Best Ana Carolina Podcasts (2024)

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WCU Prof. Chris Cooper on where things stand in several key races ahead of the November election 12:49

3d ago12:49

12:49

Prof. Chris Cooper of Western Carolina University The long-awaited presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump finally took place this past week, and according to most independent analysts, the evening went very well for Harris. While she projected an image of calmness and confidence, Trump seemed ratt…

1
NC Justice Center policy analyst Kris Nordstrom on the expansion of private school vouchers 14:19

3d ago14:19

14:19

Kris Nordstrom The North Carolina General Assembly returned to Raleigh last week to approve a Republican plan to dramatically expand the state’s controversial private school voucher program. The plan advanced despite strong opposition from the Governor, Democratic lawmakers and an array of advocates for public schools. So what exactly will the plan…

1
Reporter Lisa Sorg on a massive liquefied natural gas plant under construction in Person County 12:17

3d ago12:17

12:17

Investigative reporter Lisa Sorg The global imperative of dramatically reducing fossil fuel consumption is as urgent as ever, but that isn’t preventing private and public plans to build new fossil fuel infrastructure. See for example, a massive new facility under construction in Person County. As Inside Climate News reporter Lisa Sorg reported this…

1
Rep. Julie von Haefen on crisis pregnancy centers and public education funding 11:17

10d ago11:17

11:17

Rep. Julie von Haefen - Photo: ncleg.gov For several years now, the Republican leadership of the North Carolina legislature has appropriated millions of dollars to the state’s network of so-called crisis pregnancy centers. The centers give the impression that they provide healthcare services, but critics argue that they do no such thing. Recently, …

1
NC Justice Center’s Ana Pardo on how workers are faring and how lawmakers could lift the economy 13:42

10d ago13:42

13:42

Ana Pardo (Courtesy photo) On the whole, the U.S. economy has been faring well in recent years – especially when compared to the dark days of the pandemic. That said, the situation average workers find themselves in varies widely from state to state and one where things remain mired well below average is North Carolina. Indeed, a recent report by t…

1
The nonpartisan Trusted Elections Tour with Jennifer Roberts and Bob Orr 12:59

10d ago12:59

12:59

Jennifer Roberts and Bob Orr (Courtesy photos) It’s hard to believe, but early absentee voting will soon be underway in the fall election. And while a scattering of ill-informed critics continues to cast aspersions and promote conspiracy theories, the evidence is overwhelming that our state’s electoral systems are honest and trustworthy. What’s mor…

1
Secretary of Health and Human Services Kody Kinsley on a landmark effort to erase medical debt 24:19

16d ago24:19

24:19

Kody Kinsley, secretary of the NC Department of Health and Human Services. (Photo: DHHS) It’s a sobering fact that one of the largest sources of consumer debt in North Carolina and across the nation is unpaid medical bills. Of course, no one gets sick or accumulates healthcare debt on purpose, but for most average households – including those with …

1
Women’s healthcare advocate Amber Gavin on the state of reproductive healthcare 12:46

16d ago12:46

12:46

Amber Gavin It’s been more than two years now since the U.S. Supreme Court ended the constitutional right to abortion care and more than a year since North Carolina enacted a 12-week ban on the procedure – this on top of a raft of other burdensome and medically unnecessary restrictions. So, what can we say about what’s been happening since? Nationa…

1
Sarah Ovaska on the state of voting rights in the South 13:47

24d ago13:47

13:47

Sarah Ovaska (Photo: SCSJ) It seldom comes as a surprise when laws negatively impacting people of color are enacted in the American South and a new report from the Southern Coalition for Social Justice provides the latest list of sobering examples. The report, which is entitled “State of the South: Voting Rights Under Assault,” documents how voters…

1
Meech Carter with the NC League of Conservation Voters discusses clean energy and climate change 17:46

24d ago17:46

17:46

Meech Carter (Photo: NCLCV) As Tropical Storm Debby reminded North Carolinians in powerful and sobering fashion once again earlier this month, climate change continues to progress and grow more serious. While no one can say that any particular storm is a byproduct of climate change, scientists do say loudly and without equivocation that climate cha…

1
Veteran NC political consultant Thomas Mills on the shifting energy in the presidential race 23:46

1M ago23:46

23:46

Thomas Mills (Courtesy photo) It seemed almost unimaginable less than a month ago, but as they head into their national convention this week, U.S. Democrats are riding a wave of voter enthusiasm for presidential nominee – Vice President Kamala Harris – and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. Indeed, polls in key swing states that showed Repu…

1
NC Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty’s Noel Nickle on their new plea to Gov. Cooper 14:51

1M ago14:51

14:51

Noel Nickle, executive director of the North Carolina Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty It’s been 18 years now since North Carolina last put a person to death as punishment for a crime – a time period in which a fast-growing number of states and countries have abolished the death penalty. Nonetheless, the death penalty remains on the …

1
Sen. Natalie Murdock on efforts to improve maternal health and the new energy of NC Democrats 24:28

1M ago24:28

24:28

Senator Natalie Murdock (Photo: NCGA) The North Carolina General Assembly has mostly wrapped up the business its leaders intend to deal with in 2024, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t some important matters that got left on the table. Take the vexing issue of maternal health. For decades North Carolina has experienced big and persistent problems …

1
Meredith College political scientist David McLennan on the state of the presidential race 10:43

1M ago10:43

10:43

Political scientist and pollster David McLennan Just weeks after President Joe Biden’s announcement that he will not seek reelection and hours after she formally secured the nomination of the Democratic Party as its presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris selected Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota as her running mate this past week. It’s the Ha…

1
Colin Seeberger of the Center for American Progress discusses the controversial Project 2025 20:13

2M ago20:13

20:13

Colin Seeberger (Courtesy photo) If you’ve been hearing a lot about something called Project 2025 of late, there’s good reason. It’s a 922-page policy blueprint from the far-right Heritage Foundation that its authors hope will serve as a lengthy “to do” list for a second Trump administration. The team that wrote it includes scores of former Trump s…

1
In the Public Interest’s Donald Cohen discusses Project 2025 and the pitfalls of privatization 11:15

2M ago11:15

11:15

Donald Cohen (Courtesy photo) Project 2025 is a detailed policy blueprint from the far-right Heritage Foundation that its authors hope will serve as a lengthy “to do” list for a second Trump administration. One disturbing part of the plan that’s gotten somewhat less attention than others is its emphasis on privatizing core public services – that is…

1
Rep. Ashton Clemmons discusses her departure from the legislature, efforts to work across the aisle 14:48

2M ago14:48

14:48

Rep. Ashton Wheeler Clemmons (Photo: NCGA) While it can certainly have many appealing aspects, serving in the North Carolina General Assembly can also be a very difficult assignment. The pay is less than minimum wage and has been frozen for decades. The length of sessions has gotten much longer and more unpredictable. And, of course, in recent year…

1
NC Justice Center attorney Jason Pikler discusses efforts to crackdown on predatory debt buying 17:21

2M ago17:21

17:21

Attorney Jason Pikler (Photo: Courtesy NC Justice Center) Debt buying. You may never have heard of it but amazingly, debt buying – a scheme in which companies buy old and stale claims from creditors for pennies on the dollar and then file lawsuits against thousands of debtors who may not even remember the debt – is a big and often predatory multi-m…

1
NC State political scientist Steven Greene on the tumultuous last few weeks in politics 12:21

2M ago12:21

12:21

NC State Professor of Political Science Steven Greene (Photo: NCSU) The political news has been coming at us like it’s shot from a firehose as of late and that was certainly the case this past week in and around President Joe Biden’s historic announcement that he will not seek reelection, and the remarkable jolt of electricity that his passing of t…

1
Jennifer Roberts and Bob Orr with the North Carolina Network for Fair, Safe and Secure Elections 18:27

2M ago18:27

18:27

Jennifer Roberts and Bob Orr (Courtesy photos) One very hopeful development for the security and honesty of elections in North Carolina in recent months has been the emergence of the North Carolina Network for Fair, Safe and Secure Elections. The bipartisan group is led by former Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts and former state Supreme Court Justi…

1
Duke University Prof. David Schanzer on political violence, the state of the presidential election 24:12

2M ago24:12

24:12

Duke University Sanford School of Public Policy Professor David Schanzer (Courtesy photo) We’re in the midst of the dog days of summer, but it’s been anything but quiet of late when it comes to this year’s national presidential election. Between the horrific assassination attempt in Pennsylvania, the convening of the Republican National Convention …

1
Tom Jensen of Public Policy Polling on what voters are thinking about the nation’s top races 16:38

2M ago16:38

16:38

Public Policy Polling's Tom Jensen (Courtesy photo) For the last 17 years, one of the nation’s most knowledgeable and accurate political pollsters has been based right here in North Carolina. Over the course of numerous primary and general elections during that period, Tom Jensen of Public Policy Polling has dissected and accurately forecast litera…

1
Political scientist Chris Cooper on Joe Biden’s recent performance and what it means moving forward 19:04

2M ago19:04

19:04

Prof. Chris Cooper of Western Carolina University As the nation heads towards one of its most important elections in modern history, a major ruckus has arisen among some Democrats around President Joe Biden’s age and whether his performance in a recent presidential debate with Donald Trump indicates that it’s time for him to step aside in favor of …

1
Common Cause of NC’s Bob Phillips on the recessed legislative session, the state of election laws 15:01

2M ago15:01

15:01

Bob Phillips, Executive Director of Common Cause North Carolina (Screengrab from press briefing) The North Carolina General Assembly wrapped up its 2024 “short session” recently and once again, it was a tough session for many basic aspects of democratic government. Whether they were unveiling secretly written proposals to overhaul state campaign fi…

1
NC Tenants Union director Nick MacLeod on the daunting challenges facing renters in North Carolina 24:20

2M ago24:20

24:20

NC Tenants Union executive director Nick MacLeod North Carolina has always been a state in which the law has allotted very few legal rights to residential tenants. Unless the actions of a landlord are truly outrageous – and sometimes even when they are – tenants rarely prevail when they seek to push back against evictions or fight for better rents …

1
Duke Health physician Dr. Beverly Gray on state of reproductive healthcare in North Carolina

3M ago

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Duke Health OB/GYN Dr. Beverly Gray (Photo: Courtesy of Scholars@Duke) It’s been two years now since the U.S. Supreme Court ended the constitutional right to abortion care and since then, numerous states – including North Carolina – have moved rapidly to end or greatly restrict abortion access. In 2023, Republican state legislators in Raleigh enact…

1
Budget & Tax Center director Alexandra Sirota on the legislature’s remake of the state tax system

3M ago

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Alexandra Sirota (Photo: NC Budget & Tax Center) Ever since North Carolina Republicans took control of the state legislature in 2011, they’ve pursued a sustained and aggressive effort to remake the state’s tax and budget systems. Repeatedly, they’ve enacted big cuts to progressive levies like the personal and corporate income taxes that primarily i…

1
Melissa Price Kromm of NC for the People Action on campaign finance, masks, and election funding

3M ago

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Melissa Price Kromm If there’s been a most controversial bill to wend its way through the North Carolina General Assembly this spring, right now it has to be House Bill 237 – a proposal that would change state laws governing the wearing masks in public, the rights of public protesters and the complex rules that govern contributions to political cam…

1
NC Child’s Erica Palmer Smith on child well-being and the 2024 KIDS Count data book

3M ago

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Erica Palmer Smith For several years now, researchers at the national Annie E. Casey Foundation have measured and documented how well each U.S. state is doing when it comes to the well-being of its children. The annual KIDS Count report looks at several important indicators in fields like economic well-being, educational achievement and health, ass…

1
Public Wise executive director Christina Baal-Owens on threats to democracy

3M ago

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Christina Baal-Owens (Courtesy: Public Wise) It’s been well over three years since Donald Trump’s lie about the 2020 election was thoroughly debunked, but tragically many American politicians – even some who participated in the January 6, 2021 insurrection – continue to hold elected office or to seek it as candidates in 2024. For Christina Baal-Owe…

1
House Dem. leader Rep. Robert Reives on a controversial proposal to rewrite campaign finance laws

3M ago

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House Democraic leader Rep. Robert Reives (Photo: NCGA) North Carolina Republican legislative leaders sprang a big surprise on their Democratic colleagues and just about all legislative observers recently when they suddenly unveiled a new, out-of-nowhere and extremely complex proposal to rewrite state campaign finance laws. The legislation, which w…

1
Virginia Kase Solomón, President of Common Cause, about the state of democracy in modern America

3M ago

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Virginia Kase Solomón (Photo: Common Cause) If there’s a most troubling issue facing our nation and its elected leaders at the dawn of the summer of 2024, many observers believe it is the state of our democracy. In the aftermath of the failed January 6, 2021 insurrection and subsequent widespread threats of violence and retribution from politicians…

1
Rep. Marcia Morey on efforts to roll back the recently enacted Raise the Age law 10:42

3M ago10:42

10:42

Rep. Marcia Morey (Photo: NCGA) In 2019, North Carolina was the last state in the union to modernize its criminal justice system by ending the practice of automatically treating 16 and 17-year-olds accused of criminal offenses as adults. Now, however, state lawmakers are considering a proposal to backtrack on that progress. Under a bill moving thro…

1
UNC law professor Gene Nichol on an ideological shift at the state Supreme Court 22:26

3M ago22:26

22:26

Gene Nichol (File photo) In recent years, the North Carolina Supreme Court has undergone a radical transformation. Since Republican justices assumed control of the court after the 2022 election, they have moved swiftly – not merely to chart a more conservative path, but to quite literally redefine the court’s role in state government. And as Gene N…

1
Erin Carey of the NC Sierra Club on a controversial bill that earned the governor’s veto 11:38

4M ago11:38

11:38

Erin Carey (Courtesy photo) Over the last several decades, North Carolina has been transformed from a largely rural state covered with forests and farms into an ever more urban place plastered with vast swaths of concrete and asphalt. And it’s in light of this reality that Gov. Roy Cooper’s recent decision to veto a transportation bill approved by …

1
OB/GYN Dr. Rachel Jensen on how abortion restrictions have changed healthcare, medical training 10:01

4M ago10:01

10:01

Dr. Rachel Jensen (photo: Clayton Henkel) This month marks the second anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling that ended the constitutional right to abortion care. It’s also been just over one-year since the Republican-controlled General Assembly in North Carolina’s enacted our state’s 12-week abortion ban. Abortion access will likely …

1
Southern Education Foundation president Raymond C. Pierce on racial segregation in public schools 13:21

4M ago13:21

13:21

Raymond C. Pierce (Photo courtesy of the Southern Education Foundation) This year marks the 70th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling in the case of Brown v. Board of Education that ended the legal segregation of American public schools. Today, however, despite much progress on many fronts, resistance to racial integration in ed…

1
ACLU of North Carolina’s Liz Barber discusses a pair of controversial legislative proposals 15:17

4M ago15:17

15:17

Elizabeth Barber - Photo: ACLU of NC Just when you thought we were starting to put some of the more contentious debates that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic to rest, the North Carolina legislature has revived the argument over face masks. Under a bill recently passed the by the state Senate, not only would penalties be increased for protesters…

1
Paul Fulton of the nonprofit Public Ed Works on securing better pay for NC public school teachers 10:01

4M ago10:01

10:01

Paul Fulton shown with a billboard the group Public Ed works has sponsored across the state. (Courtesy photo) For several decades in the late 20th and early 21st Centuries, North Carolina’s public education system was widely celebrated as an up-and-coming national model. And a key to that success was the deep and abiding support of an array of forw…

1
Labor Sec. Julie Su on the Biden administration’s efforts to expand access to good paying jobs 10:24

4M ago10:24

10:24

Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su Over the past three-plus years there are few if any areas of public policy in which the Biden administration has been more active in advancing rules and practices designed to lift average people and those long left behind by the American economy than in the realm labor relations. Whether it’s promoting better wage…

1
Dr. Lauren Fox of the Public School Forum on NC’s progress on Top Education issues 12:06

4M ago12:06

12:06

Lauren Fox, Ph.D.Senior Director, Policy & Research, Public School Forum Earlier this month, one of our state’s leading and most respected champions of public education, the Public School Forum of North Carolina, held its annual Eggs and Issues breakfast in Raleigh. The event drew several prominent elected officials and candidates from both parties…

1
Charlotte preschool director Emma Biggs on the impending crisis in NC’s childcare industry. 12:19

4M ago12:19

12:19

North Carolina's childcare industry could see a serious reduction in its workforce without additional help. Stabilization grants run out in June. (Photo: Clayton Henkel) Charlotte preschool director Emma Biggs (Courtesy photo) North Carolina childcare providers are facing a potentially disastrous financial cliff in June. During the pandemic, the fe…

1
Chris Suttle on SB3 and whether NC could become the 39th state to legalize medical marijuana 12:43

4M ago12:43

12:43

Cannabis advocate and consultant Chris Suttle (Courtesy photo) Medical marijuana is now legal and accessible for the vast majority of Americans, but one state that remains a stubborn holdout is North Carolina. A state Senate bill known as the Compassionate Care Act would change that by allowing patients suffering from a list of illnesses to gain ac…

1
Sen. Michael Garrett on why the childcare cliff (not vouchers) should be NC’s top priority 13:33

4M ago13:33

13:33

Sen. Michael Garrett (Photo: NCGA) Republican legislative leaders are moving swiftly to dramatically expand the state’s controversial private school voucher program. A bill quickly advancing will appropriate nearly $500 million new dollars to thousands of middle- and upper-income families to help cover the cost of private school tuition. Not surpri…

1
El Pueblo’s Illiana Santillan on a troubling bill changing how NC sheriffs deal with immigrants 15:19

4M ago15:19

15:19

Illiana Santillan (Photo courtesy El Pueblo) For several years now, North Carolina Republican legislators have been attempting to enact a law that would impose a one-size-fits-all approach on county sheriffs when it comes to dealing with the immigrant communities they serve. The proposal would mandate that sheriffs act as, in effect, adjuncts of fe…

1
Dr. Jenn Ayscue on a new report examining the resegregation of North Carolina public schools 15:02

4M ago15:02

15:02

Photo: ncsu.edu It’s now been 70 years since the United States Supreme Court ordered an end to racial segregation in public schools in the famous case of Brown v. Board of Education. And while resistance to desegregation never went away, there was a window of time in the late 20th and early 21st Century in which many states and localities – includi…

1
Meredith College political science professor David McLennan on top-of-the-ticket political races 13:39

5M ago13:39

13:39

Political scientist and pollster David McLennan With North Carolina being one of the most important and hotly contested states in the upcoming November election, national and state-based pollsters are carefully and regularly monitoring voter attitudes and public opinion trends. And as News & Views listeners are well-aware, one of the best and most …

1
Attorney Clermont Ripley on two new workplace rules regarding salaried workers and non-competes 14:59

5M ago14:59

14:59

NC Justice Center Workers’ Rights Project Co-Director Clermont Ripley (Photo: Phyllis Nunn) Last week a pair of federal agencies announced some important new rules to protect workers. A new Federal Trade Commission rule bans non-compete clauses that have hindered the rights of workers to take better jobs. Meanwhile, a new Department of Labor rule w…

1
Dennis Gaddy of the Community Success Initiative on second chances, legislation to improve reentry 7:57

5M ago7:57

7:57

Dennis Gaddy, Executive Director of the Community Success Initiative (Photo: Clayton Henkel) For most people who leave North Carolina prisons each year, readjusting to life on the outside is incredibly difficult. A record of incarceration can prevent people from landing apartments or jobs. And even people who have been arrested but never convicted …

1
Senator Natasha Marcus discusses some of the priorities and challenges this legislative session 19:00

5M ago19:00

19:00

Senator Natasha Marcus (Photo: NCGA) North Carolina’s General Assembly returned to Raleigh this past week for the 2024 “short session” — a session that figures to feature debates on a number of familiar topics – including public and higher education, an impending childcare cliff, and funding for several state agencies that are struggling with staff…

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