Carolina Journal Radio No. 716: Obamacare repeal, replace options take shape

Now that Barack Obama has left the White House, congressional Republicans can make a serious effort to repeal and replace his namesake health care law. Katherine Restrepo, the John Locke Foundation’s director of health care policy, analyzes key elements of the GOP health care reform proposals. Donald Trump’s presidential election win could lead to major shifts in the future of the U.S. Supreme Court. Campbell University Law School professor Greg Wallace assesses Trump’s likely impact on the nation’s highest court, especially with an initial appointment to replace conservative icon Antonin Scalia. North Carolina’s senior U.S. senator, Richard Burr, sees plenty of room for improvement in the U.S. Treasury Department, especially in terms of cleaning up the Internal Revenue Service. Burr made that point clear during the confirmation hearing for President Trump’s treasury secretary. You’ll hear highlights from Burr’s questioning of Steven Mnuchin. Some of the state’s top economic minds gathered recently to deliver their forecast for North Carolina’s economy in 2017. State business leaders heard from Michael Walden of N.C. State University, Harry Davis of Appalachian State University and the N.C. Bankers Association, John Connaughton of UNC-Charlotte, and Mark Vitner of Wells Fargo. You’ll learn details of each economist’s take on the next year’s economic outlook. North Carolina has seen dramatic improvement in recent years in national rankings of state tax policies. Roy Cordato, the John Locke Foundation’s vice president for research and resident scholar, scrutinizes the rankings and explains why North Carolina has fared so well recently.