Under the Dome: NC leaders attend Graham statue unveiling

Good morning! ☀️ Here’s what you need to know in North Carolina politics today.

The spirit of the Rev. Billy Graham lives with a statue of the Baptist minister from North Carolina that was unveiled in the U.S. Capitol in Washington DC. Graham’s statue replaced one of a white supremacist and former governor in North Carolina. Here’s what you need to know about the unveiling ceremony that was attended by several North Carolina leaders and dignitaries. — Stephanie Loder, correspondent.

Keep reading for more from our politics team.

New NC face in the US Capitol

A statue of North Carolina’s Rev. Billy Graham was unveiled Thursday in the U.S. Capitol, becoming the newest addition to The Statuary Hall Collection.

Among those attending the unveiling were North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, Senate leader Phil Berger, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, N.C. House Speaker Tim Moore, N.C. Chief Justice Paul Newbury, and former Vice President Mike Pence.

Graham’s statue replaces one of Charles Aycock, who served as North Carolina’s 50th governor in 1901. Aycock, a white supremacist, gained power by stifling the Black vote. U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry, a Republican from Lincoln County, called for the Aycock statue to be removed.

Graham was born and raised in Charlotte. The Baptist minister traveled the world preaching the Gospel before his death in 2018 at age 99.

Get the full story from Danielle Battaglia here.

Lone UNC trustee speaks against elimination of DEI funds

Following a vote to divert millions of dollars of DEI funds to campus police, one member of the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees has spoken out in opposition to the plan.

At Thursday’s BOT meeting, Trustee Ralph Meekins said the decision “sends the wrong message to our students, prospective students and alumni regarding how UNC values and treats diverse populations on our campus.”

He said that the board also should have waited for guidance from the UNC System Board of Governors, which is expected to vote to restrict DEI programs statewide next week.

Earlier this week, the BOT cut $2.3 million in funding for DEI programs. No trustee voted against the plan. Meekins is the only trustee to publicly oppose the decision.

Meekins explained that he abstained from Monday’s vote because he missed the majority of the meeting and felt uncomfortable making a decision without having heard most of the discussion.

Speaking to reporters after Thursday’s meeting, Meekins suggested the board’s decision was overly broad.

“My point is, you don’t just knock it all out,” he said. “You go take a look at it and figure out what’s working and not working and you take out areas where there may be abuse.”

Interim Chancellor Lee Roberts, asked his thoughts on the board’s decision, told reporters he is still waiting to see the final DEI policy from the Board of Governors.

• What does DEI mean? Shaun Harper, a professor at the University of Southern California, studies DEI programs. He, along with 11 other scholars, published a report titled “Truths about DEI on College Campuses.” Harper rebuts that DEI could represent “divisiveness, exclusion and indoctrination” as previously claimed by UNC Trustee Marty Kotis. Instead, Harper said, DEI programs benefit students and are a small part of university budgets.

— Kyle Ingram

Lt. Gov. candidate on abortion

State Sen. Rachel Hunt, the Democratic candidate for North Carolina lieutenant governor, outlined her plans for the state as compared to those of her competitor, GOP nominee Hal Weatherman.

Hunt filed Senate Bill 909, titled “Protect Women’s Healthcare. The bill would amend the North Carolina Constitution to say that the state “shall not restrict a woman’s right to decide to have an abortion.”

Hunt’s remarks and bill came a day after Weatherman defeated Jim O’Neill in the Republican primary runoff.

Weatherman, no his website, says he is anti-abortion. He’s endorsed by the current Republican nominee for governor, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson. Both men want to see the passage of a heartbeat bill to ban abortion at five or six weeks into pregnancy.

It’s unlikely Hunt’s bill will move ahead; Republicans have a supermajority in both chambers of the General Assembly.

Get the full story from Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan here.

Gun safety bill

Rep. Marcia Morey announced earlier this month that she planned to file discharge petitions to have gun safety bills she and other Democrats file every year taken up by the House.

Morey filed those petitions during Wednesday’s session for two bills she filed more than a year ago that haven’t received any committee hearings in as much time.

The first is a red flag law that would allow people to petition judges to temporarily confiscate the firearms of someone they believe could be a threat to themselves or others. The second would make it illegal to leave a firearm in an unattended vehicle, unless the vehicle is locked and the gun is safely stored.

Discharge petitions require signatures from a majority of lawmakers — in this case, 61 members of the House — to move bills directly to the floor for a vote.

As of Thursday morning, the petitions Morey had filed had received a total of 16 signatures, all from Democrats, including herself.

Rep. Destin Hall, the chairman of the House Rules Committee, told reporters after Wednesday’s session that he’s doubtful Democrats will be able to force votes on bills that Republicans have no “real desire” to take up.

On the proposed red flag law, Hall said many Republicans are concerned about the “potential abuse of a system that allows someone’s constitutional right to be taken away, just upon the petition of one individual.”

— Avi Bajpai

DMV LICENSE RENEWAL CHANGE REPEALED

Changes to state law that were supposed to eliminate overcrowded North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicle offices have been rescinded by the General Assembly amid federal law conflicts.

A provision in the budget bill would have doubled the renewal period for state driver’s licenses, making it 16 years for anyone aged 18 to 65. Drivers also would renew their licenses online instead of in person at DMV.

• Both provisions, which had been set to take effect July 1, were repealed due to a miscommunication between DMV and lawmakers.

• DMV Commissioner Wayne Goodwin said the change would be in violation of the REAL ID act.

Get the full story from Richard Stradling here.

That’s all for today. Check your inbox Sunday for more #ncpol news.

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