The rich speak up

When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that money is speech, it created a self-fulfilling prophecy. The voice of the rich and powerful few was and remains enormously amplified. Although it is said that their demands failed in the White House and Senate, they succeeded down the ballot. We know this very well in North Carolina.

We now have a Republican governor and veto-proof GOP legislature for the first time in many decades, thanks to huge funds from our home-grown Koch-style donor, Art Pope. As part of his reward, he and his priorities now not only will help decide the future of the University of North Carolina, which we prize as the oldest public university in the country, but also help shape the new state administration on the governor’s transition team.

Will the court reconsider its judgment and the Congress take responsibility for mitigating it in light of that decision’s impact on our democracy?

I will be the first person to applaud the new state government if it promotes education and health care for all North Carolinians, safe environments and secure housing, and narrowing the ever-growing gaps in wealth and opportunity.

Nancy Milio

Chapel Hill