Politics

January 15, 2015 - The Bible instructs us to "love the stranger," but migrants probably won't be feeling much love this year in Mississippi. Gov. Phil Bryant is up for re-election, and he has built his political career in part on demonizing undocumented migrant workers.

January 14, 2015 - With Duke Energy under pressure to move toxic coal ash away from waterways, it's planning to send it to abandoned clay mines in two North Carolina counties. But could scores of mines elsewhere in the state end up being targeted for coal ash dumping, too?

January 8, 2015 - With help from an environmental law firm, a conservation group and a landowner are challenging the constitutionality of the North Carolina commission formed to regulate the controversial gas drilling technique. But fracking's challenges in the state are not only legal -- they're also economic.

January 7, 2015 - With money from corporations like Duke Energy, the Republican Governors Association funded tens of thousands of ads that helped GOP gubernatorial candidates in 2014. But in Florida, where Duke does business, the RGA instead bankrolled the independent political committee of GOP Gov. Rick Scott, a friend of big energy, to the tune of $9 million.

January 6, 2015 - The IRS faces a number of hurdles before its new regulations for social welfare nonprofits can be finalized, including potential opposition from Congress.

December 23, 2014 - In 2014, Duke Energy gave the Republican Governors Association close to $2.8 million -- including a $2 million contribution just two weeks before the general election. What is it hoping to get from its investment?

December 22, 2014 - Environmentalists say a long-awaited federal rule governing disposal of the toxic waste left over after burning coal is "too little and too late" -- and that when the next disaster inevitably occurs the White House will share the blame.