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Wed.: The Chase
posted at 2009-02-11 23:33 | Last modified 2009-02-12 15:46
Gavels all round
House Speaker Joe Hackney released his long-awaited committee assignments today. The big committees didn’t see a lot of changes at the top, though there was plenty of shuffling among the subs and membership rolls.
One big shift – Hugh Holliman relinquishes the Insurance Committee and takes over Financial Institutions instead. Seeing as how he’s Majority Leader, we can safely assume he wanted the change. Okay, I give - why? Was it the State Health Plan meltdown? Or does Hackney have big plans for the F.I. committee this session?
All signs point to the latter. Hackney added one of his most effective “progressive” Dem allies, Rick Glazier, and one of his most trusted lieutenants, Pryor Gibson, and removed a couple of stalwart conservatives. I’m expecting this committee to take on a higher profile this year.
Other changes
Grier Martin (D-Wake) trades his Homeland Security. Military, and Veterans affairs chairmanship for a money seat – he’s now co-chairing the Approps Subcommittee on Transportation. He says he’s thrilled that former Marine Larry Hall will be heading up his old committee.
Pricey Harrison (D-Guilford) traded up to a money seat, too, swapping out her Energy chair post for an Approps Sub NER co-chairmanship. On the other hand, she’s been sentenced to J3, so don’t be too jealous.
Big winners:
- Bruce Goforth (D-Buncombe) picks up a gavel at Insurance, plus another at Approps Sub on Capital.
- Ty Harrell (D-Wake) scores the Science and Tech chair.
- Angela Bryant (D-Nash) heads up Energy.
- Bill Faison (D-Orange) gets Ways and Means and Broadband.
- Tricia Cotham (D-Meck) manages to get named to pretty much everything that matters, plus an
AppropsEducation Sub gavel for K-12. - Cullie Tarleton (D-Watauga) leads the new Water Resources and Infrastructure panel, which could play a key role in deciding how to put Congressional stimulus money to use. I sat down with him to talk about it.
Listen Now!
The Rodent Beat, cont’d
We were chatting in the press room today when we heard someone shrieking down the hall. Rounding the corner, I saw Mary-Louise Pope leaping onto her desk in the Printed Bills room. The offending party was the tiniest mouse I’ve ever seen.
Pope’s assistant Sterling Schupp and Legislative Gardener Stan Yelverton scrambled to catch him in the corner, but the little guy squeezed under the closed door and scooted down the hall into the press room, where he promptly took cover behind a big old file cabinet.
The entire press corps jumped for their cameras, me excepted (why was the one woman in the room the only one trying to catch the mouse? Go figure). Visiting lawmaker Scotland Dem Garland Pierce broke out his newly awarded gavel to try to bean the poor critter, who wisely retreated even farther back behind a desk partition. Hilarity, angst, and strategizing ensued. Anyone who thinks reporters are hard-bitten and jaded should’ve seen the hand-wringing over the wee beastie’s fate.
After a good half-hour of plotting, Mark Binker and Ben Niolet (who dubbed the little guy “Scoop) cornered the visitor under a desk and herded him into a plastic cup. We took him outside and set him free under the bushes out front. Binker has great pics.
It's official: Gary rocks.
Everyone on Jones St. knows how hard AP reporter Gary Robertson works. Today, we got word that his colleagues do, too. Gary is NC’s AP Reporter of the Year, an honor he shares with Mike Baker, another former Jones St. Regular. Next time you see Gary, congratulate him lavishly -- it may be your only chance to ever see him blush.
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