NC Policy Watch: “Some folks measure the value of higher education solely by how much its graduates make. Most of us know there’s a lot more to it. In a column last week, John Hood of the John Locke Foundation contends that North Carolinians don’t receive an adequate return on what he calls a “relatively large” investment in…

Slate: “As soon as President Joe Biden entered the White House, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton launched an unprecedented campaign of obstruction to block his agenda in the courts. Paxton took advantage of a quirk—really, a loophole—in the federal judiciary: A state can pick the specific judge who will oversee its case by filing in…

AR Times: “Arkansas Democrats, that downtrodden but determined crew, met this weekend to elect officers. Exhausted Chairman Grant Tennille had tried to hand over the job in December, but got sweet-talked into staying by party luminaries Joyce Elliott and Keith Ingram, a press release about their Saturday meeting said. The party is in the black…

NC Policy Watch: “The NC Department of Environmental Quality is investigating the discharge of an estimated 30,000 gallons of hog waste from a farm owned by Murphy-Brown, according to a press release from state officials. The farm is in Bladen County, northwest of Ammon and southwest of Roseboro. It has a state permit to raise…

WaPo: “Five former Memphis police officers are facing second-degree murder and other charges in the brutal beating death of Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old motorist who was fatally injured after being pulled over by police this month. A grand jury returned indictments Thursday against Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills Jr., Emmitt Martin III, Justin Smith and Tadarrius Bean,…

AP: “Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency Thursday, giving him the option of calling in the Georgia National Guard in response to a violent protest in downtown Atlanta over the killing by authorities of an environmental activist said to have shot a state trooper. The declaration allows the Republican governor to call up to 1,000…

WCNC Charlotte: “Dozens of people confronted Charlotte corporate landlords demanding affordable housing as rent prices continue to skyrocket in the Queen City.  Protesters gathered outside the office of Invitation Homes, a corporate landlord that manages properties in the Charlotte area to say they’re angry and fed up with rising rent prices and subpar maintenance standards. “Housing is a human right,” the group chanted,…

Political Wire: “A new Mason-Dixon poll indicates Gov. Andy Beshear “still gets a thumbs-up from most Kentuckians for his work and also leads four notable Republican opponents as he seeks a second term in office, while Attorney General Daniel Cameron has a sizable edge over his competitors in the GOP’s upcoming gubernatorial primary.” “Beshear’s job approval rating…

Vanity Fair: “NBC News reports Greene is “angling to be Donald Trump’s running mate in 2024,” according to two people familiar with the matter who have spoken to the GOP representative about her plans for the future. “This is no shrinking violet, she’s ambitious—she’s not shy about that, nor should she be,” former Trump adviser and convicted criminal Steve…

NC Policy Watch: “The full Democratic National Committee is set to vote in just days about a decision to ratify a new lineup of five states that would lead the nation in primary voting for Democratic presidential candidates in 2024. But approval of the new calendar at a meeting scheduled for Feb. 4 in Philadelphia…