Perdue beefs up diversity on transition team

Gov.-elect Beverly Perdue named a group of women and blacks to her transition leadership after being stung by criticism that her first appointments lacked diversity.

She added: Howard Lee, chairman of the state school board and a former state senator; Valeria Lee, vice chairwoman of the Rural Economic Development Center and past president of the Golden LEAF Foundation; Linda Carlisle, retired founding president of Copier Consultants and former Bank of America vice president; Hilda Pinnix-Ragland, chairwoman of the State Board of Community Colleges and a vice president at Progress Energy.

Howard Lee and Valeria Lee (who are not related) and Pinnix-Ragland are black.

The new appointments followed criticism last week from Rev. William Barber, president of the state NAACP, that Perdue's first three appointments were of politically connected white men. She initially named three transition leaders: Zach Ambrose, Perdue's campaign manager and former chief of staff in the lieutenant governor's office; Don Hobart, her current chief of staff; and Norris Tolson, former secretary of revenue and former secretary of transportation.

Getting advice

Perdue is asking for public comments on how her new administration should run various state agencies and handle several broad issues such as transportation, mental health, education and energy.

Advisory groups will meet between today and Tuesday. The N.C. Small Business Technology Development Center will run the sessions, reviewing presentations by cabinet agencies and providing feedback for Perdue.

The public is invited to the sessions, and anyone interested should call 715-1540 or go to www.bevperdue.com.

The groups are not supposed to reach a consensus but provide a diversity of opinion, according to an announcement by Perdue's office. Perdue has pledged to hold issue-oriented transition discussions throughout the state before taking office Jan. 10.

Hagan forms staff

Sen.-elect Kay Hagan has named her senior Senate staffers.

The Greensboro Democrat chose to keep several of her campaign staffers on board as she moves in to her new Washington office.

Campaign manager Crystal King will be Hagan's new chief of staff; deputy campaign manager and political director Muthoni Wambu will be state director; deputy finance director Melissa Midgett will be deputy state director; and scheduling director Forest Michaels and spokeswoman Colleen Flanagan will continue in those roles.

"I am ecstatic that these staff members, who were such a huge part of my victory, have chosen to continue on with me in my U.S. Senate office," Hagan said in a statement.

The group includes North Carolina natives -- Midgett and Michaels -- and D.C. veterans -- King, Wambu and Flanagan.

Additional staffers will be hired in the next few weeks.

Price visits New York

U.S. Rep. David Price traveled to New York City on Monday to take a look at how the city is protecting sites from radiological or nuclear attacks.

New York recently received $29.5 million for its "Securing the Cities" protection program. The federal project is to be expanded to other cities.

Price and three other members of Congress flew over sites by helicopter and visited Grand Central Station. Price also was a guest of Mayor Michael Bloomberg for dinner at the mayoral residence.

Such visits allow host cities to show how they're spending federal dollars and lobby for more. Price, a Chapel Hill Democrat, holds the purse strings as chairman of the funding subcommittee for the Department of Homeland Security.

Price visited the city at the invitation of U.S. Rep. Steve Israel of New York.