Democratic lawmakers in North Carolina have been in the minority for the past four years — so when one Democrat from Charlotte had the legislature to himself during Tuesday's snow, he got right to work.
Sen. Jeff Jackson, D-Mecklenburg, documented his day at the General Assembly on his Facebook page starting at 8 a.m. Tuesday morning, using the hashtag #JustOneLegislator.
Given the conspicuous lack of opposition from either party, Jackson tackled Medicaid, teacher pay and film incentives within an hour.
One prominent political issue for Gov. Pat McCrory's wife, Ann, has been targeting and eliminating puppy mills in the state. In the two years since the governor took office, no bill on puppy mills has passed the legislature. In one day, Jackson took care of it.
Jackson then addressed years of UNC system funding cuts and the phasing out of the popular N.C. Teaching Fellows scholarship program.
He also passed nonpartisan redistricting and bolstered funding for the state's mental healthcare system.
After the whirlwind of legislative productivity that must have left him exhausted, he decided he needed a drink of water — so he stopped his own filibuster and, without further ado, expanded child-care subsidies.
By noon, he got himself on BuzzFeed — which might just ensure his reelection for the foreseeable future.
Maybe it's evidence that a small government is an efficient government, as some commenters on Jackson's posts have suggested. But it's clear that the senator, who has been in office since May 2014, knows how to turn a lonely N.C. General Assembly snow day into social media gold — by passing all the bills he wants.
state@dailytarheel.com
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