Under the Dome podcast: The NC DMV, DOGE and DEI come up in House Oversight Committee
Start your week in North Carolina politics with our latest Under the Dome podcast, for the week of March 3, 2025. Dawn Vaughan here, your podcast host and The News & Observer’s Capitol bureau chief. Today’s Under the Dome newsletter is a preview of our new podcast that posted this morning.
I’m joined by my politics team colleagues Avi Bajpai and Kyle Ingram to talk about the latest news from the General Assembly and what to expect this week.
The House Oversight Committee has started a series of hearings about state agencies. The person who got grilled the most by the committee is soon to be former Division of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Wayne Goodwin, who announced the day before the committee that he would soon be stepping down.
We talk about what’s happened so far in those hearings and what you can expect in the next ones, including Republican Rep. Brian Echevarria’s questions about agencies using any diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs or practices. House Oversight is taking a detailed look at efficiency in agencies, something that has been tied in these discussions to the Trump administration’s new Department of Government Efficiency.
Several budget committees also started their work this past week, with more scheduled this week. During one meeting, State Auditor Dave Boliek made an early budget pitch for more employees. That, plus the latest with a Senate leader Phil Berger-led immigration bill, and more when you listen to our full episode.
Headliner of the Week
Stay tuned to the end for our picks for Headliner of the Week. Ingram talks about what he hopes happens during the Oscars, Bajpai praises the Legislative Snack Bar and I mention my own recent DMV experience as well as State Budget Director Kristin Walker’s use of the phrase “known knowns.”
Listen to our latest episode and previous episodes, which are embedded at the end of our stories and on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Audible, iHeart, Pandora, Amazon Music and Stitcher.
If you are a lawmaker or work in state government, politics or policy and are interested in being a podcast guest or want to suggest an issue we talk more about, email me at dvaughan@newsobserver.com.
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