuffles, and then ambles off to his Delaware hide-out. To suggest that we should ignore rampant crime statistics, out-of-control inflation, declining labor and product shortages, and suffer under one self-inflicted calamity after another due to the Biden administration’s incompetence and inability to function is to beg for a tolerance of rampant stupidity which is no longer possible. And it’s all entirely due to Democrat lies, Democrat false narratives, and a simply incomprehensible level of Democrat corruption at every single government level. The state of our union is not at all good—and Americans—and all North Carolinians—deserve better!

    • Connie

      Kool Aide?

    • cocodog

      Wayne, I believe one of the words used by former president Trump to describe his supporters was trash or trashy. This according to former white house press secretary Stephanie Grrisham testifying under oath before the House Jan 6 committee as to Trump’s statements during the event.
      Trump is well known for his documented colorful descriptions (suckers, losers, etc. ) of folks who are not as smart, fortunate or wealthy as he “perceives” himself to be. Moreover, in keeping with his narcissistic personality.
      The word, as used by you is “rube or rubes” did not appear in Tom’s article, but within the scope of Trump’s well documented vocabulary.

      • TC

        Coco! We can’t talk about Donald Trump according to Wayne’s rules. He’s not in office. Of course, Wayne can talk about Democrats over 150 years ago. But that’s different since Wayne is the one doing it and he’s trawling with a big net. Besides it keeps us from countering his shallow observations with what actually happened.

        How else can we expect him to control the narrative? If he can’t bend it, twist it, and make it up, his bullshit story falls apart just like Adam’s.

        As far as our good buddy Wayne’s slobber laced diatribe on Joe robbing us of energy independence on his first day in office, Snopes looked at that very claim. Here’s the link:

        https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/biden-energy-independence/

        • cocodog

          Since when does Wayne’s rules control anything. Although, I have got to admit he does have an extensive vocabulary consisting of $2.00 words, which may impress him, but have little or no effect on those who understand their meaning. Moreover, he comes up short in research.

          • TC

            Well, he doesn’t, but he likes to throw it around like he does. 🙂

    • Fetzer Mills Jr

      I think this must be a Russian disinformation chatbot. I used to encounter similar disinformation in the Middle East years ago. No chatbots or AI then but it’s the same disinformation tailored to a different audience. It only works where there are masses of the uneducated and ignorant. The intention is to destabilize society, so people will ask for an authoritarian ruler subservient to Russia.

      • cocodog

        In the past these propaganda bots have made an appearance at this and other sites. Some of them were quite good. If Wayne is one of these bots, it tells me the Republican party is running short of funds or the other countries do not have the resources to hire the best. Of course, the Chinese are resorting to 1800 technology, “balloons”, it would follow they have had to cut back in propaganda bot department.

  7. JB

    It’s easy to get half the people to vote against their own interest. All you have to do is convince them they’r voting against the interest of the other half. Victimhood and grievance is all they have to sell, but they’ve got plenty of money to sell it with because their only accomplishments are expensive hand jobs of their wealthy patrons. The people who actually work for a living? They have the privilege of carrying the load for their donors.

    • adamclove

      So your assertion is that democracy doesn’t work?

      • Bubba Hotep

        Oh, wow. Did you hurt yourself with that stretch? It was pretty extreme.

      • TC

        Does it say that? Does it imply that? No, it doesn’t. Democracy works best when the people are educated on the issues and well informed on the facts. Two concepts that are the antithesis of Republicans. We know how they feel about education. They do want to keep you informed though. And boy, do they have a good bullshit story to tell!

        Stolen elections. A mob touring the Capitol on January 6th; uninvited coincidentally, but peaceful. A separation and ‘divorce’ of red and blue states. Jewish Space Lasers. Jesus needing an AR-15. “Alternate Facts.” Injecting humans with bleach or putting an ultraviolet light into the body to kill viruses. In the end though, that’s all it is. Packaged, unadulterated, pure 100% bullshit. All of it told by people who would rather climb a tree to tell a lie than stand on the ground and tell the truth.

        Tell us oh troll extraordinaire and Defender of Liberty and Democracy, how attempting a coup, a hostile takeover, an attempt to stop a Constitutional duty of Congress from occurring, protects democracy or perpetuates its’ existence.

  8. Kycowboy

    Dallas, Bev Purdue was governor during a recession which was not caused by democrats. All the states were suffering the consequences of bad bank decisions. You are focusing on one administration during a difficult time and ignoring all the other administrations and their good work,

  9. Dallas Herring Woodhouse

    So when Bev Perdue actually furloughed teachers, cut their pay…that was a solid foundation?
    A 3 billion dollar budget hole and a 3 billion dollar bill to the federal government for unemployment insurance was a solid foundation?

  10. adamclove

    If all of what you say is true, why did control of the legislature flip in 2010 (on Dem-drawn maps), and why did Republicans expand their majorities last year (on Special Master-drawn maps favorable to Dems)?

    It’s a hell of a question, huh?

    • Cynthia

      Why did Republicans win over the past decade? I honestly think that many people believe the rhetoric and outright lies they hear and don’t study the issues (witness Trump winning). They don’t have the time or don’t care that much…and obviously they aren’t reading Thomas Mills! Also, more Republicans vote, and I don’t know why that is. NC has slightly more Dems registered to vote, yet it doesn’t add up to Dem wins. No doubt many Republicans are voting a straight ticket too. The new leaders of the state Democrat party have their work cut out for them!

      • adamclove

        So voters are too dumb/gullible to vote the way you want them to, got it. Y’all keep leading with that messaging, that should work great.

        • cocodog

          Dear Rush Hudson Limbaugh III “want- a -be”, do you read what is being written prior to shooting off one of your shallow one liners?

Related Posts

GET UPDATES

Get the latest posts from PoliticsNC delivered right to your inbox!

You have Successfully Subscribed!