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Tues: Bring it on
posted at 2009-02-17 22:46 | Last modified 2009-02-18 08:31
Bottom line
Governor Bev Perdue says the final stimulus deal leaves the state about $150M short of covering its $2B budget shortfall. The $1.1B in cuts she ordered last month was supposed to be complemented by around $930M from the feds, a number her budget director Charlie Perusse described at the time as “conservative.” Not so much. Covering the gap will mean either another $150M in cuts from already-reeling state agencies, or a dip into the state’s $800M-plus rainy-day fund. The AP has an excellent rundown.
Mr Fix-It
Perdue’s office announced today that Dempsey Benton will be NC’s new Stimulus Czar, charged with ensuring federal rescue dollars are well spent with full accountability. It’s hard to overstate the political savvy of this pick. Benton's political resume is so far beyond reproach that even Republicans have been caught on record saying nice things about him. He spent 17 years as Raleigh’s city manager before rockin' the headlines as former Governor Easley’s go-to guy to fix the mental health system. WRAL has the details.
Collective arguing
Labor friends and foes went mano-a-mano today with press conferences on organizing laws. Americans for Prosperity brought in Senator Richard Burr and former gubernatorial candidate Bob Orr to argue against the federal card-check proposal called the Employee Free Choice Act. A few hours later, labor activists held their own event in support of the bill. The N&O’s Rob Christensen covered the early rally; WRAL has video on both.
"Idol" watch
Chapel Hill contestant Anoop Desai did a respectable job tonight on an old Monica song, but the real Tar Heel star of the night was Ricky Braddy from Elizabeth City, who absolutely killed with a Leon Russell standard. Like everyone else in this area code, I’m rooting for Anoop, but let’s face it: Braddy sang circles around him. Here’s hoping they both make it through to the next round. (And - I say this as a fan of the Police - could we please ban any future Idols from performing any of their songs, ever?)
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