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This week in state politics: a can manufacturer finally picked North Carolina, Madison Cawthorn met more criticism following his latest incendiary comments, and a basketball game has led to mounting excitement. Donna King of the Carolina Journal and Aisha Dew from Higher Heights review some significant recent news.

Last summer college athletics underwent a major change when athletes, long considered amateur and barred from earning compensation, were allowed to collect on their name, image, and likeness (NIL). The new landscape is providing earning opportunities while also creating questions about exploitation, and if there is a need for further regulations.

Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson is back in the headlines after an old facebook post emerged. North Carolina’s primary is less than two months away. And there is a new judge in the decades old Leandro Case. On this episode of the WUNC Politics Podcast, Rob Schofield and Donna King discuss some of the week’s biggest stories.

The May 17th primary is less than two months away, and the attacks are mounting as advertisements increase.

Nearly 100 years ago a small business began operation in Winston-Salem. In the five decades that followed Safe Bus Company became a local fixture, and the largest transit system of its kind, in the world. Yet the story of Safe Bus remains a lesser-known portion of the city and state's history. On this episode of The WUNC Politics Podcast, Winston-Salem Transit Authority Marketing Director Tina Carson-Wilkins talks about the history of Safe Bus and recalls her memories riding on it as a teenager.

It is not expected to be a particularly good midterm for Democrats, however, grassroots organizer Aimy Steele is undeterred. Meanwhile, in North Carolina's largest city, conservative city councilman Tariq Scott Bokhari wants company on his Republican island. Each face long odds for success in 2022, and both want to foster some change.

This week in state politics proved to be anther busy affair with a visit from Vice President Kamala Harris, the conclusion of candidate filing, and more legislative wrangling of the still yet-to-be-expanded federal healthcare program. Clark Riemer and Rob Schofield review some of the biggest recent stories on this latest episode of The Politics Podcast.

Between the pandemic, political polarization and the crisis in Ukraine, the news cycle these days is, well, even more chaotic than usual. On this episode of the WUNC Politics Podcast, Professor Benjamin Toff discusses his research around news avoidance and fatigue, as well as both the consequences - and benefits - for those who are not regular news consumers.

It was another week of whiplashing news in the world of North Carolina politics. Following a flurry of court orders on redistricting, the candidate filing period resumed after a two month hiatus. Governor Roy Cooper vetoed another bill, and a war in Eastern Europe will soon have impacts close to home. Rob Schofield and Clark Riemer discuss those topics in our weekly review.

While popular with many Americans, term limits on elected officials have not yielded the results some had once hoped. On this episode of the WUNC Politics Podcast, Western Carolina University Professor Chris Cooper discusses what has been learned from the fifteen states that do impose legislative term limits, and why they are ultimately ineffective.

Eva Clayton has been in the North Carolina political sphere for 60 years. A former member of Congress, county commissioner, and advocate for voting rights and rural portions of the state, Clayton remains busy. In this podcast episode she discusses her own efforts to help integrate Warren County, the recent redistricting developments, and getting through the pandemic.

Across the nation, some COVID-19 guidelines have been significantly changed in recent days. Here in North Carolina, there were some marginal changes. Meanwhile, state lawmakers prepare to draw new districts, and the GOP finds itself in another intra-party squabble. Donna King and Rob Schofield review it all in our Week In State Politics.

State lawmakers must again draw new political districts, following a major ruling from the North Carolina Supreme Court last week. But just how much will the new lines change, and is the recent ruling likely to be revisited? WUNC Politics reporter Rusty Jacobs offers insight on the major decision and the likely next steps.

In our weekly review of state political news, Rob Schofield of NC Policy Watch and Donna King of the Carolina Journal anticipate that the NC Supreme Court will strike down new congressional and legislative districts. The analysts also offer reaction following a fire at a fertilizer plant in Winston-Salem, and share whether they've checked the state database for unclaimed property.

A major case moved through North Carolina’s high court this week. At issue are whether Congressional and legislative districts can be so partisan they violate the state constitution. Will justices strike down the districts? And if they do, then what? WUNC's Jeff Tiberii and Dave DeWitt discuss the case. Then later, Jeff talks with Greensboro economist Andrew Brod about what a major economic development announcement could mean for the Piedmont Triad.

Jet manufacturer Boom Supersonic plans to create more than 1,700 jobs and invest half a billion dollars in Guilford County. This week in state politics saw the major economic development announcement, new jobs numbers, rumblings of a Supreme Court pick from North Carolina, as well as the latest veto from Democratic Governor Roy Cooper. Rob Schofield and Donna King join host Jeff Tiberii to discuss it all.

An increasing number of Americans are dying from drug overdose. Between April 2020 and April 2021 more than 100,000 people in the country died, a new ominous benchmark. One of the leading culprits is fentanyl, a synthetic opiate. On this episode of the Politics Podcast reporters Taylor Knopf from North Carolina Health News and WUNC's Jason deBruyn discuss the upward trend, and possible solutions.

Another date for North Carolina's 2022 Primary? Maybe. Host Jeff Tiberii looks at the week in N.C. politics, including another possible legislative standoff between the Democratic Governor and the Republican-led General Assembly over the date of the primary, and the possibility of judge recusals in the redistricting case, with Donna King from the John Locke Foundation and Rob Schofield with NC Policy Watch.

As a major redistricting cases lands before the state supreme court, calls are growing louder for some justices to recuse themselves. On this episode of The Politics Podcast, three former judges talk about the issue of recusal - and the importance of judicial independence.

By any measure, Robert Reives has had a meteoric rise in politics. An attorney from Chatham County, Reives was first appointed to the NC House in 2014. He won his first election that same year and rose to deputy minority leader and, finally, his colleagues unanimously chose him to lead their caucus as House Democratic leader in 2020. In this wide-ranging conversation with WUNC's Jeff Tiberii, Reives discusses his party's priorities, and why he thinks they can win big this November.