The architects of North Carolina’s so-called “conservative revolution” are abandoning ship in droves now. Paul “Skip” Stam, Leo Daughtry, Bob Rucho, and Tom Apodaca, have all called it quits. Thom Tillis started the ball rolling, leaving town to go to the U.S. Senate.
The N&O’s Rob Christensen posits that it’s because the “revolution” has been a success. Apodaca agrees:
“We’ve come to a point where we’ve accomplished almost everything we set out to do,’’ Apodaca said.
Let’s take stock:
- Passed hot-button legislation knowing it was unconstitutional
- Wasted millions of taxpayer dollars hopelessly defending said legislation
- Made us 50th of all states in teacher pay
- One of the lowest per-pupil spending in nation
- 3rd highest level of poverty in country
- Hundreds of thousands denied Medicare
- Yanked away the UI safety net of thousands of unemployed citizens
- Shifted tax burden to more regressive taxes, punishing poor
- Systemic dismantling of our university system, the greatest economic engine in the state
- Left unfunded billions of dollars of needed repair of our crumbling roads and bridges
Yeah, it’s obvious your work here is done, Apodaca.
Want to know why I think they’re bailing (of course you do, that’s why you read MT.Net)?
It’s called “gettin’ while the gettin’s good.” These guys do not want to actually govern. Governing is hard. Making tough decisions is hard. Compromising is hard. On the other hand, showboating with cheap, campaign-driven legislation is easy.
These folks have checked each of their pet issues from their list and now they’re escaping. They’ve chopped the foundation out from under our state’s economy and they’re skedaddling before it all comes crashing down on their heads. And sadly, it will come crashing down, leaving the grown-ups to clean up the mess. This has become the Republican way. Lather, rinse, repeat.
Add to this McCrory’s ineptitude and the increasing chances he’ll get crushed in the upcoming election and you’ve got a powerful incentive to make yourself scarce if you’re a Republican legislator.
It didn’t use to be this way. There are plenty of Republicans who know how to govern. Some of them still serve. Out of the list above, Daughtry is the only one in my opinion who knows enough to put aside the games. Sadly, he’s often been a lone voice of sanity in the din of Republican campaign-driven governing in our state legislature.
I look forward with anticipation to what lies in store for us now. One thing’s for sure, it will never again be as good as it has been for Republican leaders in this state. For them there’s nowhere to go but down.