joe hackney

I'm relieved that Joe stepped up.

Updated with video, courtesy of the Dome. A.

I had been looking forward to the big event tonight: my friend Tim is hosting a fundraiser for Speaker Joe Hackney here in Chapel Hill.

When I signed on to be a sponsor a couple of weeks ago, it looked like cause for celebration. The General Assembly mostly did a decent job this summer, and Speaker Hackney showed the kind of leadership we should have had all along in the House.

And then the Great Goodyear Giveaway came onto center stage.

Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that the North Carolina Legislature today will consummate a deal made with the devil to give a couple hundred million dollars to a few big manufacturers for no good reason. Easley vetoed the original bill, and Speaker Hackney pulled out the stops to produce a "compromise" - which is an even bigger giveaway than the one originally planned.

Nobody's asking for my opinion, but I'm giving it anyway: This legislation sucks.

I've already written my check for the fundraiser, and I won't be asking for it back. A deal's a deal. But in my own small way, I'll be protesting. By writing this post. And by taking a pass on the big party tonight. Because amidst all the back-slapping and bullshitting that goes on at events like this, simply being there offers an implied endorsement. And I definitely do not approve.

It looks like a letter-writing kind of day.

It ain't over till it's over, but at last one organization is ready to heap praise on Joe Hackney for his masterful leadership in Raleigh this summer. According to the Dome, the National Conference of State Legislatures will honor Joe with their top prize this year.

"Joe Hackney is simply one of the finest men I have had the pleasure of knowing and working with. He earned this award because of his integrity, humility and eminent fairness to all," said Steve Lakis, president of the State Legislative Leaders Foundation and a member of the award selection committee.

Well said. Congratulations, Joe.

Budget negotiations between the House and Senate are coming down to the wire, and the pressure is on for compromise. Please write to Speaker Hackney right now and give him two words of encouragement:

NO COMPROMISE

I don't know if the N&O thinks the legislative session is nearing and end or not, but today they burned some trees on the kind of wrap-up story usually reserved for post-mortems. But it's a good piece about our most excellent Speaker of the House.

Senate leader Marc Basnight is a fan of his counterpart in the House, Speaker Joe Hackney. But Basnight doesn't relish negotiating a $20 billion budget with him. Basnight, and, for that matter, Gov. Mike Easley, have ideas about how to get the budget impasse resolved. Hackney, in his first term as speaker, listens carefully. He's polite, plain-spoken and open to their ideas. But then he respectfully declines to cut a deal.

As usual, Chris Fitzsimon does some excellent work at NC Policy Watch. This is important.

Read the story . . . and then contact every Democratic representative you can find. Don't bother with Republicans like this jerk-off. They're not worth your trouble. And don't bother with the Senate either. From all I can tell, they're a sold-out bunch of Republicans in Democratic clothing.

As you may have heard, Speaker Hackney held the Dems together tonight, soundly rejecting the Senate's budget bill. Plus three R's jumped ship to vote against the Senate's $1.2 billion Certificates of Participation (COPS) funding scheme. Now the House and the Senate have the month of June to confer.

What would you like them to confer about?

Okay. It's crunch time. Last chance to do your duty.

I'm not usually an alarmist, so forgive me for raising holy hell this weekend about the complete and utter collapse of sanity in Raleigh with regard to the state budget. If you're not worried about the budget, you should be. And if you're not in action yet, it's time to get crackin'.

On Monday night, June 4th, the legislature will convene to consider the vast differences between the Senate's Republican budget and the slightly more progressive House budget. There will be a vote to determine whether the House concurs with the Senate.

Assuming the Republican government-haters hang together, which they will, only nine Democrats have to vote for the budget for it to be a done deal. I say again: Only nine Democrats have to sell out for this pathetic budget to move on to Governor Easley's desk.

When you're looking to understand the inner workings and hidden mechanisms of what's happening in Raleigh these days, there's no more reliable guide than Mark Binker. Mark has a day-job as a Mainstream Media Mogul, but more important, he's a blogger who uses his posts to cut to the chase about the antics of the honorables in the General Assembly.

Go read two of Mark's recent posts. One is a quick recap of the state of things on the budget, and one is an amusing review of more Republican whining. Make sure you bookmark his blog for daily review.

That said, here's my take on what's ahead: With the Senate on the verge of passing its "done in the dark" budget, the next round in Raleigh will be a three-way slugfest between the Senate, the House and the Governator. Our job would appear to be simple: Stand with Joe Hackney and the NC House.