Opinion Roundup: People from around the world become US citizens on the 4th of July, smokable hemp ban, bringing marine science to students and more

Friday, July 5, 2019 -- A round up of opinion, commentary and analysis on: Activists blast budget's funding for education, people from around the world become US citizens on the 4th of July, repair bills for air conditioning units could skyrocket, smokable hemp ban and more.

MATTHEW LANGSTON & TYLER MUSIALOWSKI: Breaking down immigration claims in the District 9 race (WRAL-TV/UNC-CH Media Hub Reports) -- Republican Dan Bishop’s misleadingly titled release, “MCCREADY FINALLY WEIGHS IN ON IMPORTANT IMMIGRATION ISSUE FACING NC-09!”, includes no real statement from Democrat Dan McCready. Instead of linking to an actual comment from the candidate, clicking “view McCready’s response” in the press release mockingly sends readers to a YouTube clip of cricket sounds.

REGGIE PONDER: Activists blast budget's funding for education (Elizabeth City Daily Advance reports) -- An activist with Progress NC said at a town hall meeting in Elizabeth City Monday night that the state budget recently passed by the General Assembly does not do enough for public schools.

REGGIE PONDER: Rep. Howard Hunter might benefit from Funeral License budget provision (Elizabeth City Daily Advance reports) -- A state legislator who represents Pasquotank County acknowledged Tuesday that he could benefit from a bill creating a proposed provisional license for funeral directors but insisted he had no involvement with the legislation or advance knowledge of it. "I don't have anything to do with that," said state Rep. Howard Hunter, D-Hertford, who owns a funeral home in Ahoskie and represents a district that also includes Pasquotank and Gates counties. "I didn't even know anyone was working on that. That was all done on the Senate side."

REGGIE PONDER: Hunter mum on veto override (Elizabeth City Daily Advance reports) -- Mum's the word for Rep. Howard Hunter, D-Hertford, on how he plans to vote if Republican lawmakers attempt to override Gov. Roy Cooper's veto of the recently approved state budget. "I'm not telling anybody what I'm doing," Hunter said Tuesday. "I'm not telling the Democrats and I'm not telling the Republicans. I'm still negotiating. I don't want anybody to know how I'm going to vote."

T.C. HUNTER: Cummings, Blue say budget plan could transform Robeson (The Robesonian reports) -- The chancellor of UNC-Pembroke and a member of the UNC Board of Governors are touting the two-year state budget recently vetoed by Gov. Roy Cooper as a spending plan that could help UNCP transform Robeson County. The budget could mean as much as $120 million for education in Robeson County over the next five years, including more than $90 million for UNCP.

AMANDA MORRIS: N.C. proposes smokable hemp ban as demand grows (AP reports) – N.C. is the latest state considering a ban on smokable hemp, a product that's exploding along with the health craze surrounding a compound in the plant known as CBD.

NADIA RAMIAGEN: Senate Passes Bill Requiring Law Enforcement to Cooperate with ICE (Public News Service reports) -- Legislators have passed House Bill 370, which, if enacted into law, would force county sheriffs to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE in detaining and deporting people. The bill would mandate that county sheriffs comply with requests or other instructions from federal immigration officers to hold someone in jail – even if that person was eligible for release under state law. Moises Serrano, political director at the advocacy organization El Pueblo, says instead of working with federal agencies, state legislators should be focusing on what North Carolina voters want.

Sunlight required when public boards pay private lobbies (Wilson Times) -- If your tax dollars are paying to lobby North Carolina lawmakers on its behalf, the Wilson County Board of Education wants to make sure you’re seeing a return on the investment. In a special meeting last week, board members grappled with the prudence and the optics of contributing to the North Carolina School Boards Action Center, the N.C. School Boards Association’s lobbying and public policy arm.

JIM MORRILL ‘A huge deal’: People from around the world become US citizens on the 4th of July (Charlotte Observer reports) -- “To me it’s one of the most important days ever, to become a citizen — especially on the 4th of July.”

An inclusive state (Winston-Salem Journal) -- Lt. Gov. Dan Forest, who is considering a run for governor in 2020, created a stir recently with some remarks in a speech that we found both surprising and troubling. If he hopes to be governor for all North Carolinians, Forest needs to consider what he said and why so many are offended by it. “God doesn’t want us to divide our state,” he said while speaking at Salisbury’s Cornerstone Church on June 23.

JENNIFER BOWMAN: Wanda Greene, other corrupt officials to be sentenced next month (Asheville Citizen-Times reports) -- Buncombe County managers who participated in a yearslong kickback scheme with a longtime contractor soon will learn their potential prison sentences. Wanda Greene, Mandy Stone and Jon Creighton will appear Aug. 28 in a federal courtroom in Asheville before Charlotte-based U.S. District Judge Robert Conrad. The trio, once county government's highest-appointed officials, have pleaded guilty to charges connected to receiving bribes from Georgia-based contractor Joe Wiseman. Wiseman, along with Michael Greene, Wanda Greene's adult son and a former county employee, also is scheduled for sentencing Aug. 28.

LISA O’DONNELL: Threats prompt warning for young people in LGBTQ community to steer clear of float in Sparta parade (Winston-Salem Journal reports) -- Tired of seeing LGBTQ kids bullied and shamed in Alleghany County, some parents and friends of these young people have entered a float in the town of Sparta's annual Fourth of July parade on Saturday as a way to show solidarity.

SARAH LOFTUS: Academy Brings Marine Science to Students (Coastal Review reports) -- During the Brad Sneeden Marine Science Academy last week, rising seventh through ninth graders joined in dissections, took behind-the-scenes tours and engaged in hands-on research while visiting the many Carteret County marine science institutions.

ADAM OWENS: As older refrigerant is phased out, repair bills for air conditioning units could skyrocket (WRAL-TV reports) -- The recent hot weather that has gripped the Triangle has put air conditioner repairs at the top of mind for many people. And it could be an especially bad time to experience any A/C problems because of federal rules that could make repairs much more expensive.