Erskine Bowles, former White House chief of staff under President Bill Clinton, officially announced Wednesday that he will seek the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Jesse Helms in 2002.
Bowles, a partner in the Charlotte investment banking firm Carousel Capital, joins state Rep. Dan Blue, D-Wake, and North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall in the Democratic race.
Bowles said in a statement that the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 caused him to decide to seek the nomination.
"What is important now are the concerns of parents who worry about the security of their children, the concerns of working people who worry about the security of their jobs, and the concerns of all Americans who are committed to preserving our values, our freedom and our way of life," Bowles said.
National Guard to begin airport patrols:
After a one-day delay, members of the National Guard will begin providing extra security today at 12 airports around the state, including Raleigh-Durham International Airport.
In the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, Gov. Mike Easley called last week for the troops to patrol the airports. They will not screen passengers and baggage until Saturday because additional training is required for those tasks.
"If you're traveling [today], you're liable to see members of the National Guard walking around," said Renee Hoffman, a representative of the Department of Crime Control and Public Safety.
About 90 troops who have been trained at Fort Bragg will provide the additional protection until the federal government develops and implements a nationwide program of improved security.
Overall test scores improve, racial gap does not:
More North Carolina students are performing at or above grade level, according to test scores released Thursday. But a racial achievement gap still persists.
According to results from the ABCs of Public Education, a program the state Department of Public Instruction uses to evaluate how successful schools are at educating their children, 71.7 percent of students from third through eighth grade performed at or above grade level last year. That compares to 69.8 percent last year.
But there remains a significant gap in achievement among students of different races, particularly between white and black children. Fifty-two percent of black third- through eighth-graders scored at or above grade level, compared to 82 percent of white ones.
State superintendent Mike Ward said it was important for schools to close the achievement gap so that people do not lose faith in the system.
"Frankly, I had hoped to see a little more movement on closing the gap," Ward said. "I think our window of opportunity for closing the gaps is limited."
Governor commutes sentence:
Gov. Mike Easley granted clemency Tuesday to convicted murderer Robert Bacon, Jr., commuting his death sentence to life in prison without parole.
Easley's decision came after Bacon objected that Easley should not hear pleas for clemency because of Easley's former role as state attorney general. Then, and during his career as a prosecutor, Easley advocated the death penalty. A court ruled that these positions did not prevent him from hearing clemency appeals.
In the past, Easley has usually rejected such appeals. He did not say why he decided to grant clemency to Bacon.
Bacon's execution had been originally scheduled for May, but it was postponed when his lawyers challenged Easley's ability to hear pleas for clemency. It was again delayed in the wake of the terrorist attacks because Bacon could not properly access the courts.
Bacon was to have been executed by lethal injection for stabbing his lover's husband to death in 1987 in Onslow County. His lawyers claimed that race had influenced the outcome of Bacon's trial, because he is black and his lover is white.
Another inmate, David Junior Ward, is also requesting clemency from the governor. Ward had an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court for a stay of execution rejected Wednesday. Ward was sentenced to death for the killing of a Greenville, N.C., shopkeeper in 1991.
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