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LINCOLNTON, N.C. (AP) — Republican Patrick McHenry's loudest constituents have no desire to see conciliation on gridlocked Capitol Hill, unless it comes from President Barack Obama and his fellow Democrats. When constituents pressed him on health care, McHenry noted he voted against the law. But he also tried to convince the most vocal critics of it that shutting down government won't satisfy their concerns.

Sen. Kay Hagan (D-N.C.) on Tuesday called on the Justice Department to review her state’s new voter identification law, calling it one of “the most restrictive in the country.” North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R) signed into law a bill on Monday that would require voters to show government identification when voting, shorten early-voting days, cut off same-day registration and end a program to preregister teens who would be eligible to vote by Election Day. “I am deeply concerned that H.B. 589 will restrict the ability of minorities, seniors, students, the disabled, and low and middle incomes citizens to exercise...

Raleigh, N.C. — A day after filing a lawsuit against Gov. Pat McCrory for his decision to sign historic elections changes into law, a team of lawyers and state NAACP President William Barber laid out their legal plan Tuesday to fight what they called "regressive, unconstitutional acts to rig and manipulate elections through voter suppression." The lawsuit alleges that Rosanell Eaton's constitutional right to vote is threatened by House Bill 589, which requires voters to show photo identification when they go to the polls, starting in 2016. **SNIP** Eaton, of Louisburg, claims the new elections law will keep her from...

Yahoo! FinanceSearch FinanceSearch Webima_postaaMail16HOMEINVESTINGNEWSPERSONAL FINANCEMY PORTFOLIOSEXCLUSIVESCNBCMARKETSINVESTING IDEASSPECIAL EDITIONSCOMPANY FINANCESRSS FEEDSVIDEOPHOTOS & INTERACTIVESSearch for share prices Tue, Aug 13, 2013, 2:52pm EDT - US Markets close in 1 hr and 8 mins   STOCK WATCH Apple Pops After Icahn Tweets He's Taken 'Large Position' Sturm Ruger to open new gun factory in NC town Citing soaring demand, gun manufacturer Sturm Ruger to open new factory in North Carolina town By Emery p. Dalesio, AP Business Writer | Associated Press – 2 minutes 26 seconds agoEmailRecommendTweetPrint RELATED QUOTES SymbolPriceChangeRGR55.60-0.75UFI23.67+0.01RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -- Sturm, Ruger & Co. said Tuesday that it aims to keep up with demand for its guns...

Sen. Kay Hagan is asking Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. to take action against the new voting law in her home state of North Carolina. The North Carolina Democrat wants the Justice Department to review a measure signed into law Monday by Gov. Pat McCrory, a Republican. Hagan is seeking re-election to the Senate in 2014. “Protecting the fundamental right of our citizens to vote should be among the federal government’s highest priorities,” Hagan wrote. “In response to voting restrictions signed into law yesterday, I strongly encourage the Justice Department to immediately review North Carolina House Bill 589 and...

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory on Monday signed into law changes in how residents can vote that includes requiring them to show a photo ID at polling stations, a move that triggered threats of legal action from the NAACP and other groups. The American Civil Liberties Union joined two other groups in announcing that they were filing suit against key parts of the package. This came hours after McCrory said in a statement that he had signed the measure, without a ceremony. “Common practices like boarding an airplane and purchasing Sudafed require photo ID, and we should expect nothing less...

North Carolina Gov. Patrick McCrory has signed a sweeping voting reform bill that imposes strict photo identification requirements on the state's 4.5 million voters, rolls back the early voting period and repeals one-stop registration during early voting. Almost immediately following the signing, civil rights groups filed lawsuits in federal court challenging the law.

RALEIGH — A tenant in a student apartment complex in West Raleigh shot and killed an armed intruder early Saturday, police said. Vincent Reed Bellamy, 23, told police the intruder broke into his apartment and held a handgun to his face. Bellamy was able to retrieve his own handgun and shot the man, who was identified as Trevor Anders Herne, 35.

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R) on Monday signed into law one of the nation’s most wide-ranging Voter ID laws. The move is likely to touch off a major court battle over voting rights, and the Justice Department is weighing a challenge to the new law. The measure requires voters to present government-issued photo identification at the polls and shortens the early voting period from 17 to 10 days. It will also end pre-registration for 16- and 17-year-old voters who will be 18 on Election Day and eliminates same-day voter registration. Democrats and minority groups have been fighting against the...

Schools in Charlotte-Mecklenburg, North Carolina, are taking a moment to reevaluate things. According to WBTV, district superintendent Dr. Heath Morrison has taken steps to confront serious problems in the education system. Of the 22 task forces Morrison created, one is tasked with addressing recurring problems of the black male youth. In the Charlotte-Mecklenburg district during last year alone, 20,000 black males were given short-term suspensions while 3,000 white males were given the same punishment. The discrepancy was one motivating for the task force to recommend the founding of a new, all male, all black school. Proponents argue that such a...

CHARLOTTE, NC - Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools may look at a new option in its effort to help African-American males succeed in the education system. District superintendent Dr. Heath Morrison created 22 task forces to tackle a variety of issues the school district had to deal with. One of those task force was tasked with ongoing issues dealing with African-American males in CMS. The task force made several recommendations, including beginning a planning phase to open a K-12 African-American male school during the 2015-2016 school year. One black male student thinks that would be a great idea. "The African American male wouldn't...

After winning a huge legislative victory against the UNC system (see my last column), I am now preparing for another legislative battle that should prove to be an uphill climb. My next proposed bill would force socialist professors who retire from the UNC system to actually move to socialist countries after they retire - that is, if they wish to draw upon their pensions. I know it sounds radical, but I got the idea from another radical - Marxist Professor Gary Faulkner. Recently, Comrade Faulkner had this to say in the local Wilmington McTimes: "Alas, it has finally come time...

RALEIGH, N.C. — The N.C. Court of Appeals said Tuesday a state judge erred in dismissing two first-degree murder counts against a man prosecutors say shot a woman who was five months pregnant, resulting in the loss of her unborn twins. The expectant mother survived. It was not immediately clear whether murder charges will be refiled against defendant Gregory R. Chapman, who also faces felony assault and weapons counts. The 2008 shooting occurred before passage of a new law making the killing of a fetus a homicide. Prosecutors say Chapman shot Lisa Wallace once in the upper abdomen. During emergency...

Tarboro, N.C. — Princeville Mayor Priscilla Everette-Oates has been indicted on 17 counts of embezzlement by a public official, authorities said Tuesday. The charges come four months after a state audit found that Everette-Oates charged $8,115 to a town credit card between August 2010 and last July without any receipts to back up the spending. Charges included $1,255 to Madison Steak and Seafood and $222 to Bed Bath & Beyond. State auditors began looking into Princeville's finances last summer after the state Local Government Commission took control of the town's books. At the time, Princeville was 9 percent over budget...

North Carolina’s legislature, led by Consaervatives, is hoping it will be able to pass legislation shoring up legislation defending voter integrity. Among the proposals, are disallowing casting votes in incorrect districts, elimination of partisan “straight party” voting to encourage further participation in the nation’s democracy, as well as providing additional funding to support the facilitation and administration of elections. Additionally, the bill strengthens ID requirements, similar to those required by citizens to purchase tobacco, or make a purchase with a credit card.

Rep. Robert Pittenger (R-9-NC) says NO to Defunding Obamacare http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBaSTgK1XZc During Robert Pittenger's Town Hall meeting August 5, 2013, he was asked if he would vote with Mike Lee to defund Obamacare. He gave a resounding answer. Robert Pittenger is a Congressman to the 9th District of North Carolina. Email Robert Pittenger or call: (202) 225-1976https://pittenger.house.gov/contact/email-me Kick This Out Out! Name: Robert Pittenger Congress: North Carolina, District: 9, Republican Cumulative Freedom Index Score: 62% Key Votes:http://www.thenewamerican.com/freedomindex/profile.php?id=P000606

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services announced Wednesday that it has suspended the license of Femcare, an abortion clinic in Asheville, for two dozen serious health and safety violations discovered during a routine inspection on July 18 and 19th. This action comes just two days after Gov. Pat McCrory signed a law that will require abortion clinics to meet the standards of an outpatient surgery center. Ironically, it was thought that Femcare would be the only North Carolina abortion clinic to meet safety standards under the new law, but it seems it that thinking was grossly...

For decades, the closest most people got to a gun suppressor – those metal cylinders that reduce a gun’s bang – was seeing one on a movie screen in the hands of an assassin or gangster. **SNIP** Suppressors are heavily regulated by the federal government. People trying to buy them have to apply to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and pass a background check, according to U.S. law. They also have to pay a federal tax payment of $200 and get approval from the county sheriff. On Tuesday, North Carolina sheriffs were discussing the ramifications of the...

The Durham Public Schools Board of Education on Thursday reprimanded Superintendent Eric Becoats for using a school bus and driver last month to take his friends and family to private events, including a trip to The Streets at Southpoint.[snip]Hired in April 2010, Becoats is under contract until June 30, 2016 and is paid $195,700 annually. He also receives $600 a month for in-county travel expenses.

ASHEVILLE, NC, August 1, 2013 (Operation Rescue) –The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services announced Wednesday that it has suspended the license of Femcare, an abortion clinic in Asheville, for 23 serious health and safety violations discovered during a routine inspection on July 18 and 19. This action comes just two days after Governor Pat McCrory signed a law that will require abortion clinics to meet the standards of an outpatient surgery center. Ironically, it was thought that Femcare would be the only North Carolina abortion clinic to meet safety standards under the new law. Femcare was last...

Gov. Pat McCrory hasn't been willing to meet with the women (and a few men) protesting an abortion bill that opponents say restricts access to safe abortions. But he did stop by this afternoon with a plate of chocolate chip cookies. McCrory was flanked by four security guards as he came out of the mansion gates. Before stepping onto common ground with the protesters – he went as far as the middle of the street between his mansion and the vigil – McCrory pointed directly at Jamie Sohn, a Chapel Hill resident. “I was like, 'Me?' and he nodded,” she...

News Print Article | Email Friend | Reprint Permissions North Carolina Governor signs abortion regulations into law by Johanna Dasteel Tue Jul 30, 2013 15:55 EST Tags: abortion, north carolina, pat mccrory CHARLOTTE, NC, July 30, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) – North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory signed into law abortion regulations that will affect abortion facilities throughout the state, on Monday night. Pro-life groups in the state welcomed the move. Gov. Pat McCrory “We are very happy with the governor’s signing of SB 353,” Barbara Holt, President of North Carolina Right to Life, told LifeSiteNews.com. “This law accomplishes the goals we set...

North Carolina Republican legislators have pushed through a proposal which would revoke lifetime tenure for public school teachers. As the law stands now, after five years teachers are eligible for tenure, which ends up making it more difficult for school administrators to hire, fire and reward performance. Under the new proposal, a four year contract would be awarded to the top performers (top 25% of teachers), while others would receive one or two year contracts. The new North Carolina budget also ends a 10 percent salary increase for teachers with master’s degrees, although those who already receive the pay bump...

I get a lot of tips on black mob violence from WND readers around the country. Some I know about. Some I do not. Some are true. Some are not. Many are from cops. Lots and lots of cops. Here’s a message this morning from a Texas cop, a 20-year veteran and a regular correspondent on the topic of black mob violence: “This is incredible, the rate at which things are escalating. On the streets, out here, the attitude is one of entitlement which i haven’t seen.” I get that from cops all over the country. Even Greensboro, N.C. This...

Recently the North Carolina legislature passed American Laws for American Courts (ALAC) legislation with broad bipartisan support. The purpose of ALAC is to protect individual, fundamental constitutional rights in cases involving foreign laws and foreign legal doctrines. Among those fundamental constitutional rights are freedom of speech, freedom of expression, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, due process and equal protection under the law. One of the primary opponents of ALAC legislation is the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), which seeks to supplant US constitutional rights and norms by accommodating foreign laws and foreign legal doctrines, such as Shariah....

Under the cover of Obama’s campaign to sell his budget .. it is no coincidence that his visit is occurring at the same time Volkswagen is being pressured to accept the UAW into its Chattanooga factory. The United Auto Workers have tried every other option at this point including calling in a favor with the union that resides in Volkswagen’s home plant in Germany. ... it doesn’t look like the UAW’s normal campaign of propaganda seems to be succeeding; therefore, it’s time to call in the big dog himself and hope their investment of $148,967 into the reelection of President...

Detained For Filming Martial Law Drill on Public Property Charlotte, NC Published on Jul 22, 2013 An American citizen was arrested by police for filming the military training for martial law & urban assaults in Charlotte, NC. He was released after the police had to admit that they could not charge someone with "trespassing" on publicly property. This area is open to the public & there was no legal way to deny a member of the public the right to use it. This is no different than trying to say that Black people cannot use a public park. Public property...

The New York Times and the Huffington Post have been very critical of recent legislation by the House and Senate of the State of North Carolina. But neither of those liberal news outlets - and I use the term "news outlets" loosely - have recognized their recent attempt to restore due process in one of the most oppressive judicial systems in the country. Indeed, the UNC system is among the greatest antagonists of fairness and due process in the entire nation. Since this is a bold assertion, it demands elaboration. Students in the UNC system are routinely brought up on...

What’s the outlook for the 2014 Senate elections? As in 2010 and 2012, the Republicans once again have a chance to overturn the Democrats’ majority. Much attention has been focused on whether Republicans this time will nominate candidates capable of winning key races, which they failed to do in the two previous election cycles. But another interesting question is how Democrats will try to hold onto seats in Republican-leaning states even as Barack Obama maintains his strong tilt to the political left. The lineup is certainly favorable to Republicans. Assuming the New Jersey seat now held by Republican appointee Jeff...

North Carolina will spend $10 million to compensate men and women who were sterilized in the state's eugenics program, which was among the most extensive and long-running of its kind. North Carolina sterilized 7,600 people from 1929 to 1974 who were deemed socially or mentally unfit. Victims were as young as 10 years old and nearly all were sterilized forcibly or with inadequate consent, according to the state. 'The money don't take up the place of what happened' - Willis Lynch, an 80-year-old retired handyman The Legislature this past week approved a $10 million compensation fund that would begin paying...

This is one of those movements that are in the right direction, though one does wonder how those who have met the requirements to carry concealed were not allowed to carry their weapons in bars and colleges in the first place. However, a new law went into effect on Friday in North Carolina which allows residents in the state with a carry permit to take their firearms into restaurants that serve alcohol, bars, playgrounds and even colleges! You know the gun grabbers are going to be beside themselves on this one, but keep an eye on statistics. I’m sure they...

Pro-life advocates can cheer another victory today as Republican lawmakers in North Carolina have just decided to adopt new abortion regulations right before the end of the session. In a vote of 32 to 13, they passed S.B. 353, a motorcycle safety bill that was amended to include abortion restrictions. The legislation will give the state Department of Health and Human Services the authority to regulate abortion clinics with the same standards as outpatient surgical centers "while not unduly restricting access." Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards has already expressed her disappointment, urging Gov. Pat McCrory to veto the bill: BREAKING:...

Rep. John Lewis praised Attorney General Eric Holder's push to place the state of Texas under pre-clearance requirements for voting laws under Section 3 of the Voting Rights Act. In an interview with the AJC today, the Atlanta Democrat said he thinks North Carolina should be next. "I'm very encouraged to see the Attorney General and the Department of Justice take this position. I think it's long overdue. ... Without Section 4 I think it's so fitting and appropriate for the Department of Justice to take the action. And I wish they would take a serious look at what has...

Universal Furniture International, the High Point company behind the Paula Deen Home Collection, will stick with the brand and its namesake despite the controversy over her past remarks about race. In a letter to distributors Thursday, Universal CEO Jeff Scheffer said the past few weeks have been "very difficult," and a cause for careful consideration. He said the company has heard from many dealers, some urging Universal to "hang in there" with Deen and others that have already removed her banners, hang tags and other branding from their stores. Scheffer said the company decided to maintain its relationship with Deen...

HIGH POINT, NC (AP) -- The High Point-based home furnishings company that markets Paula Deen's furniture line is sticking with the embattled chef. The High Point Enterprise reported that Universal Furniture International will continue to market the Paula Deen Home Collection.

The burning heart of liberal activism and indignation this summer can be found, of all places, in the charming capital city of the Tar Heel State. On Monday, for the 11th week in a row, thousands of protesters descended on the copper-domed Capitol denouncing the policies of a Republican Party that for the first time since Reconstruction controls North Carolina´s governorship and legislature. Some 800 agitators have been arrested for disrupting the legislature. By all accounts, these "Moral Monday" rallies, though peaceful, are growing in size and volume. The rallies have caught the eye of the national media,

Shew said that after Ms. Brower was told that she could get water from a hose attached to a spigot on the outside of the Newman house, she and two men forced their way into the house. He said the two men were later identified as Colin Smith, 18, of 117 South Holden Road in Greensboro and Don Delevicchio Thompson, 36, of Raleigh. Shew said he was told that Robert Monroe Newman, holding a gun, came down a hallway in the house and an exchange of several rounds of gunfire followed. He said that in addition to Robert Monroe Newman...

(Winston-Salem Journal) — Student government associations from 11 of the 17 schools in the University of North Carolina system announced their opposition Wednesday morning to House Bill 937 in a proclamation sent to members of the N.C. General Assembly. The bill, which would allow concealed-carry permit holders to keep firearms in locked vehicles on college campuses, is currently in conference committee. The proclamation was signed by the student body presidents at Appalachian State University, East Carolina University, North Carolina Central University, UNC Asheville, UNC Charlotte, UNC Greensboro, UNC Pembroke, UNC School of the Arts, Winston-Salem State University and North Carolina...

North Carolina’s tax reform package, cutting the personal income tax rate, is the most significant plan likely to be approved in 2013, an analyst with a national tax reform organization said Tuesday. Patrick Gleason, director of state affairs at Americans for Tax Reform, spoke to the reduction in the top marginal income tax rate of 7.75 percent that would be drop in 2015 to 5.75 percent “North Carolina, with a 25 percent reduction in the top rate, pretty much blew the other states away,” Gleason said. Gleason and Elizabeth Malm, an economist with the nonpartisan Tax Foundation, said that North...

Police in Mecklenburg County have issued an arrest warrant for Ric Flair’s ex-wife. Jacqueline Baines Beems was wanted for allegedly making a harassing phone call, according to the Mecklenburg Sheriff’s Office. According to the celebrity website TMZ.com, the warrant stems from a series of harassing phone calls Beems allegedly made in October to Flair’s girlfriend, Wendy Barlow Kidder. Kidder recently appeared with Flair on Celebrity Wife Swap. Flair and Beems were also involved in an altercation at the couple’s SouthPark condo in June 2012, when they were still married. According to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department report, Beems assaulted the former...

GREENVILLE, PITT COUNTY - NewsChannel 12 has learned new details on what police seized at the home of the suspect in the Greenville shooting spree. According to the latest search warrant, investigators took a copy of the Qur'an, the holy text of Islam, and other Muslim books from the apartment of 23-year-old Lakim Anthony Faust, 23, has been charged with four counts of attempted first-degree murder. Police said the suspect used a pistol-grip shotgun, similar to the one shown here. According to the latest search warrant, investigators took a copy of the Qur'an, the holy text of Islam, and other...

The North Carolina House of Representative voted 74-41 on Thursday after a three hour debate to pass an abortion bill that would create stricter abortion guidelines and require doctors to be present while abortion drugs are being administrated, though Governor Pat McCrory, a Republican, has threatened to veto it. "Our hard work on behalf of the most defenseless among us is not over. We are so very close to passing our pro-life provisions which will save the lives of many unborn children. Please press on knowing that the babies have no one to speak for them except us," NC Right...

(CNN) -- North Carolina's House of Representatives passed a restrictive abortion bill Thursday with a 74-41 vote. The bill now heads to the state Senate for approval.

Acting IRS commissioner Danny Werfel’s promise to suspend taxpayer-funded bonuses to IRS officials might not be fully realized because it will violate a contract between the scandal-plagued agency and a public-employee labor union.“In this unprecedented budget situation, I do not believe the IRS should pay performance awards this year to employees, managers or executives,” Werfel wrote in an email to IRS employees this week.“This is not a reflection of the quality or performance of the work done by you and your colleagues, but rather an unfortunate byproduct of the difficult budgetary situation we find ourselves in,” Werfel wrote. The IRS...

Every Monday since April, thousands of North Carolina residents have gathered at the State Capitol to protest the grotesque damage that a new Republican majority has been doing to a tradition of caring for the least fortunate. Nearly 700 people have been arrested in the “Moral Monday” demonstrations, as they are known. But the bad news keeps on coming from the Legislature, and pretty soon a single day of the week may not be enough to contain the outrage. In January, after the election of Pat McCrory as governor, Republicans took control of both the executive and legislative branches for...

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the ACLU of North Carolina Legal Foundation (ACLU-NCLF) has announced plans to challenge North Carolina's ban on marriage for same-sex couples. The civil liberties group says it will amend a federal lawsuit filed against the state last year on behalf of six same-sex couples and their children. The lawsuit challenges North Carolina's ban on second parent adoptions. The ACLU is asking North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper to agree to allow an additional claim challenging the state's ban on marriage for same-sex couples to be added to Fisher-Borne v. Smith, a lawsuit filed...

North Carolina's "Moral Monday" protesters, now in their tenth week, objected to a bill that could limit abortion access - the latest move to counter a conservative shift by the state's first Republican-led government in more than a century. The protests have gained momentum since a few dozen people first rallied against the political shift to the right in a state that Barack Obama won in the 2008 presidential election but lost in 2012. Melissa Reed, a vice president of Planned Parenthood Health Systems, brought a petition with 10,000 signatures opposing the measure. Like many at Monday's protest, Tanya Glover,...

A tractor pulling a cart full of watermelons bearing a racially charged sign stirred controversy at a small town Fourth of July parade last week. ‘White history month,’ was emblazoned on the side of farmer Donnie Spell’s float in a Hope Mills, North Carolina parade Thursday. The sign also read ‘HUG WTE PPL.’ And as is chugged along the parade route waving a Confederate Flag, many residents took offense to the racial implications. Hope Mills Director of Parks and Recreation Kenny Bullock oversaw the parade entries. He told WNCN there was no mention of the signs on Spell’s float application....

Dozens of people have gathered in a Gaston County park for a memorial service for 144 Canadian geese that were euthanized by county workers worried they had become a health hazard.