north carolina

February 14, 2013 - Once known as the "most aggressively conservative" federal appeals court and the "black hole of capital litigation," the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond has shifted to the center, thanks to six appointments by President Obama.

February 13, 2013 - As commissioners consider whether to approve Duke Energy's controversial electric generation plan, the legislature wants to fire all of them and let Gov. Pat McCrory appoint a new slate. But given McCrory's longstanding ties to -- and ongoing investments in -- the utility giant, watchdogs say that represents a serious conflict of interest.

February 11, 2013 - Organized by the state NAACP, the 7th annual Historic Thousands on Jones Street march in Raleigh, N.C. called for economic justice amid a legislative push for austerity.

February 8, 2013 - This month the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a landmark case challenging Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. Considered the heart of the law, the section prohibits racially discriminatory election changes in covered jurisdictions, most of which are in the South.

February 7, 2013 - The woman picked to lead North Carolina's early childhood education programs is facing media scrutiny for derogatory statements she's made on social media. In 2005 she was at the center of another controversy: a widely-discredited government website accused of anti-gay bias and peddling false information about contraception and abortion.

February 7, 2013 - John Droz of the American Tradition Institute, a conservative group know for attacking climate scientists, visited North Carolina this week to warn lawmakers that science is under attack -- but his presentation left the actual scientists in the room shaking their heads.

February 6, 2013 - Conservative mega-donor Art Pope has helped finance a movement to discredit mainstream climate science. Now North Carolina's budget director, he will help make important fiscal decisions for a state facing serious threats from climate change.

February 1, 2013 - A by-the-numbers look at how claims of "states' rights" -- once used to defend racial segregation -- are being used to justify legislative assaults on the interests of economically struggling citizens in North Carolina, Mississippi and elsewhere across the South.

January 30, 2013 - The legislative session that starts today promises to bring big changes to North Carolina as the leaders of the once-progressive state seek to slash unemployment insurance, create a more regressive tax code, impose voter ID requirements, increase private control of public schools, and enshrine right-to-work in the state constitution.

January 25, 2013 - At the same time North Carolina is dramatically expanding the number of charter schools operating in the state, new research from Duke University finds that charter schools are much more likely than traditional public schools to be racially unbalanced -- and that can have negative educational consequences for students.