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Selection varies by location while supplies last. It's 5.05 and welcome into the Carolina Journal News Hour. I'm Charlotte's FM News Talk 107.9 FM, WBT. It's a pleasure to be the first to host to recognize that and welcome you in on this Thursday morning on the Carolina Journal News Hour. And we start off this morning with an explosive hearing yesterday in the North Carolina General Assembly.
Mentioned this as we rounded out yesterday's show. The House Select Committee on Oversight and Reform brought in members of the Chapel Hill Carborough City School District to defend some recent actions from that school board. The superintendent, as well as the board of education chair George Griffin, were hauled in front of the House Select Committee on Oversight and Reform yesterday, and it did not take very long before that became a very heated conversation. Here are the opening comments from Representative Brendan Jones, the Republican out of Columbus County, is also the House Majority Leader. Members of this committee and the so-called leadership of Capitol Hill Carborough School District sitting before us, make no mistake.
You are not here today because of a misunderstanding. You're here today because you chose to wage war against the law. You chose to deceive the public. And now you're here because you got caught. And I'll be honest.
For the next two hours, it's going to be uncomfortable. Because you deserve to be uncomfortable. You failed in your duty. And worse, you failed the families that trusted you. Let's start with the facts.
because they are not disputed. On January 18th, 2024, your school board sat in your boardroom and voted unanimously. to rip out two key parts of Senate Bill 49, the Parents' Bill of Rights. You remove the requirement to notify parents if their child changes their name or pronouns. You removed the K through four ban on instruction in gender, identity, and sexuality.
You looked the law in the face and said, we're not doing it. Mr. Griffin, your exact words at January 18th meeting. We're on camera. My recommendation is we do not comply with the law.
And we say so cleanly. Let's call that what it is: defiance. It wasn't about process. It's about power. You didn't like the law.
So you acted like it didn't apply to you. And you weren't subtle about it. Board member DeSoti. Call for minimum compliance. which means non-compliance.
You deleted parts of the parental, the parent Bill of Rights you didn't like for your public website. You published a weak staff guidance memo. Instead of a formal board policy, Just so you could dodge accountability. This wasn't passive resistance. It was a coordinated middle finger to this legislature and to every parent in your district.
Let me remind you of something. No one in North Carolina is above the law, especially not a public official who holds the trust of our children. That's Representative Brendan Jones. He is talking to the Chapel Hill-Carboro Schools Superintendent. That's Rodney Trice and the Board of Education Chair George Griffin.
He continued laying into those two elected officials out of Chapel Hill and Carborough City Schools.
Now let's be clear what you were protecting by breaking the law. You were not standing up for safety. You weren't standing up for kindness. You were protecting an agenda. An ideological campaign dressed up as education.
Let's take a look at what really meant inside your schools. Your own former equity specialist, Elizabeth Vale, and one of your elementary teachers, Tequila Powell. wrote a chapter of a book titled, We make some woke kids. while being employed by you. Not We'll help them read.
Not we'll take them to think. No, we make some woke kids. In that chapter, your staff said they use critical race theory to reshape your curriculum. They taught eight-year-olds that white supremacy Systemic racism, and the unequal distribution of rights and resources. and bragged about it.
They said they were using CRT to build racial literacy. in a predominantly white southern town. They were not educating, they were indoctrinating. We found materials in your school where third graders were being taught to see the world as an oppressor versus oppressed. We saw teacher toolkits about activism.
Lessons portraying police as threats, and books recommended to elementary students titled Santa's Husband. It isn't rude to be nude. And these are my eyes. This is my nose. This is my vulva, these are my toes.
You even ran a Black Lives Matter at school campaign in elementary classrooms.
Meanwhile, Mass scores flat. Reading scores failing. Basic literacy and numeracy.
Nowhere to be found. You replace academics with activism. And the ones who suffer the most vulnerable kids in your system, children who came to school to learn and left confused and divided. And that's not the worst of it. Because you weren't just indoctrinating, you were grooming.
Yes, I said it, grooming. You promoted sample pronoun surveys for kids without telling their parents. You pushed gender support plans that included a checkbox to exclude parents. You encourage secret transitions. hidden identities.
and private meetings all behind parents' backs. You told teachers it was okay to affirm child's gender identity at school without ever notifying the parents. It's not education. That's an abuse of power. It's a betrayal.
And yes, it is grooming behavior. And then when we started investigating, what did you do? You panicked. You hit pages. You locked down lesson databases.
You scrubbed your LGBTQ teacher resources. Your attorney tried to pretend that books in the library weren't curriculum. Let's be honest, that wasn't legal advice. It's a cover-up. And that was damage control.
You knew it was wrong, and instead of fixing it, you tried to hide it. And to be crystal clear, this committee sees through what you did. Parents see what you did. And we're not buying what you're selling.
So let's stop pretending about this as a brave stand because you're no martyr. Your school officials who chose politics over students. You choose. Secrets over trust. You chose to defy the law.
And worse, You chose to do it at the expense of children. I want everyone watching to understand what's really at stake here. This isn't about George Griffin or some schoolboy playing hero. This is about the little girl who came home scared. because she was exposed to graphic nudity in second grade.
It's about an email we saw from a mother only found out her child had changed names months after when their eighth grade diploma arrived home. It's about kids who are still struggling to read and being dragged into debates they possibly can't understand. That's who we're here to protect. That's who SB 49 was passed to protect. Governor Cooper not only vetoed this bill, but sided with the they-them activists to insert gender ideology into our public schools and to hide it from parents.
And what did this General Assembly do? We doubled down and sided with parents to protect the children. And that's who we're going to keep protecting, no matter how loud the activists get.
So both of you Your days of playing fast and loose with the law is over. and to every other district listening today. If you think about copying them, don't. If you hide your curriculum, push gender politics on little kids or cut parents out of the loop. You end up here next.
Parents have rights. A very fiery committee meeting in Raleigh on Wednesday morning. That's the House General Assembly's Select Committee on Oversight and Reform. The voice of the majority leader for the North Carolina House and Brendan Jones. He is the Republican out of Columbus County as he grilled members of the Chapel Hill Carborough City schools over the parents' Bill of Rights.
That's Senate Bill 49, which is not brand new legislation here in North Carolina. You've got to go back to the 2023 legislative long session to find where that legislation was passed. That was a very controversial period of time in the North Carolina General Assembly. And as you just heard there from the majority leader and Brendan Jones, that legislation was vetoed, in fact, at the time by Democrat Governor Roy Cooper. It was overridden by both the House and the Senate in the North Carolina General Assembly.
And since that period of time, Senate Bill 49 has been the law across the state of North Carolina. Carolina and after some social media clips over the last couple of weeks and some email correspondence that Representative Jones did provide during the hearing and talked about on social media beforehand, they had a strong feeling that the Chapel Hill-Carborough City School District was not following key provisions of Senate Bill 49 and shine and highlight an email sent from George Griffin, the chair, to it's not immediately clear, presumably other members of the board talking about ignoring key provisions of that legislation, which again has been lost since 2023. We'll hear some additional comments from Representative Jones as well from others as this hearing took place in Raleigh on Wednesday. Those details coming up here in just a couple of minutes. As the holidays approach, it's time to return to the classics.
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Whether you're making signature shortbread or browning butter for a nutty depth in your pecan pie, Terry Gold makes all the difference. The flavor is unmatched, and the texture it brings to baked goods is simply divine.
So, this holiday season, if you're baking for loved ones or just for yourself, Reach for Kerry Gold. It's the butter of choice, and your pies, your cookies, and your cakes will thank you. It's 521. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, Charlotte's FM News Talk 107.9 FM, WBT. A good Thursday morning to you as we continue our coverage of a very hot General Assembly House Select Committee on Oversight and Reform hearing that took place Wednesday morning in Raleigh.
Leaders from the Chapel Hill Carborough City School District, which included the Superintendent Rodney Trice and the Board of Education Chairman George Griffin, hauled in front of this select committee to justify why they at least publicly admitted that they were ignoring portions of Senate Bill 49, which was passed by the General Assembly back a couple of years ago. That's the Parents' Bill of Rights. That was a very instrumental piece of legislation when the North Carolina General Assembly passed it. And that Parents' Bill of Rights, well, it does exactly what it says.
Sounds like the title says it brings parents into the classrooms across public schools in the state of North Carolina, cuts out gender ideology and many other teachings that had been permeated in the public school district over the last decade or so. And one of the main things that was brought up by Representative Jones was the kind of literature available to students, young students. We're talking about second, third, fourth, fifth graders across public schools in North Carolina.
Some of the books, well, he brought receipts to the House committee on Wednesday. Santa's husband. This book tells the story of Santa, his husband, and their life at the North Pole. And I want to assure everyone this is They True story of mister and mister Claus. Is this approved?
Do you d is this what you're telling the children to read? Is this okay in your guidance? I'm not aware that that book is. You're the superintendent. You're not aware of what's going on in your school system?
You don't know what's printed? It's trash. That's what good that is. Here's a great one here. These are my eyes, this is my nose, this is my vulva, these are my toes.
I'm going to read a passage for you out of it. This is in for your school.
Some boys have a penis. but not all boys do. To always use your manners, may I ask what I can call you. This is damn trash. Pure trash you're putting to these children.
And again, here we go. It isn't rude to be nude for four-year-olds approved by your district. I hope y'all can see what these children, four-year-olds, are looking at. Nude photos. Friggin' trash.
Do you think it's appropriate for four-year-olds to be exposed to naked men? and women and softborn. No, it's not appropriate that students are exposed to porn, but I don't have any knowledge that they're not. Then, why are these recommended in your school district? I have no knowledge that those books are recommended.
We got a video, we'll play you. Just stand by. That's Representative Brendan Jones again tearing into those two officials from the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School District over books, some other books written by teachers within the school district, some internal emails sent between the Board of Education and the superintendent at the time back in 2024, right after this law had been vetoed by Governor Roy Cooper at the time and overridden by the North Carolina General Assembly, ignoring. Key provisions of Senate Bill 49. That's the parents' Bill of Rights, a controversial piece of legislation that passed a couple of years ago.
Representative Jeff McNeely, also one of the members at the hearing, brought up an interesting point about, as many, literally every single public school district and system across the state of North Carolina, they receive a lot of funding from the state of North Carolina. This is what Representative McNeely had to say.
So y'all don't have the money to be able to educate these kids with your own money. You're going to need some help, aren't you? Oh, you're going to need state funds, aren't you? Certainly, we need state funds to help educate our kids at a high level.
Well, there's a darn good chance you may not get them.
Now I don't know how you're going to educate your kids without any money. Maybe y'all gonna do volunteer work over there. I'm not sure. But I will tell you this, because of y'all, There's going to be legislation that comes. And it's going to be pretty tough.
Because we're not going to put up with rogue school systems who have no money and will not comply with the laws of this state. Do you understand what I said there? That's the threat there from Representative McNeely. The short session will begin not long after we flip the calendar over to 2026, kind of setting the setting the stage there for what could be some additional legislation with some potential repercussions for school districts that are openly in defiance of the again, this is not a policy out of the state. This is state law, general statute, Senate Bill 49 passed by the General Assembly.
Those are the Republican angle you heard there from Representative Republicans McNeely and Representative Jones.
However, several Democrats on the committee dismissed the hearing as a little bit more than political theater. Representative Allison Daly out of Wake County told school officials that she thought they were in the right to put certain LGBT students' needs ahead of parental concerns and state law, saying at the meeting, I have to say, we have a history of civil disobedience. Obedience in the United States. And I do feel like you're following the law. And if you skirt it just a little bit, I'm kind of proud.
Adding, and everybody can say, I'm a horrible politician for saying that, but this is an attack on gay and trans people. Daly told the Carolina Journal afterwards that she would not support a situation in which Republican school officials ignored Democrat-initiated laws by prompting literature about President Donald Trump, telling the Carolina Journal, that's a hard question to answer because Trump shouldn't be in schools and politics really shouldn't be in schools either.
However, she made a distinction between overtly political messaging and the promotion of left-wing social agendas in schools, saying, I don't think people identify male, female, gay, trans, any of these things is political. I think that we've made it political, but it is not. I don't talk to people and tell them they can't believe in God in the school. If they wish to have prayer in the morning, they can, but they shouldn't be forced to do so. In Representative Jones's closing statements, he said that schools, the school System's promotion of an extremist agenda was anything but benign, saying, Let's be clear: these aren't policies, they do not protect children.
Let me tell you exactly what this is: extreme indoctrination that targets children, grooms them, and drives a wedge between them and their families. In after the committee meeting, Representative Jones told the Carolina Journal that he took no joy in dragging the school officials in front of the oversight committee, but that the next steps would rest on whether they amend their actions in response, saying, Well, I'm not happy. They came in with a plethora of lies and they stayed with their lies.
So I'm hoping this meeting opened their eyes, that they will go home, comply with the law, and that's all we want them to do is comply with the law. After the meeting was over, officials for the Chapel Hill-Carborough City School District said that they were in compliance. They continued to make that point during the committee meeting whenever they were pressed by members of the General Assembly over provisions of Senate Bill 49, the Parents' Bill of Rights. It was, and many representatives even made this comment during the hearing. It sounded like a broken record.
It was the same line over and over again: We are in compliance. We are in compliance. We've got some additional coverage from this committee meeting, including some clips, many of which you heard this morning. Plus, you can read more about it. It's got some details on Senate Bill 49 as well.
Those details over on our website this morning. CarolinaJournal.com, that headline story: Sparks Fly in Legislative Hearing on School Indoctrination. As the holidays approach, it's time to return to the classics. Flaky pie crusts, perfectly browned butter, and cookies with just the right texture. and one ingredient you cannot compromise on is kerrygold butter.
Kerrygold butter is crafted with milk from grass fed cows that graze on lush green pastures across family farms in Ireland. The result? A rich, creamy butter with a high butterfat content that elevates every recipe. whether you're making signature shortbread or browning butter for a nutty depth in your pecan pie, Carry Gold makes all the difference. the flavor is unmatched, and the texture it brings to baked goods is simply divine.
So, this holiday season, if you're baking for loved ones or just for yourself, Reach for Kerry Gold. It's the butter of choice, and your pies, your cookies, and your cakes will thank you. Uh It's 5:36. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour. Charlotte's FM News Talk 107.9 FM, WBT.
A good Thursday morning to you. The North Carolina General Assembly, as we were just talking about, had that pretty fiery House Oversight Committee yesterday. Coming up today, the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Justice and Public Safety. They're meeting around 1 o'clock this afternoon. We'll have coverage of that coming up a little bit later on today over on our website, CarolinaJournal.com.
And any big topics or stories that come out of that, we'll have it for you coming up tomorrow morning right here on the Carolina Journal News Hour, where it's now 5:37. Charlotte's FM News Talk 107.9 FM, WBT. If you are one of the three plus million North Carolinians that takes advantage of Medicaid across the state of North Carolina, there's been some pretty dramatic changes in that program over just the last couple of months. A tug of war between the Republican-led North Carolina General Assembly and Democrat Governor Josh Stein to walk us through a pretty significant announcement this morning. Teresa Opaca, CarolinaJournal.com, joins us on the news hour.
Teresa, we've chatted probably a handful of times over the last few months about this battle between the GA and the governor over Medicaid funding. The GA says you've got plenty of money. The governor and DHS says we don't. We ought to cut things. What's the latest that you're tracking out of the governor's mansion?
Sure, good morning, Nick. Thanks for having me.
So, yeah.
Well, we. We found out yesterday that maybe there is some extra money available because the NCDHS was faced with some lawsuits. That's according to Governor Stein, that providers and patients, after seeing the provider reimbursement rates being cut as of October 1st. Did file lawsuits against the state agency to restore that Medicaid funding, which we, you know, we heard for months that there wasn't any, it's going to run out of money, you know, the General Assembly needs to come back and vote on this or pass this. And but that turned out not to be the case because when the department was facing all these lawsuits, As Governor Stein said, DHHS read the writing on the wall.
So they are restoring all provider rates to where they were on september thirtieth before those cuts took place. Torius, I don't mean to be shocking with my question or trying to lead you down a road, but I mean, at this point, we were told there was no money. Apparently, there is money now because they've restored rates. Was this nothing more than political a political show since october first when these rates were cut?
Well, it depends who you ask. According to, you know, the House and Senate, State House and Senate, the answer would be yes, because they've come in time and time again that they have fully funded the Medicaid.
Now, this is not all of Medicaid, it's Medicaid rebase, so it's just the provider rates.
So it gets a little confusing after a while. But for their side, the General Assembly, the House and Senate say, yeah, it's basically grandstanding. I think we even saw yesterday that there were some legislators saying, well, good, Governor Stein created this mess. He fixed it. That's great.
We're happy about that.
So basically, that's what it's coming down to on that side. But you still hear from Governor Stein. You hear from different providers that were at this press conference yesterday. DHHS are saying, no, it's still going to fail. It's still going to fall through.
There's not enough money to go through, but there is enough money to fund it through April. That was. What the General Assembly said time and time again that they did fully fund it. And, you know, so it depends on who you ask, but it sure looks like there's a political saga going back and forth. And Teresa, I kind of have to question the timing on all of this, right?
October the 1st is when some of these rates were cut here in North Carolina. We covered that extensively at CarolinaJournal.com. You joined us at the time to walk us through some of those details here on the news hour. That coincided pretty well with some pretty big discussions in Washington, D.C., different, but pretty big discussions about healthcare and healthcare reimbursement rates and the ACA and some different changes there. The timing of that seemed to overlap pretty well.
Yeah. Yeah, it appears so. I mean, it does seem to have overlapped quite a bit. But, you know, when Governor Stein kept coming out every month, every month and a half saying, well, you know, they need to come back to Raleigh, the legislature, and vote on this because they're going to be running out of funding. You know, time and time, they kept doing it from, well, even before October 1st, he was saying they need to vote on this.
They need to pass a budget. One thing rightly so. He did say North Carolina is the only state in the country that did not pass a budget this year, which is correct, but you still have the biennium so they could fall back onto what they previously had. But getting back to, he kept coming out all the time saying, you know, they need to come back, need to come back. But suddenly, when they're faced with all these lawsuits and more on the way, in fact, if you listen to what they said during the press conference yesterday, there were at least two rulings in patients' favor in two cases.
Three more are pending, several more, quote unquote, waiting in the wings. That turned things around pretty quickly for Governor Stein and for the Health and Human Services Department. And it would look like at this point that the original comments made by both leadership in the Republican House and Senate that this could be dealt with as we flip the calendar over to 2026. Teresa, they made the point that as we get closer to that April date, which is an estimate, obviously, that's when they think some of those funds will no longer be available. When they get to that point, I would presume, I'm not saying I've got any insider information, but I would presume that they will go forward and fund the rebates moving forward.
It just seemed like the governor and some of the allies at DHHS and others were trying to expedite this timeline by as much as almost six months. Yeah, it would appear so, and you're correct. You know, legislators noted before they allocated an additional $600 million to address the Medicaid rebase that was paid right through April, you know, or so. But DHHS said there would be a $319 million shortfall after covering the program's administrative requirements, went through all of that. The House put out a statement yesterday saying, you know, same thing, despite repeatedly trying to pin his cuts on the General Assembly, Stein's own health agency confirmed Medicaid is fully funded through at least April 2026, supported by that $600 million appropriated by lawmakers for the program's rebase.
So yeah, they they definitely have the money. It was appropriated.
So what what's the problem? The problem is we want to maybe throw a little more of a political spotlight on getting them to come back and pass a budget, get some extra money, get some extra funding, who knows? But yeah, it's a lot of political grandstanding. Mm-hmm. Teresa, I remember when we talked about this a couple of weeks ago, we talked about this $600 million appropriated by the General Assembly, and a report came out from somewhere, I don't remember exactly where, that $100 million of that went to administrative costs within the Medicaid program across the state of North Carolina.
So they chopped $100 million off the top essentially for salaries and employees and only left $500 million aside. I think that probably rubbed a lot of people the wrong way when you had the governor out there saying that this program's out of money, the rebates is out of money, we got no money for this, yet they're taking $100 million for administrative costs. Right, and that came out of it was an audit from Governor, excuse me, Governor, auditor Steve Bullock. His office that they actually had generated $386 million for vacant positions in the Health and Human Services Department. And right off the bat, that was the first report from the state auditors division of accountability, value, and efficiency, the Dave, like the old doge in DC.
That's what he found and his auditors found. And that's what happened. Like you said, that $100 million is for administrative costs.
So that was coming out of. An actual audit.
So when that came out, you know, that did not look good either for Governor Stein or the Health Department just to be saying, oh, you know, you need to fully fund the Medicaid rebase, but here you're spending money on vacant positions that you, you know, why didn't you put that toward the Medicaid rebase?
So, yeah, not a good look with that audit. That's obviously a very interesting story that we continue to track. Teresa, you've got a link to the press conference that took place on Wednesday. You've got some other quotes and some details from not only Stein and DHHS, but lawmakers as well. Where can folks go and read those details?
Sure, they can head on over to CarolinaJournal.com. We appreciate the update this morning. Teresa Opeka joins us on the Carolina Journal News Hour. As the holidays approach, it's time to return to the classics. Flaky pie crusts, perfectly browned butter, and and cookies with just the right texture.
and one ingredient you cannot compromise on is kerrygold butter. Carrygold butter is crafted with milk from grass-fed cows that graze on lush green pastures across family farms in Ireland. The result? A rich, creamy butter with a high butterfat content that elevates every recipe. Whether you're making signature shortbread or browning butter for a nutty depth in your pecan pie, Carry gold makes all the difference.
The flavor is unmatched, and the texture it brings to baked goods is simply divine.
So, this holiday season, if you're baking for loved ones or just for yourself, Reach for Kerry Gold. It's the butter of choice, and your pies, your cookies, and your cakes will thank you. Good morning again. Welcome back to the Carolina Journal News Hour, Charlotte's FM News Talk 107.9 FM, WBT. President Donald Trump last night jumped into a North Carolina General Assembly primary race.
We've talked about this a little bit as candidate filing continues in the state until December the 19th. Senate leader Phil Berger is seeing a primary for his General Assembly seat by the sheriff in Rockingham County, Sam Page. President Donald Trump with a post on Truth Social Wednesday night endorsing Berger, saying state senator Phil Berger is an American first patriot who is doing an incredible job representing North Carolina's 26th congressional district. Phil Berger has served as the highly respected leader of the North Carolina Senate for over a decade, helping us deliver massive and historic Victories across the state, including my six big wins in primaries in 2016, 2020, and 2024. As Senate leader, Phil is fighting tirelessly to grow the economy, cut taxes and regulation, advance made in the USA, unleash Americans' energy dominance, champion school choice, support our great military, veterans, and law enforcement, and keep our border very secure.
He is also endorsed by Senator Ted Budd, Representative Virginia Fox, Addison McDowell, David Rauser, and many other MAGA warriors. Sam Page is great. He has been a longtime supporter, but I really want him to come work for us in Washington, D.C. rather than further considering a run against Phil. Both are such outstanding people.
Therefore, Phil Berger has my complete and total endorsement for re-election. He will never let you down. That post made around 7.40 p.m. last night from President Donald Trump in an end. Endorsement of a Senate leader, Phil Berger, as he faces a pretty tough primary.
That'll be coming up in March of this year. Because of the time of this post, still waiting for additional reaction across North Carolina's political sphere. Sam Page, at least to this point, I've not been able to find. Any immediate comment or reaction from him, I'm sure we'll probably see something throughout the day today. We'll have a complete coverage of this over on our website, CarolinaJournal.com.
And if we get anything good from Sheriff Sam Page, any other relevant information, we'll pass it along to you right here on the Carolina Journal News Hour. Turning our attention, or I guess I should say keeping our attention in Raleigh this morning. It was a very, very interesting meeting for the General Assembly's House Select Committee on Oversight and Reform. As the superintendent and the Board of Education Chairman of the Chapel Hill Carborough City School District were dragged in front of that oversight committee yesterday to answer questions as to why they publicly stated during open board meetings back in 2024 that they were going to ignore key provisions of Senate Bill 49. That was the parents' Bill of Rights passed by the North Carolina General Assembly, vetoed at the time by Democrat Governor Roy Cooper then put into law using the veto override process in the North Carolina General Assembly.
The questionnaire was led and the commentary was led by the House Majority Leader and Representative Brendan Jones out of Columbus County. He didn't hold much back. Members of this committee and the so-called leadership of Capel Hill Carborough School District sitting before us, make no mistake. You are not here today because of a misunderstanding. You're here today because you chose to wage war against the law.
You chose to deceive the public. And now you're here because you got caught. And I'll be honest. For the next two hours, it's going to be uncomfortable. Because you deserve to be uncomfortable.
You failed in your duty. And worse, you failed the families that trusted you. Let's start with the facts. because they are not disputed. On January 18, 2024, your school board sat in your boardroom and voted unanimously to rip out two key parts of Senate Bill 49, the Parents' Bill of Rights.
You remove the requirement to notify parents if their child changes their name or pronouns. You removed the K through 4 ban on instruction in gender, identity, and sexuality. You looked the law in the face and said, we're not doing it. Mr. Griffin, your exact words at January 18th meeting We're on camera.
My recommendation is we do not comply with the law. And we say so cleanly. Let's call that what it is: defiance. It wasn't about process. It's about power.
You didn't like the law.
So you acted like it didn't apply to you. And you weren't subtle about it. Board member deciding. Call for minimum compliance. which means non-compliance.
You deleted parts of the parental, the parent Bill of Rights. You didn't like for your public website. You published a weak staff guidance memo Instead of a formal board policy, Just so you could dodge accountability. This wasn't passive resistance. It was a coordinated middle finger to this legislature and to every parent in your district.
Let me remind you of something. No one in North Carolina is above the law, especially not a public official who holds the trust of our children. That was some of the opening commentary there from the House Majority Leader and Representative Brendan Jones. It continued down that path, exposing some of the books in classrooms in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School District.
Some discussion from other representatives about potentially pulling state funding from school districts that are openly and plainly in defiance of state law, whether it's the Senate, the Senate Bill 49, the Parents' Bill of Rights, or any other pieces of legislation. We've got a very extensive rundown of the House Select Committee on Oversight and Reform this morning. It's over on our website, CarolinaJournal.com. You can watch and read some additional quotes and clips from Representative Jones and other members of that committee. That story's headline: Sparks Fly in Legislative Hearing on School Indoctrination.
That's going to do it for a Thursday edition of the Carolina Journal News Hour. WBT News is next. Followed by Good Morning, BT. We're back with you tomorrow morning, 5-6, right here on Charlotte's FM News Talk, 107.9 FM, WBT. This holiday season reached for the one butter that never disappoints: Carrie Gold.
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