Economy

Charlotte Observer: Are you serious about reopening the NC economy, Republicans? Then act like it.

By Alanna Joyner / June 22, 2020 / Comments Off on Charlotte Observer: Are you serious about reopening the NC economy, Republicans? Then act like it.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, the concerns of Republican lawmakers have not been towards the people of North Carolina, but rather corporate profits. Despite various public health safety measures implemented by Gov. Roy Cooper based on health officials and White House guidelines, Republican lawmakers have continued to push bills that undo months of…

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WRAL: Long-standing, unmet priorities are even more critical now

By Alanna Joyner / May 20, 2020 / Comments Off on WRAL: Long-standing, unmet priorities are even more critical now

Two weeks after meeting to approve a $1.6 billion package that distributed COVID-19 funds from Washington, the North Carolina General Assembly resumed its annual session on Monday.  Republicans in the N.C. Senate unveiled spending priorities on Tuesday for the coming fiscal year, rolling out more than 18 separate bills. The N.C. house has yet to…

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After being raided by FBI, Sen. Richard Burr steps down from Intelligence Committee chair

By Alanna Joyner / May 18, 2020 / Comments Off on After being raided by FBI, Sen. Richard Burr steps down from Intelligence Committee chair

U.S. Senator Richard Burr is temporarily stepping down as Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee as federal investigators look into timely stock sales he and his wife made after receiving coronavirus briefings from U.S. public health officials. This comes after federal agents served a search warrant on the lawmaker and seized a cellphone on Wednesday…

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Sen. Richard Burr’s brother-in-law sold thousands in stocks the same day as Burr

By Alanna Joyner / May 11, 2020 / Comments Off on Sen. Richard Burr’s brother-in-law sold thousands in stocks the same day as Burr

According to a federal Public Financial Disclosure Act filing, Gerald Fauth, U.S. Sen. Richard Burr’s brother-in-law, sold six stocks valued at between $97,006 and $280,000. The stock sales were conducted on the same day that Burr and his wife dumped over $1.72 million of their stock holdings. All the sales were made after Burr attended…

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NC legislature passes COVID-19 relief, without expanding jobless benefits or Medicaid

By Alanna Joyner / May 4, 2020 / Comments Off on NC legislature passes COVID-19 relief, without expanding jobless benefits or Medicaid

On May 2, the North Carolina General Assembly approved a $1.57 million COVID-19 relief package. Votes in both the House and the Senate during the Saturday session were unanimous, marking the legislature’s first response to the pandemic.  The $1.57 billion package contains funding for education, health care, small business loans, food banks, medical research, testing…

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Progressive Pulse: Sen. Tillis should fight for public health, not his Big Pharma donors’ profits

By Alanna Joyner / April 30, 2020 / Comments Off on Progressive Pulse: Sen. Tillis should fight for public health, not his Big Pharma donors’ profits

According to a new report, North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis received more than $156,000 from political action committees tied to drug manufacturers in 2019. Sen. Tillis, a chairman of the Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, received more money than any other member of Congress from the PAC, according to a new analysis of KHN’s Pharma Cash…

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Americans trust experts, governors – not Trump on re-opening the U.S. economy

By Alanna Joyner / April 28, 2020 / Comments Off on Americans trust experts, governors – not Trump on re-opening the U.S. economy

From Trump’s suggestion of “injecting” disinfectant into the body to arguing with state governors asking for crucial aid, the long list of the Trump administration’s mismanagement of the health crisis continues as the U.S. climbs to over 960,000 COVID-19 cases. Trump, who called for governors to “liberate” their states by lifting lockdown restriction — despite…

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WRAL: New coalition on the left presses inequality issues during COVID-19 and beyond

By Eleanore Wood / April 24, 2020 / Comments Off on WRAL: New coalition on the left presses inequality issues during COVID-19 and beyond

By Travis Fain, WRAL statehouse reporter A new coalition of left-leaning groups came together over the last month and a half, and it’s pushing state leaders to address economic inequality as government responds to COVID-19, and longer term. The group, NC United for Survival & Beyond, lists some 200 organizations as members. Many are smaller grassroots operations,…

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Sen. Richard Burr, faces more scrutiny, this time over lobbyist’s purchase of his D.C. townhouse in 2017

By Alanna Joyner / April 15, 2020 / Comments Off on Sen. Richard Burr, faces more scrutiny, this time over lobbyist’s purchase of his D.C. townhouse in 2017

A new report discovers that U.S Senator and Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, sold his D.C. townhouse off-market for above market-price to a donor and powerful lobbyist connected to him, raising possibilities that the purchase could violate Senate ethics rules. In 2017, Burr sold the town house in the Capitol Hill neighborhood to a group…

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Years of cuts and lack of preparedness have left millions in North Carolina vulnerable

By Alanna Joyner / April 14, 2020 / Comments Off on Years of cuts and lack of preparedness have left millions in North Carolina vulnerable

The COVID-19 outbreak is exposing not only the weakness in the U.S health system and economy but the lack of preparedness plagued by decades of cuts and lack of concern. In North Carolina, working families, vulnerable populations, and children may be victims of a legislature that favored benefits for the wealthy at the expense of…

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