#ncga: Just say HELL NO to a voice vote
In tomorrow’s attempted ‘hit’ on treasurer Dale Folwell, many of the gutless denizens of Jones Street will demonstrate their love for the special interest dollar and hatred of the spotlight.
Here is the membership of the Health Committee.
Greg Murphy (R-Pitt) is the senior chairman, while there are also a number of co-chairmen. TWO of the co-chairmen, Donna White of Johnston County (R) and Josh “International Travel for Legislative Duties” Dobson (R), are also co-sponsors of the bill aiming to clip Folwell’s wings.
A little further down the line, you’ll see that freshman Bobby Hanig (R-Currituck) is also on the committee. (He is also co-sponsoring the anti-Folwell legislation.) William Brisson (R-Bladen), also a co-sponsor of the bill, is also on the committee.
It’s my understanding that the votes are THERE on the committee to pass this thing and stick it to Folwell. The big question is will they get away with hiding behind a voice vote, as opposed to a roll call vote where they raise their hands and go on record?
It’s always been my opinion that — if you’re going to be A WHORE — you should stand up and be proud of it. On Tuesday, raise your hand proudly and proclaim: “Yes! Yes! Yes, I was bought off by lobbyists! Yes, I’m A WHORE for special interest cash! And I LOOOOOOOOOOVE IT!”
*You’ll feel so much better. * (And it’ll make it so much easier for us to figure out WHO specifically we need to focus all of our frustration, anger, and rage upon.)
People give individual committee chairmen too much credit. If you like your senior chairmanship, you DO what House (or senate) leaders tell you to do. Those co-chairmen are in place to smack you back into line if legislative leadership feels you’re showing too much independence.
(This is one of the main reasons that independent souls like Larry Pittman and Mike Speciale DON’T GET COMMITTEE CHAIRMANSHIPS. )
Stuff makes it to committee for action because the senior leaders of the chamber’s majority want it to move forward.
It’s important to force the weasels to NOT hide behind a voice vote. Again, here is the list.
You’ve got a little over 24 hours to get in their faces and remind them of their duties to their constituents. What does it say when the alleged party of fiscal responsibility is waging war on an elected official seeking to implement some honest-to-goodness fiscal responsibility?
If they STILL pull the voice vote crap and pass this thing, just primary the WHOLE CREW on this health committee. (Don’t let any of them get away with nonsense like, say, “I whispered ‘No’ as loud as I could.’)
Don’t leave any of them standing and reelected when the smoke clears on Election Day. They’re not worth it.
Voting for this is a rejection of the conservative mission we elected them to accomplish starting in 2010.
I can’t believe that the Republican Caucus voted to move forward with this GARBAGE. Every person who signed on to this Bill should have a Primary .
The GOP is supposed to be for Transparency and saving taxpayer Money.
Don’t be ashamed of your vote….Roll Call … Roll Call……..???
You are absolutely right as to voice votes. On a topic where there is consensus, they may be fine, but on controversial topics, they are an assault on transparency, and this is one of those.
As to committee chairmen not wanting to rock the boat with the leadership, that thinking does come into play quite often, but when the chairman in question is running for a higher office and his intended political path does not involve staying in the state House, that issue would seem to be almost moot. It would seem that he would be more interested in proving himself with the Republican base whose votes he is seeking than with leadership who he plans to no longer need in a few months.
I have heard it both ways on whether the House leadership is behind the anti-Folwell anti-taxpayer bill, but you probably have better sources. Lets assume you are right and the leadership is pushing this special interest bill. This would be an outstanding time for Greg Murphy to show whether a campaign statement he made in the County Compass on March 7 is a pledge that he will honor or it it is just meaningless campaign rhetoric. Murphy said: “Mark Meadows has been a mentor to me and their [Freedom Caucus] foundational principles of transparency and never turning your vote over to leadership or special interests are the core principles I will take to Washington”.
One has to look at records, and in the Congressional race, it is Mike Speciale who has had a record of standing up to leadership, not Greg Murphy. Indeed, I cannot think of one time in the state House that Murphy has ever stood up to leadership. Speciale, however, was one of the conservatives a few years ago who told the Speaker they would vote against the budget unless a list of things were removed, and forced the Speaker’s hand to remove most of them. One of the big items in that grassroots victory over the leadership was ending the state taxpayer subsidies for Big Solar. Murphy may talk the talk, but only Speciale has proven he can and will walk the walk. If Murphy bottles up this bad bill in committee, he could even the score with Speciale in that area, but if he puts it to a vote and lets it out, he is making a mockery of that statement he made to the County Compass.