The deal with Medicaid expansion in NC

The Republican majority in the North Carolina Legislature, established in 2010, could not have happened without Barack Obama. It was his election two years earlier that sufficiently frightened white folks in the Old North State enough to elect more Republicans to state government than it had in 100 years.

Apparently they feel enough time has passed that they won’t look like hypocrites for adopting one of Obama’s signature policies as president: the ability to expand Medicaid to the states, which would allow people to qualify for free healthcare based on income alone, as opposed to individual state requirements like disability, household size and other somewhat arbitrary factors.

That’s a joke: The modern GOP does not recognize the concept of hypocrisy.

This becomes important when we realize that, though the House and Senate have agreed in theory to a compromise, it will exist inside the confines of the state budget, which then must be passed by the legislature. Anyone who has been watching these last 10 years knows that the budget has become a political football in state politics, and so must understand that this compromise will come with a lot of goodies for right-wingers that won’t necessarily represent the will of the majority.

And so Medicaid expansion, which will bring in almost $10 billion a year in federal funds for individual coverage, behavioral health and rural healthcare, among other things, could come at the cost of teacher raises, which the Republicans have been against, as well as funding for clinics that provide abortions as well as funding for public schools, and could be tied to the elimination of corporate income taxes, all of which can be articulated in the budget.

It would be highly ironic if one of the bedrock provisions of Obamacare — which NC Republicans have been branding as “socialized medicine” since its inception — would be the thing that allows for 0 percent corporate income tax in NC. Of course, irony is another one of those concepts that Republicans in our state do not acknowledge.

Wake Forest’s improbable run

The Wake Forest Demon Deacons came into the ACC Tournament as a 12seed after a lackluster season, and they weren’t expected to last more than a couple days. They took out 13-seed Virginia on the first day 68-57 with 19 points and three rebounds from junior guard Jewel Spear, and a ridiculous 11 rebounds from junior forward Demeara Hinds. On Day 2 against powerhouse 5-seed Florida State, they started the second half 18 points behind after scoring just 2 points in the second quarter. But a third-quarter rally led by Spear, senior forward Olivia Summiel and senior forward Demeara Hinds gave Wake the second-largest comeback in ACC Women’s history. They took a beating against Louisville the next day, but their point was made. I’ll be a fan of this team for life; I even started following some of them on Instagram.

Last year for the tourney at the Greensboro Coliseum?

The ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament has been held in Greensboro 23 of the past 24 years, skipping only 2017 because of the notorious NC Bathroom Bill, which was repealed and replaced after costing the state $3.76 billion in lost opportunities from film shoots, tourism, economic development, gay weddings and, yes, sports tournaments. That contract is up this year; a new one has not been signed. It’s possible that the women’s tournament might go the way of the men’s, for which Greensboro had been the default location for generations but now jumps around the country like the monster truck show. The Men’s ACC Basketball Tournament comes back to Greensboro this week. But it’s possible this could be the last we see of the women for a while.