Joyce Krawiec is a conservative activist, former North Carolina Republican Party Vice-Chair, and retiring North Carolina Senator. Christian, wife, mother, small business owner, and conservative. She has endorsed Dana Caudill-Jones for North Carolina Senate.
Have you ever taken a walk around the North Carolina General Assembly?
The Legislative Building is an architectural wonder built during the height of the Cold War, by an optimistic architect who also thought the Russians could drop “the bomb” on downtown Raleigh at any minute. A grand staircase with bright red carpet and dazzling brass trim leads you to either chamber of our state’s legislature, or down into one of four cinderblock office quadrants. State politics is full of emotional highs and lows. I do not gamble, but I am guessing that it is no coincidence that this building is half-casino, half-bomb shelter.
Last month I felt very emotionally low after questioning Karen Brinson Bell, Governor Roy Cooper’s appointee to run the North Carolina Board of Elections. I had very simple questions for her, like ‘Why should you not have to resign for breaking the law during the election last year?’ She responded that she should not have to resign because she did not break the law “in [her] heart.”
The trouble started last year. My colleagues and I passed House Bill 1169: “The Bipartisan Elections Act of 2020” in June. The bill allocated more funding to County Boards of Elections, loosened requirements so that only one witness needed to sign an absentee ballot, and allowed voters to request an absentee ballot online.
The Act was widely-heralded for striking a perfect balance between election security and voter access during the height of the pandemic. It was co-sponsored by several liberal Democrats and passed with overwhelming bipartisan support. We all felt that we had acted in good faith, though I was not thrilled with the idea of removing one of the witness signatures. New provisions related to voter ID eased my concerns.
Soon after her boss signed the bill into law, Elections Director Karen Brinson-Bell, Democrat Attorney General Josh Stein, and national Democrat attorney Marc Elias colluded to overturn it. The trio attempted to remove the witness signatures and force the state to accept absentee ballots over one week after Election Day.
This may have been one of the most corrupt political maneuvers to ever take place in Raleigh. (Did you hear any criticism from the Raleigh press?)
Her scheme backfired. One federal judge called the settlement “a flagrant misuse” of the law. Another said that Brinson-Bell had “upset the electoral status quo in the middle of an election.” The United States Supreme Court allowed these decisions to stand, upholding our law and preserving the last remaining shred of the election’s integrity in this state. North Carolina Republicans had a great year, and President Donald Trump carried North Carolina. The only real disappointments here were the re-elections of Governor Cooper and Attorney General Stein.
Despite Republicans’ success in November, I felt completely powerless after the hearing with Brinson-Bell. Would her misdeeds wind up in the paper? Would Roy Cooper fire her? Would she face any consequences after openly breaking the law? I hear from constituents every single day who are fed up with paying for a system where Democrats can break the law and get rewarded for it. And are they wrong? Karen Brinson-Bell will pocket another $150,000 this year from the North Carolina taxpayers, plus benefits. You, the reader, are paying this person to undermine your elections.
Anger alone is never productive. In the North Carolina Senate we are taking action. We have passed bills to tighten up election security, but the Governor has vetoed them. We are also working on a bill to end corrupt bargains like the one Democrats attempted last year. I am sponsoring Senate Bill 360 to Prohibit Collusive Settlements by the Attorney General. This bill has a better chance of becoming law, but this depends on the Governor or at least a handful of legislative Democrats.
I have a warning for Karen Brinson-Bell, and for her boss, Governor Roy Cooper: everybody loses if they keep playing the casino long enough.
Governor Cooper, get ready to lose your veto power. Karen Brinson-Bell, get ready to lose your job. There will be no more suing to force the state to turn blue. Your actions last year also prove that you cannot work with the other side in good faith.
The ‘big guy’ in Washington, DC? Joe Biden cannot and will not be on the ballot to help you next year. North Carolina will be one of several red states with a larger Congressional delegation following the US Census.
For those who are concerned about the future of this country, I only have one thing to say: start focusing, right now, on the upcoming election. I remain powerless to fix these problems on my own. But with your support, time, talent, and prayers, we still have time to right this ship. God is in control and we are going to win big.
(For questions about getting involved with conservative campaigns and causes, contact Joyce Krawiec at www.joyceforsenate.com.)
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Joyce Krawiec is a conservative activist, former North Carolina Republican Party Vice-Chair, and retiring North Carolina Senator. Christian, wife, mother, small business owner, and conservative. She has endorsed Dana Caudill-Jones for North Carolina Senate.