North Carolina Supreme Court Race Gets Spicy After Abortion AdSearchSubscribeMy BookmarksEntertainmentStyleFoodDrinksSportsLifestyleNews & PoliticsArchiveNewsletterAbout UsFollowOther EditionsYour Privacy ChoicesPrivacy NoticeTerms Of UseSkip to ContentEntertainmentStyleLifestyleShoppingNews & PoliticsSubscribesign inSearch'The White Lotus' Is BackSeth Rogen is the BossBest Single Blade RazorsBest Sketches From SNL50The Best Button-Down EverNewsPolitics With Charles P. PierceA State Supreme Court Race in North Carolina Is Getting Spicier—and More Illogical—by the DayA State Supreme Court Race in North Carolina Is Getting Spicier—and More Illogical—by the DayIt all started with a run-of-the-mill ad about abortion.By Charles P. PiercePublished: Oct 24, 2024 3:29 PM EDTSave ArticleDennis Macdonald//Getty Images(Permanent Musical Accompaniment to This Post)Presenting our semi-regular weekly survey of what’s goin’ down in the several states where, as we know, the real work of governmentin’ gets done, and where to live outside the law, you must be honest.We begin in North Carolina, where the Republicans in the state legislature have mounted an attack on Judge Allison Riggs, a Democratic member of the state supreme court, because she ran a campaign ad in which she pointed out that (a) Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson is three casseroles short of a potluck and (b) one of the ways you can tell is by his fanatical opposition to reproductive freedom. This prompted some Republican legislators to demand an investigation into Riggs for violating the state code of judicial ethics. North Carolina judges are not supposed to comment on pending cases while running for re-election. The Republicans claim that Riggs’s ads are violations of that provision. Riggs argues, convincingly, that there are no abortion cases currently pending before the court. Logical, but of course that doesn’t mean that the attempts to monkey-wrench her campaign will stop.And, by the way, have I mentioned recently what a stupid idea an elected judiciary is?From the Raleigh News & Observer:The attacks, which now involve high-ranking members of the legislature and the only statewide body responsible for judicial discipline, represent a significant escalation of tensions in the campaign between Riggs and her challenger, Court of Appeals Judge Jefferson Griffin....The initial complaint, filed earlier this month by Sen. Buck Newton, a Wilson County Republican, alleges that Riggs violated the state’s Code of Judicial Conduct when she released an ad warning that Griffin could rule to uphold an abortion ban.Griffin has also been criticized in the past for comments on abortion, though they were delivered in a judicial setting. Last year, Griffin signed on to a Court of Appeals opinion stating that “life begins at conception.” That opinion was withdrawn by three judges, including Griffin, last November. In an interview with The News & Observer this year, Griffin said he was unable to provide details about why the opinion was withdrawn. Oh, okay.We move along now to Friend of the Blog Daniel Nichanian and the gang at Bolts magazine for another of their essential guides to what games may be afoot on state ballots this year—in this case, with the various referendum questions out there in the gloaming. (The referendum process, of course, is the California voters’ reason to live.)  As you might have guessed, a lot of the questions up for a vote have to do with fixing on the state level some of the egregious rulings from the carefully manufactured  conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court. For example, nine states have ballot questions establishing a state right to abortion access and/or overturning state post-Dobbs bans. Such measures are favored by 75 percent of the voters polled in Arizona and Nevada. In Colorado, 59 percent of the people polled believe that abortion should be legal in most cases. In South Dakota, the side opposing an amendment to the state constitution establishing a right to abortion trails by a small margin, but neither side is at 50 percent.The issue of voting rights—and its unholy stepchild, redistricting reform—remains a hot item, with the biggest and noisiest fight taking place in Ohio, where a proposal to set up an independent redistricting commission is on the ballot, and it’s polling at 60 percent approval. Ranked-choice voting is under attack on the ballot in Alaska and Arizona. In both cases, Native American voters may well hold the balance in their hands.The state of Washington is being asked to backslide on dealing with the climate crisis. One ballot question would ban new restrictions on natural-gas production and strike down new environmental regulations, while another would ban cap-and-trade policies and repeal a state program to reduce the emission of greenhouse gas. Both of these seem to be gaining ground here in the late stages. However, it looks as though a measure to repeal the state’s brand-new capital-gains tax is going to get clobbered.And, of course, there are the ballot questions drawn from the bargain bin of the political mind. In Illinois, Madison County is considering secession from the state. Colorado voters are being asked if they want to ban trophy hunting in the state and slaughterhouses in Denver. Maine is voting on a new state flag, and polling is at a dead heat. (Personally, I like the new one. A pine tree and the North Star. Simple. Elegant.) And Rhode Island will decide whether to hold a constitutional convention. This should be a hoot.And we conclude, as is our custom, in the great state of Oklahoma, whence Blog Official Derelict Oil Farm Enthusiast Friedman of the Plains brings us the saga of a man, a paddle, and a dream. From 2 News Oklahoma:Last session, House Bill 1028 did not pass but got too close for Representative Jim Olsen. HB 1028 would have effectively banned paddling for special-needs students, but Rep. Olsen viewed the bill as a “tee up” for an all-out ban of the practice. “In order to get it out of schools, they started with children with disabilities,” he told 2 News.Those sneaky libtard bastids! Emergency! Send in the clowns!Olsen’s interim study included multiple speakers who condone corporal punishment and one against the practice. Warner Public Schools Superintendent David Vinson, former Brushy Public Schools Superintendent Greg Reynolds, Representative Randy Randleman, and Dr. Fred Christopher were among those who spoke in support. Christopher told the committee he is a school psychologist, but as of this writing, his credentials are unclear.Dr. David Blatt, director of research for Oklahoma Appleseed, a criminal-justice nonprofit organization based in Tulsa, spoke out against paddling. He recently authored a report called “We Don’t Hit.”...He also added that, with the exception of the United States and parts of Australia, all advanced countries—128 in total—have banned corporal punishment. One hundred forty-three school districts still allow corporal punishment, and Oklahoma is one of seventeen states where it is still legal.God bless America.This is your democracy, America. Cherish it.Related StoryGOP Is Talking Sh*t About Dominion Voting AgainWatch Next Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowNewsletterAbout UsMedia KitPress RoomContact UsCommunity GuidelinesAdvertise OnlineCustomer ServiceSubscribeOther Hearst SubscriptionsEvents &amp; PromotionsGiveawaysA Part of Hearst Digital MediaWe may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back.©2025 Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved.Privacy NoticeCA Notice at CollectionYour CA Privacy Rights/Shine the LightDAA Industry Opt OutTerms of UseSite MapYour Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads
I’d almost care about the article based on the title if I hadn’t been trained by news outlets to not care about their clickbait headlines