Archives for January 2017

“Charlotte Talks”: Friday News Round Up

This week, the Charlotte City Council and County Commission both considered spending on a Major League Soccer stadium- with very different results.  Former Governor Pat McCrory is heckled in Washington D.C. and South Carolina’s Nikki Haley is headed to New York.  Host Mike Collins and our panel of reporters tackle those stories and more on the Charlotte Talks local news round up.

Common Ground in the Trump Era Is Doubtful

The parallels aren’t perfect, but close enough to see and hear hypocrisy from all sides.

Observing some of the more dismissive reactions against last weekend’s women’s marches that exceeded expectations in Washington, across the country and around the world, you would think that gathering for a cause and against an American president was somehow unpatriotic.

New President Donald Trump’s initial statement that he was “under the impression that we just had an election” eventually gave way to a defense of a constitutional right to protest, though his senior adviser Kellyanne Conway said, “I frankly didn’t see the point.”

Various Republican elected officials around the country mocked protesters before offering half-hearted apologies. In North Carolina, GOP state Sen. Joyce Krawiec tweeted: “Message to crazies @ Women’s March — If brains were lard, you couldn’t grease a small skillet. You know who you are.” She won her seat without opposition in November, so she probably felt pretty safe.

Déjà vu

I had a flashback to a revved-up crowd at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville, where I was covering what was called the first national tea party convention in early February 2010. Participants who came to rail against health care and other policies of then-President Barack Obama claimed patriotism as their motivation for righteous dissent.

 

President Trump’s Wall Plan. How Will It Work?

CHARLOTTE, NC —  President Donald Trump plans to sign several executive orders today, including one to build a wall on the border with Mexico. Other orders are expected to eliminate sanctuary cities, cutting down on the number of refuges coming in to the United States. WCCB Political Contributor Mary C. Curtis weighs in.

Judith Browne Dianis is ‘Stepping to the Front’ in the Fight For Racial Justice

Since its beginning in 1999, Judith Browne Dianis has been a part of Advancement Project, a multi-racial, non-profit civil rights organization that works through innovative strategies and community alliances.

Last year she was named executive director, which she says is an exciting opportunity to truly make her mark. “We can dream big and figure out how to make those big dreams come true,” Browne Dianis said.

Message from Charlotte: Revolution Starts at Home

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In this very blue city, in a state that went red for Donald Trump while sending a Democratic governor to the statehouse, a crowd estimated at more than 10,000 filled the streets at Saturday’s Women’s March. It was one of many across the country, sending a message that the story of Election 2016, far from being over, is just beginning.

The winding route took marchers — more than double in number than expected — past signposts of a region that has seen its share of divisions, but has made steady if shaky progress.

 

Obama and Trump: Two Presidents, Same God

If Franklin Graham did not actually endorse Donald Trump’s bid for the presidency, he stepped right up to the line — the one separating church and state. Graham was absolutely giddy post-election, when he gave credit to a force greater than the electorate. The evangelist and president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse credited the “God factor” for Trump’s poll-defying win.

You might be seeing a lot of Graham, starting at Friday’s inauguration where he is one of the faith leaders invited to offer a prayer for America’s new president. It marks a resurgence of a familiar name when it comes to mingling politics and religion, and a continuation of a tradition in a country that doesn’t have an official faith but celebrates a National Day of Prayer and seems most comfortable with leaders who praise a higher power.

 

The Boycott and President-Elect Donald Trump’s Inauguration

CHARLOTTE, NC — There’s mixed reaction across the country this morning as President-Elect Donald Trump’s inauguration gets closer. So far, more than 50 democratic lawmakers are boycotting his inauguration ceremony. The wave of people not attending has grown since civil-rights icon Congressman John Lewis announced Friday he was boycotting the event. WCCB political contributor Mary C. Curtis weighs in.

The Obama Legacy As the Trump Era Nears

As Barack Obama moves out of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Mike Collins and guests look at his legacy and how the hope he ushered in can stand up to the change that’s about to happen.

What Donald Trump Should Have Said to a Civil Rights Icon

Donald Trump is about to become president of the United States of America. But he isn’t acting like it. He tweets in scatter-shot fashion, noticing every real and perceived slight and attacking. Doesn’t he realize that it is politically smart for any leader to think and act strategically, always anticipating many moves ahead, like a master chess player?

What Would Martin Luther King Jr. Think of Obama, Followed by Trump?

President Barack Obama and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. have both been praised for their sweeping rhetorical skills, an ability to seize the moment and provide the comfort and inspiration needed. Even their detractors — and they have plenty — would admit this. To live up to his own history, President Obama had a nearly impossible task in his farewell speech on Tuesday night from his adopted hometown of Chicago.

There was also the irony of the week to come, bookended by a celebration of the life and works of King and the inauguration of the next president, Donald Trump. After all, few would place “I have a dream” and “She should be in prison” in the same universe of lofty oratory.