NC Capitol Wrap Capitol Broadcasting

WRAL's Laura Leslie and Brian Murphy recap a very busy week on Jones St. with the battle over medical marijuana reignited and the House and Senate filing dueling budgets. Plus, a last-minute attempt to regulate vaping products and Cooper's veto of the mask ban. 

North Carolina state lawmakers begin working to outlaw tianeptine, a drug marketed as a mood enhancer or diet supplement that critics call gas station heroin. Predatory roofers and towing companies may face stricter state scrutiny soon, and a bill to force polluters to pay for cleaning up PFAS chemicals from local drinking water supplies also gets a warm reception in the state House. The state budget is on thin ice, with the House and Senate engaging in a rare public fight over how, or whether, to spend a $1 billion surplus that could be used on state worker raises, child care aid or nothing at all. Plus the elections are heating up, with legal fights over gerrymandering and Democrats continuing to focus on abortion, birth control and IVF.

Could North Carolina ban birth control if Mark Robinson is elected governor? Robinson says no, but Josh Stein says there’s a reason why Robinson recently spoke at an even hosted by an anti-birth-control group. Plus the latest on the state legislature’s proposal on continuing to allow people to wear masks for health reasons, the legal fight over control of the State Board of Elections, the political fight over a suspected Native American burial ground, and what’s going on with Cornel West's and RFK Jr.’s attempts to get on the ballot for president.

Eric and Lara Trump are speaking at the annual NCGOP convention, where North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is also speaking as Donald Trump looks for a vice presidential running mate. In the legislature, a war of words between Republican leaders on state budget talks and a proposal to undo the law allowing people to wear masks for health reasons. The UNC System BOG votes to repeal DEI policies. Gov. Roy Cooper issues a noteworthy veto as he heads out the door for a European business recruiting trip. And a new state constitutional amendment would say that only citizens can vote, which the constitution already says.

A proposal to ban masks in North Carolina moves ahead, as does a bill outlawing the use of AI to produce deepfake or child porn. Meantime, no video gambling bill has surfaced after weeks in session. Will it? WRAL Capitol Bureau Chief Laura Leslie and WRAL State Government Reporter Will Doran break it down. 

WRAL Capitol Bureau Chief Laura Leslie and WRAL State Government Reporter Will Doran look at Tuesday's statewide runoffs and this year's "April surprise," which isn't good news. Plus lawmakers say campus protests are the inspiration for bills defining antisemitism and banning masks.