Tag: pat mccrory

New in the collection: Button zings ‘Carolina Comeback’

Pinback button with the words Where are the jobs Pat?“Gov. Pat McCrory and his supporters say the ‘Carolina Comeback’ under his watch is most reflected by the halving of the state unemployment rate — from 9.4 percent in January 2013 to 4.7 percent in July 2016 — the creation of 300,000 jobs and the lowering of the corporate tax rate….

“According to N.C. Commerce Department data, however, 40 percent of all job creation has been gained in Charlotte and the Triangle [and] much of the job creation statewide has been in low-wage jobs, such as retail, leisure and hospitality….”

— From “Report questions reach, validity of Gov. Pat McCrory’s ‘Carolina Comeback’ claims” by Richard Craver in the Winston-Salem Journal (Sept. 4, 2016)

This pinback button was distributed by the North Carolina Democratic Party.

 

New in the collection: The rise and fall of Pat McCrory

Pinback that reads "Pat McCrory,City Council at Large."

These two pinbacks bookend the political career (so far) of Pat McCrory. In 1989 as a Republican newcomer he was elected to an at-large seat on Charlotte City Council, which led first to 14 years as mayor and then to a single, HB2-marred term as governor.

Anti-McCrory pinback that reads "Flush McCrory and the GOP" and shows a toilet.

New in the collection: anti-HB2 pinback button

As everywhere else in the state, public opinion on HB2 in Forsyth County was starkly split.

In a one-day special session on March 23, 2016, the N.C. General Assembly had reversed a Charlotte ordinance  expanding gay and transgender protections — most controversially, the right to use public restrooms based on gender identity. Gov. Pat McCrory signed the bill that night, making it a central issue in his unsuccessful campaign for reelection.

On March 30, 2017, after a year of national boycotts and other protests against the “bathroom bill,” the legislature approved a compromise  that repealed HB2 but restricted anti-discrimination ordinances in cities and counties. Gov. Roy Cooper signed the measure into law.