During the Senate debate about lobbying reform this week, Senator after Senator talked about the need for openness in the legislative process, sunshine in government to reassure the public that their elected officials were doing their job.

(04-13-05) Wednesday morning, advocates for people in North Carolina who need human services were treated to what has become an annual spectacle at the legislative building, the release of a spending proposal that would make devastating cuts to human services programs.

(04-12-05)The joint session to honor the UNC national championship team was the talk of the legislative building Tuesday afternoon, but it was a 90 minute period earlier in the day that provided glimpses of the best and the worst of the state, the hope for a promising future and the thinly disguised appeals to the bitterness of our past.

(04-08-05) Lottery trouble looming in the Senate. For the last several years, the assumption about the lottery in Raleigh has been that if it passed the House, it was all but guaranteed to pass the Senate. Turns out that assumption may be wrong.

(04-07-05) Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight says the Senate is in no hurry to take up the lottery the House passed Wednesday afternoon, so the lottery buzz may taper off a little in the next few weeks.

Senate leaders are busy enough anyway, putting the budget together behind the closed doors of a few rooms in the Legislative Office Building.

(04-06-05) The House passed a lottery bill Wednesday afternoon in a 61-59 vote. The 90 minute debate was relatively low-key and provided few surprises. Lottery supporters talked about the money the lottery will provide for school construction, college scholarships, and early childhood programs.

(04-05-05)The House leadership’s shopping spree for pro-lottery votes may end one way or another Wednesday afternoon if House Speaker Jim Black follows through with his plan to bring the issue to the House floor for a vote after a Wednesday morning meeting of the House lottery charade committee.

(04-04-05) Yet another battle between the tobacco industry and public health is underway in the General Assembly and a new report ought to make it easy for lawmakers to decide which side to support.

(04-01-05) It is a pretty good bet that the staff of Senator Elizabeth Dole have had better days. Dole was in Raleigh this week to tour housing projects that are part of a federal program called Hope VI, that replaces the projects with a variety of affordable homes for senior citizens and the poor.