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Welcome to All Things Saine, the enlightening radio show hosted by North Carolina House of Representative Jason Saine. Tune in to WSIC every Wednesday at 11am as Representative Saine takes you on a journey through the latest news, legislative updates, and insightful discussions on a wide range of topics that impact our communities.
About Representative Jason Saine
All Things Saine is hosted by Jason Saine, a dedicated public servant and a respected member of the North Carolina House of Representatives. With a deep passion for his constituents and a commitment to improving the lives of North Carolinians, Representative Saine has been an influential voice in shaping state policies and legislation. To learn more about Representative Saine and his work, visit his official website at https://www.jasonsaine.com/.
Show Format
During All Things Saine, Representative Jason Saine will explore a variety of important issues that affect North Carolina residents. Each episode provides a platform for in-depth discussions and interviews with experts, community leaders, and fellow policymakers. The show covers a wide range of topics, including:
Legislative updates and key initiatives.
Economic development and job creation.
Education and workforce development.
Healthcare and public health policies.
Infrastructure and transportation improvements.
Environmental conservation and sustainability.
Community engagement and local events.
Q&A sessions with listeners.
Engage and Participate
All Things Saine encourages active engagement from listeners. You can participate in the show by calling in with your questions, comments, and concerns during the live broadcast. Your insights and feedback are vital in shaping the conversation and ensuring that the topics covered address the issues that matter most to you and your community.
Connect with Representative Saine
For more information about All Things Saine, upcoming episodes, and special guest appearances, visit our website regularly. You can also subscribe to our podcast to catch up on past episodes and stay connected with Representative Jason Saine's insightful discussions.
Connect with Representative Saine directly through his official website https://www.jasonsaine.com/ to learn more about his work in the North Carolina House of Representatives and stay updated on his efforts to serve the community.
Stay Informed and Inspired
Join Representative Jason Saine every Wednesday at 11am on WSIC for All Things Saine. Stay informed about the latest legislative updates, engage in thought-provoking discussions, and gain valuable insights into the issues that shape North Carolina's future. Together, let's create positive change and build a better community for all.
To have you all here on this journey
with me since this is my debut.
Hang with me while I work
through some of the kinks maybe.
But I've been a co-host of a
talk radio show in the past,
but it might take a little
time to work out the bugs.
We'll get through it as Toby Keith
would say, and as good as I once was.
But I'm as good once as I ever was.
So we'll see at the end of this,
I should also start with a qualifier.
There will be music and movie references
on this show. Always. I can't help it,
it's just going to happen. Speaking
of which, later in the show,
you can call in toward
the end of the show.
Glad to hear from you and what you have
to say. And agreement is not required,
but I may have tell you just how wrong
you are or you can tell me how wrong I am
either way. But I, I'd also love to hear,
I don't know what the latest movie
you've seen either hated or liked Keeping
with a little pop culture too
while we worked through the day.
And I hope everyone had a great,
great Independence Day
yesterday we did at my house.
We just kind of took it easy,
didn't get on the lake sometimes
that's amateur hour on July 4th.
So we just kind of let those folks
do their thing and enjoy the lake.
And I'll be out later today. But at
our house, we didn't go too hard.
We grilled steaks and had a little
shrimp, did a little family movie night.
My wife Catherine and our 15 year old
son Jackson, just turned 15 on Friday.
We watched a comedy last night that
Jackson hasn't really been old enough to
watch, you know, kind of
wait when you've got a son,
hopefully he pretty soon gets there
to your level of 15 year oldness.
And so we're both pretty much on the
same level. He's pretty mature young man.
So we've loosened up a bit. And
last night we selected Walk Hard,
the Dewey Cox story. It's quite the
documentary. If you've never seen it,
I wouldn't recommend it for underage
kids, maybe 15 or older. But anyway,
let me take you back. It's an interesting,
interesting movie and really
was inspired, believe it or not,
by our president. What an
amazing guy and a son, father,
son relationship.
We were watching and watching the news
over the weekend and saw where they found
a white substance at the White
House. And it was not anthrax.
As we found out later,
apparently Hunter left something.
And so part of the movie
and the Dewey Cox story,
he's a rock and roll star, so he,
he's kind of a spoof on every rock and
roll story you ever saw through the
fifties, sixties, seventies, eighties,
even a little bit in the nineties.
And so at one point Tim Meadows is his
drummer. So it's a very funny story.
And he walks in on him and they're doing
drugs because apparently that happens
and in the rock and roll
industry every now and then.
So he walks in, he says, what
is that you're doing? He goes,
this is cocaine. You don't want any
of this stuff. And to which he says,
what's it do? And he says,
it takes away all your bad feelings
and turns 'em into good feelings.
I'm paraphrasing.
And it just reminded me of the
relationship that Hunter and Joe have.
And I thought, what a great comedy
to watch with your kid. But no,
we got a big laugh out of it, but
it is kind of what inspired it,
believe it or not.
But I'll take you back to where
it all began for me and want to,
as this is the start of the new
show, tell you a little bit about me,
what we'll be talking about,
how this is going to progress.
But my family upbringing
all is very important to me.
I was born and raised in
Lincolnton, the very beautiful area,
of course right next to the
shimmering waters of Lake Norman,
close by where we spent
most of our weekends.
My dad had a boat,
a little lot on Lake Norman back in the
day and learned to ski when you couldn't
learn to ski on in the middle
of a weekend on Lake Norman.
A few people have found out about this
wonderful place we live and they've shown
up and we love to have you,
but it's not quite as
uncrowded as it much once was.
But it's a close knit community
and it had a profound impact on
my values and principles
from a very young age.
Family remains everything to me,
and it was through their love and
guidance that it discovered my passion for
public service. My mother was a
county commissioner in Lincoln County.
She's our first ever woman county
commissioner. And she ran in 1996.
While I was working on a
gubernatorial campaign,
I was driving with Richard Vin
Root. He was running for governor,
former mayor of Charlotte. He lost that
race in the primary to Robin Hayes,
who I later went to work
for as well in that race.
But she was running and became our
first woman county commissioner.
So I got to see firsthand what it meant
to serve folks that you live around and
what that really meant. Growing
up, I attended local schools.
It really fosters since pride in my
community and ignited my desire to
contribute positively to society.
It was during those formative years,
my love in North Carolina took root and
I knew that I wanted to dedicate my life
to making a difference in the lives
of my fellow North Carolinians.
And I went to graduated
Lincoln High School.
I was sitting in Doris Little's government
class and learning about government
and it really sparked my interest.
And I realized that now maybe
I have an acumen for this.
And so I went on to NC State, studied
political science after two years,
buddy of mine who had been serving in
the army was getting out and starting at
UNC Charlotte convinced me that we'd
have a big time at UNC Charlotte taking
over student government in the world
and went transferred to UNC Charlotte.
Probably the best decision I ever made.
That's where I met my wife, Catherine,
and really just excelled at politics
there Locally was involved in college
Republicans. Worked with a
guy you might have heard of,
Congressman Richard Hudson. A good friend.
He was student body president at the time,
didn't know nor at that time that
we'd ever serve in public office.
But it sounded like a cool thing we
might do and ended up being something we
actually did, but never
would've known it back then.
But being in the political arena and
directly affecting people's lives really
make a big difference. Like I say,
realized I had that passion for
it after two years at the state,
transferred to Charlotte. Loved
both schools, but from there,
from student government,
became a leader in the college
Republicans with several of my classmates
mentioned Richard Hudson.
Others met Representative
Patrick McHenry at that time too.
He was at NC State. Didn't know him when
I was there, but knew him thereafter.
And we've all been pretty
involved as young people.
And then getting to a point where we're
elected is kind of neat to look back and
reflect upon. I'll have them both
come on the show in the future.
We'll get them on here later today.
We're going to have
representative Jeff Neely,
who you've heard on this station
before. He has his own show.
And actually I've called in a couple
of times, sometimes from the lake,
from the boat,
but I thought he would be a great first
guest as we kind of kick the tires on
this thing and run through it.
My career has been a path of
both challenges and achievements.
From serving as a campaign staff and
manager to becoming a member of the
North Carolina House of Representatives.
Every step has been a learning experience.
I worked tirelessly to champion
issues close to my heart,
promoting economic growth,
advocating for responsible fiscal
policies and supporting small businesses.
Throughout my legislative career.
There have been many ups and downs,
but what keeps me going is my love
for this state and its people.
I'm proud of the accomplishments we
have achieved together from supporting
innovative education
initiatives to enhancing our
infrastructure for a brighter
future. And now with this
show, all things saying,
I want to give back even more to
the community that has shaped me.
My goal is to provide you the listeners
with a unique perspective on the
political climate of North Carolina.
I want to break down complex issues,
demystifying the legislative process and
present it all from my point of view as
a representative who genuinely cares
about the wellbeing of our great state.
But this show is not just about politics,
it's also about the beauty of Lake
Norman and the lifestyle it offers.
I'll be bringing in special
guests, local experts, historians,
and even fellow legislators
like I mentioned, Jeff McNeilly,
to shed light on various topics,
be it environmental conservation,
local traditions, or the vibrant music
scene that thrives in this region.
All the things, all the fun things
that we do. And while we like,
we choose to call this place home,
we'll also delve into the stories of
the people who make North Carolina the
wonderful place that it is their triumphs,
struggles and contributions
shape the fabric of our society.
All things saying will be a platform for
these voices to be heard, understood,
and celebrated. We'll talk about the
breathtaking landscapes that surround us,
the history that colors our culture
and the issues that unite and sometimes
divide us.
Together we'll explore the
diverse tapestry of North
Carolina and the potential
it holds for a brighter future.
So my fellow North Carolinians,
I invite you to join me on
this incredible journey.
Let's embark on a quest
to better understand our
state's political landscape.
Learn from its past and pave the way
for a prosperous and harmless future.
Harmonious future, sorry.
Together we'll celebrate all things
sane and all things North Carolina.
Thank you for tuning in today.
I look forward to having you by my
side every week as we explore the heart
of our area.
Serving you better than ever before.
The new 1 0 5 9 100 0.7
W SIC news talk. Now.
Here is your Ws I
community calendar, lights,
camera Burdale at seven 30 this.
All right,
we're back and getting a lot of
comments on my personal Facebook and
several texts. One of our stafford's,
Carl Gilmore from the
legislatures listing in.
So I told him I'd give him a shout out.
I'm sure I just embarrassed every living
thing out of him. But nevertheless,
really appreciate you being on and
listening to the show. Next up,
we've got representative Jeff McNeely.
I think we've got him on the phone now.
Jeff, are you there?
Hell my life. Want to fight about
it? Wrong show. Sorry, wrong shows.
Wrong show. But hey, we are
going to have Jeff Pillars on.
I teased it on my newsletter that Jeff
Pillars from the John Boy Billy Show was
going to be on with me.
And then he got confused on the
days and I actually confused him.
So I contributed to that.
But we'll get him on soon.
He is a good friend and I love
to have him on, so it'll be fun.
But how you doing man?
Did you get to vacation on
the fourth or are you at home?
I got to actually stay home,
but I got up on the lake and tried
to drown myself in a nice cool water.
So it was very relaxing day. I really
needed it and I appreciated it.
Well, let me tell you about trying
to drown yourself. You'll love this.
So I was out on the boat by myself.
I'd spent all day on Monday working
on it. So I had him put it up on the
wash and worked on the boat, installed
a new switch and a couple things,
putting in a new radio on my little
fixer upper boat that I bought last year.
And then I went out in the cove after hot,
someone said it was the hottest
day of the year, I believe it.
And then came back in to put it to
the dock and kids holding the boat
for me as I get out throwing some stuff
out on the dock. And it started to rain,
which is why I was getting off the lake
and it was coming down pretty hard.
And I went to step back on that boat
and thank God nobody's watching.
And I ended up taking a little
plunge in the water. No,
no applause were given cause nobody
was sitting up at absent taps.
It was raining too much to sit
outside. So if I had to do that,
I only had two people to witness it, but
just kind of got to laugh at yourself.
I had on my, Hey dude,
I do not recommend those on a
boat because they're very slick.
And so as I found out,
no phones were lost,
my Braves hat was salvaged. I was good.
So I got to enjoy the lake a little bit.
And we're going to do, Jackson
had his birthday on Friday.
We're doing kids out on the lake
on Saturday, so that'd be fun.
So that'll.
Be, yeah, you'll have a big time with
that. You'll have a big time with that.
For sure. And for our listeners who don't
know, maybe if they catch your show,
they probably do. But the legislature's
taking a break this week, which is good.
I think all the reporters and everybody
else that have to work when we work,
probably pretty thankful of that.
So I'm glad you get to enjoy it too.
Yeah, I always tell 'em all down here
that I got time off for bad behavior.
We get it for good behavior
cause we don't do that.
That's right. That's not in
our culture what we do, Jeff.
I think it is fun for
listeners to interact with
legislators like this and local
officials. I know Vicky Sawyer's
got a show, Woody Mayor,
Woody Washington's got a show that he'll
be doing and really just interacting
locally. But from your experience,
because you've done this,
you're more of a veteran doing
this as a legislator than I am,
although I've been on radio before. What
do you find most rewarding about it?
Well, and I'm going to tell you
what, and you'll find this out too.
This is the fastest hour of your week.
I mean it goes by so quick cause I feel
like I've always got more I want to say.
But that's me because I'm full of
it and got a lot to talk about.
But I just like talking with the
people, hearing what they've got to say,
what bothers them, what worries them,
interaction with your constituents.
If you don't want to do that,
don't get in politics if you don't want
to hear what people have to say and then
try to help 'em or direct
'em in the right way.
I mean it's all about providing some
kind of service back to your constituents
so that their life is easier.
And that should be government.
It should be,
I'm often shocked and I don't think we
have as many legislators around now that
we used to,
who would readily admit that they never
read their own emails that came into
their office. Now I have
someone, and probably you do too,
that sees everything I see.
So that way I don't let it fall through
the cracks because we do stay pretty
busy. But I do like to have eyes on
what my constituents are sending to me,
whether they agree or don't agree.
Of course we get a lot of junk mail and
a lot of seminar emails and calls to the
legislature for people that we don't
represent and always remind them.
Anybody that wants to call and complain,
they don't live in the district.
I don't really represent them. So
that's not who I'm concerned about.
But it used to shock me. Some of the,
shall I say,
seasoned legislators at the time who
would not adapt to email or get a
recap of the phone calls.
And I sit down with my staff every
day and go through who's called today,
what do we need to be working
on and what's the status?
And we kind of do the same
thing in our office too. I mean,
she flags all the stuff
she knows I'm looking for.
And then every once in a while
you'll get a wild and crazy email.
So she'll call me up or text me, say,
Hey, you need to look at this one.
I don't know what to do about. So
people, we do read your emails,
we really do read them.
Well,
I think we should have a segment at some
point on one of our shows where we read
the bad emails. The people
who are so complimentary.
I think that are mean tweets
if you want. I love Twitter.
Since Elon Musk has taken over,
it's become not quite the
dumpster fire it once was,
which is nice to see because you do have
to get through all that clouded mess.
But you get these folks you like
to hide behind the keyboard,
the keyboard warriors, the keyboard
heroes that will fire off something.
And every now and then, if it is
a constituent at home, I call 'em.
And if someone's upset and mad
at me, I really do want to know,
can we improve it? Can we fix it? What's
the issue? Some you can, you can't.
But the mean tweets and the mean
letters, we and my back office,
and Jeff knows this,
we've got a wall of hate.
So where we get the nice little postcards
that we get from some of the folks
from Oregon and California and
Wisconsin who want to comment on
North Carolina politics and we
post those up on the wall of hate.
You need a wall of hate. Jeff.
Oh, oh baby a after about a month
ago, I, I've had a tidal wave of hate,
but I know.
Well it happens.
I'm going to need a big wall. A
big wall, a big wall. Yes it does.
Well I went out after the
September 11th, 2019 veto
override where we were to be in
session.
Apparently the Democrats were in a hole
somewhere drawing masks by their own
admission by the way accidentally.
But by their own admission they didn't
show up for session that day and wanted
to blame somebody for them
not showing up to work.
And we called for the veto override.
I'm the guy that made this statement.
Of course I'm a former firefighter
at East Lincoln Fire Department.
And so September 11th means something
to me too. It does all Americans.
But we were there to work that day
and one of the reporters stuck a
mic in my face and he's a good friend.
He's now in Michigan, but Jonah Kaplan.
And he said,
what do you think about the Democrats
not being there in the chamber And you
move,
making a motion to which this is the
famous I will not yield from Deb Butler.
I just real quick quip, I
said, you know what, hey look,
if September 11th, if we don't show
up to work, the terrorists went.
And I said it kind of jokingly,
of course he reported that.
And for a solid three days
we got interesting calls
and emails. So it happens if
you're in the public arena,
you're going to every now and
then misspeak, but you move on.
And I think constituents are pretty
forgiving about that long as long as
intent's. Right. And with your
incident, I think your intent was right.
I was there in the building,
of course, heard what you said,
know what you meant.
I told people, I said,
most people just don't
speak McNeely E and I do.
So I understood exactly what you.
Meant, right? Yeah. It's
an acquired language.
It is an acquired language, no doubt.
Well it is never a dull moment.
So what do you got cooking for the rest
of the session? What are you working on?
Well I got my bill where we're
going to try to go in and regulate
hemp industry and C B D.
It's kind of unregulated now.
And so I think that's going
to be a really good thing.
A 10 year old kid can walk in at
these fake shops and buy whatever
and that needs to change and
it will. So we got that to do.
Well. We're never without
things to do. It's.
A good deal.
Well, and you've done a lot on agriculture
just because of your background,
but do you find that, and hemp
certainly falls into that category,
but also from a regulatory standpoint,
but do you find that from your different,
you you'd served as a county commissioner
but coming into the legislature that
we deal with a whole host of issues.
It's not just that one
thing that the most about,
but you end up becoming a pseudo
expert on a lot of different bills.
What's one that's kind of thrown you
for a loop? Can you think of one?
Well I mean that one really is one of 'em.
Cause I don't know anything
about hemp or C B D,
but I hear all this stuff and a l
e came to us and said we got to do
something.
We keep testing positive over
0.3 TC and a lot of these
hemp products, the delta eights,
nines and tens and all that stuff with
Delta nine ispo, Delta eight, delta 10,
they're coming up with
a new number every day.
And I've had to submerse
myself and learn more
chemical names than I have since I
took chemistry 1 0 1 at NC State.
The different variations of
TC and the hemp plant and
cannabis. So all of a sudden, like I said,
I think I could debate quite a
few scholars on hemp if I had to.
And education's always one.
We get into morality issues that you
don't do at a county commissioner level.
The county commissioner,
you fight people over a nickel and I
ain't spending that nickel on this here.
It's the nickel and it's your heart
and it's the Bible and it's what you
believe. I mean this rips out
different parts of you all the time.
Trying to make up, think's
going to be a good law,
but a fair law for all
points and all people.
It's just very encompassing.
More than I ever dreamed.
Well for sure it is.
It more than you ever dreamed
you become an expert at acronyms.
I mean you threw out
just several right there.
You were talking about T H C and
CCB D and I didn't even mention the
LBC and the coops, but
that's a Snoop Dog reference in case
you didn't get it. But yeah, I got you.
Yeah, well you got it. I'm sure you did.
There's a lot of driving in the lbc but
it is amazing just how much we end up
learning about and dealing with and
things that I never thought I would even
talk about.
I never would've thought when I came
to the legislature in 2011 that I'd be
talking about transgenderism some of
the things that we talk about today.
But Jeff, I we're wrapping
up here going to the break.
I really appreciate you coming
on being my first guest.
I think someday this is going to be a
monumental thing in my resume that I'm
going to put down. So
hey, you made it for me.
Thank you brother.
I'm good for life. Take care. Appreciate
you brother. See ya. Have a good show.
See you. Bye.
Local news and weather now on
the news 1 0 5 9 100 0.7 W SIC
News talk Now.
I'm Mike Jackson Ws IIC News,
W S O C reporting that a 25
year old apparently drowned
after he fell off a boat yesterday
afternoon on Lake Norman near Blythe
Landing Park in Huntersville.
Multiple agencies were involved in the
recovery channel nine identified the
victim. S Dago Andres
Osorio Garcia hired El Fire
FireWire said the victim fell off
the front of a pontoon boat and a
4th of July celebration was.
And good morning, we're back.
This is all things saying,
I'm your host representative Jason sa.
Appreciate representative Jeff McNeely
calling in as we kind of work through the
kinks in our first show.
Just trying to figure out the clock
and making sure we sound okay and
not embarrassing myself,
my wife and my family is always
a challenge and so we're work
through it.
One of the things that we're wanting
to do with the show is really just talk
about things to just pop up
right around the area around Lake
Norman. Of course, I'm from
Lincolnton, live in Lincolnton,
lived in Denver for a long time over
in Huntsville, Cornelius, Mooresville.
I do want to talk at some point about my
idea about a channel under Lake Norman.
I can't get the funding for it
yet, can't get Vicky Sawyer.
And I really want to see this happen.
Just going to channel under the lake.
So from Lincolnton to Mooresville,
I could do it that way because I have
a business in Mooresville as well
as in Lincolnton.
And so I'm on that highway one 50
route all the time. And trust me,
I suffer it just like
you do. It can't come,
the expansion can't come soon enough.
But speaking of things
that pop up on Saturday,
I was with a buddy of mine on the lake,
just really just hanging out when the
storm blew up and we had been looking at
homes, trying to find a buddy's
house, finally found it.
We were kind of south of
the one 50 bridge over South
Mooresville kind of. And we saw
a storm blowing up. We thought,
well we'll just head further
south cause we can see it.
We're watching it on our phones, figuring
out that we could get past it. I,
I've been on some storms on Lake Norman
and nothing like what we were in on
Saturday. It was pretty, I mean it
was rough. It was incredibly rough.
I mean we had a lot of fun with it too,
but because we're two guys
on the lake thinking that
nothing will happen to us.
But there were a couple times where
it got scary and we ended up getting
under shelter under a dock.
Wasn't hailing, but the
rain was pretty penetrating.
But rough storms, rough seas.
And for an inexperienced boater,
I was kind of joking earlier about
amateur hour on July 4th on the lake,
and I don't know whether this
person was experienced or not,
but we did lose somebody on Saturday
and I don't know what the cause was,
but they were looking for him on
Saturday, I think finally found him.
But sadly he had passed away
really because it's, I mean,
it's rough out there. It can be
rough out there and you know,
see it on the coast and you think, well
that's different. That's the coast.
But even in Inland Lake you
will see some rough weather.
So whenever you're out
there, do practice safety.
As you heard me talking
earlier to McNeely,
also stepping off a dock, you could
easily hit your head, which I did not do,
but I did take a little dip in the
lake the other day. Lots going on.
I mentioned the white powder
found at the White House.
Some days you get up and you go, I
can't believe what's happening next.
We're at a place in this country
that is a little dark. So
you kind of got to take it in balance.
You got to see what's happening
nationally, internationally, we got wars.
I mean nothing new there.
There's always been wars,
there's always things going on.
But one thing I do know is that you
can find a lot of comfort in home.
We live here in the Lake Norman area.
The reason we chose this
area and my wife and I,
when we met in college and
then decided to get married,
she loved the area I grew up in.
It is a lot different from a
lot of places around the world.
And as we tell people more and more people
about it and they end up coming here,
which is a great thing. I'm
not against growth at all,
but as long as you acclimate to our
culture and understand who we are and as
long as we can keep that small town feel,
even as we add people to
our neighborhoods, I think
we'll be in a better place.
But again,
it is fun to serve and to hear really the
biggest thing that we do as
representatives is interact
with people and get 'em
to a better place when they
deal with state government.
Now we also get a lot of
calls that we can't handle.
Sometimes I get calls for garbage
for the city of Lincolnton.
I don't have anything to do with that,
but I'm always happy to help people get
to the right place and figure out what
the problem is with the garbage pickup.
Or it might be a congressional matter
things that happen at the federal level,
but we try to interact with
all the offices and figure
out how to get people to
things and we do a pretty
good job with that. Also,
serving at state
legislature is interesting.
Always love going out to
schools and especially the
third grade, fourth grade,
fifth grade, sixth grade level.
And talking to these kids and hearing
from them what their perception of local
government is, of what state
government is. And finding out one,
always ask the question, how much do you
think your legislator makes? And again,
all kinds of figures
from the fourth grade,
fifth grade area, I've, I've been told
that legislators make a million dollars,
they make a hundred thousand dollars
and I'm not arguing for a pay increase.
That's not at all what I'm saying.
But it's interesting to hear perspective
of what people think happens and what
really happens. It's like that meme,
you see what my mom thinks I do,
what my dad thinks I do,
what my boss thinks I do.
And then the reality and reality is we
sit in a lot of committee meetings for a
lot of periods of times.
And quite frankly for me,
been able to add extra weight while
sitting at the legislature because when
you're there from eight o'clock in the
morning till about eight o'clock at night
in meetings, it's not the healthiest
of atmospheres. But nevertheless,
I love getting home where you can
get out, get into some sunshine.
Rocking a nice tan right now. Hadn't
shaved this week because, well,
I'm kind of on vacation a little bit
and not having to be in formal meetings.
So if you're watching on video,
this is pretty much mean.
Usually more in a Columbia shirt when
I'm out on the lake and flip flop.
So it's nice not to have to put on the
suits and go to the meetings this week,
but we will go back next week, try
to wrap up this legislative session.
I think in the next two
weeks we're close on budget.
I'm one of the senior
appropriation chairs in the house,
which means I get to spend 32 billion on
your behalf and I try to do so wisely.
But after it cuts into family time,
we're bumping up close to family vacation
and a couple of other things we want
to do this summer.
And my wife has a nice
honey do list that I kid
actually my list. She
goes, can't you be still?
And I can't like going
home and getting to my,
and so they're really more my
projects than her projects.
But I've got a couple that I've dying
and itching to get to. So we will
mention that we will always
talk about movies and music
references. I'll drop few
here and there. Again,
just kind of the lifestyle of
things that go on around us. We,
we've seen movies have stunk.
I think since the pandemic,
there's not been a lot of great ones.
We did see the Marvel
movie a couple weeks ago,
the Guardians of the Galaxy
Three. It was awesome movie.
And my son went and watched the
new Spider-Man animation series or
movie with my wife, but I didn't
get to see it because, well,
I was stuck in Raleigh. But
nevertheless, love to hear what you like,
don't like. I heard a lot of
feedback on this Barbie movie.
Of course we have a son. I have no
interest in going to the Barbie movie,
but I have heard some
people talking about that.
If you're a fan of Carins and if you
grew up in this area, you probably are.
I remember one of the things
right after I got my license,
my little high school girlfriend and I
would go just about every day down to
Carins. We get the season pass,
go to the pool, ride the rides,
do the things that you do at Carins.
I think things have changed a little bit
since then, but what really scared me,
and if you're a fan of rollercoasters,
this should probably scare you and I,
I've always tried to convince my
wife that these things are safe.
There's nothing to worry about.
It turns out every now and then
there is something to worry about.
And if you saw what happened at Carins
where the rollercoaster had the crack
in the support beam,
pretty scary stuff because you could
see daylight through that thing and glad
nobody got hurt.
But that would be one that's a little
hard to convince the wife to come
back and ride a rollercoaster.
I've only gotten her on one time,
it was at Myrtle Beach we were
dating and then that's actually when
she bit my shoulder. And when I say
bit, I don't mean just a nibble.
There's nothing playful about
it. She was scared to death.
And at one point I guess it seemed when
you're panicking and scared to death
that it's okay to bite
somebody on their shoulder.
But we got through it and
we love to tell about it.
But I really appreciate all
the feedback from on the show,
people listening and watching
online. Really appreciate that.
This will be,
I think a show that you'll appreciate
and we'll continue into the future.
We're going to do this every Wednesday,
whether I'm at the legislature
or at home or maybe traveling.
We'll got a way to do that and we will
do that and really want to get your
feedback on issues that
you want to talk about. But
in the next segment, we'll have callers
call in and glad to have you on,
talk to you, get your opinions, love to
hear from you. I think the number is,
if I tell you correctly, I
don't want to mess that up,
is 8 44 Studio four.
This is Jason saying on all things
saying, really appreciate you listening.
I.
Really appreciate you listening and
watching on the various social medias.
Really for a first time show,
as Representative McNeely
was alluding to earlier,
time flies. Oh my goodness, you
think you're prepared for the hour,
but you really cannot be prepared
for time to fly like it does.
This is the point in the show where
you can call in. If you don't call in,
I'll just make it up. It's pretty
easy. So love to have you call in,
love to hear from you again. We will
give you that number one more time.
And my brain only works half the
time, but it's 8 4 4 studio four.
That's pretty easy to remember.
Glad to take your calls.
We'll do the best we can to monitor
through and to get to your calls.
If you call in talking
about when time flies, it's,
it's amazing just how long or how
short a time that I've been in the
legislature. I was appointed in 2011
and my son was three and a half.
Like I said, he just turned 15 on Friday.
That is absolutely hard to imagine.
One, it's hard to imagine
that I turned 50 this year.
Most people you age, age,
age really to me doesn't really matter.
But as some people do think that matters.
To think that I'm almost 50 when in
my mind I think I stopped at about 32.
I still think I can do all those
things that I could do at 32.
I learned that the hard way when I was
cleaning up the boat on Monday again in
that hot sun, which I didn't mind
because when at the legislature,
a lot of give and take and back and forth.
And so that part I didn't miss on
Monday because some days you feel
like you haven't accomplished a lot as
you are waiting on negotiations
as you go back and forth.
And so to be out able to work on the boat
and to do it in the heat and the sun,
as bad as that sound, it wasn't
that bad except the next day.
Yesterday I felt it in my bones
of my muscles and everything else.
You forget just about that muscle memory.
And my muscles had obviously forgotten
about what it means when you spend all
afternoon out in the heat and sun did
hydrate very well, drink a lot of water,
but it kind of goes through
you when it's that hot again.
The call in is two eight, excuse me,
8 44 Studio four and love to have you
call in. If you're listening today,
we will do this show, like I say,
every week. I know that Justin,
the folks here at the station are
putting on local leaders every day
from 11 to 12, which is pretty neat.
I've been on Vicky Sawyer show a number
of times and on Jeff McNeely show a
number of times.
And so to see that continue to be added
to that lineup is pretty neat for me to
do and really enjoy all the
people that we talked to in
the Lake Norman area. This morning
I was coming to the studio,
I'd never been in the studio in
Cornelius where we're broadcasting from.
And so I wasn't sure how to get to
the upstairs suite where the studio's
located.
And so I just randomly opened one of
the business doors and asked one of the
nice ladies in there and then looked
over and it was somebody I knew.
So it's just fun and good
to be home just to run into
people and talk to people that,
and really that's at the heart
of representative democracy.
The founders had it right,
that you go back home and you answer
to the people that you represent and
work through any issues that you have. And
that goes for Republicans and
Democrats too, by the way.
We don't see that on the news so
much at the legislature in Raleigh.
I think we get overshadowed
by what happens nationally.
About 80 to 90% of what
comes across our desk,
what we get to debate on the house floor,
ends up not being that much
of a debate. It might be
correcting a few minor things,
but in large part people agree.
And even when they vote against
the bill, they might say, well,
I liked a lot about your bill, I just
couldn't vote for the other part of it.
So it is interesting to have,
once you go and see that,
it's usually amazing for people who have
never been to the legislature and take
that on and they go, oh wow, I
didn't think it worked that way.
I didn't know that Republicans and
Democrats actually interacted this year.
I had a bill come through the legislature
that had been one that last session
we lost by one vote on the house
floor. It was about sports betting.
And there's a great article in the
Charlotte Business Journal from yesterday.
Eric Sandberg had wrote about
how the bill came to fruition.
And large part, I don't gamble a lot.
I do so it's kind of recreational,
but was more fascinated by the fact that
we were losing money to other states.
Our neighbors to the North Virginia
had just instituted casinos.
They have sports betting, they have
in Tennessee, has sports betting.
And quite frankly,
it's revenue that either goes shore or
people illegally bet They were illegally
betting. And this law
goes to effect in January,
January of 2004 or 2024 and
just in time for the Super Bowl, if
you're looking to place your bet,
because that is the big day that
everybody thinks that they should bet on a
game.
But it came not from a moral
standpoint of yes or no or opposed
to it or for it, but just
the understanding that
it was happening anyway.
And that providing
transparency on sports betting,
I thought was a better move for our state.
Got us to a better place to really know
what's happening out there. To know.
Are people in North Carolina betting on
sports? Turns out, yes. Yes they are.
I learned this was sitting at two
cans one day for lunch over on
at the one 50 Bridge. And two of my
buddies who I watched sports with,
whether it's baseball,
football, basketball,
pretty much love all sports are
placing bets on their phone.
And I just asked the question,
I said, and I won't out,
I won't tell you who it is.
If you know me well enough,
you can probably figure it out.
But I said, how are you doing that?
And that's not legal in our state. I
didn't think that you could do that.
Cause I was on DraftKings. I do
fantasy football, stuff like that.
And they proceeded to tell me they're
buddies going through a VPN and going
through an online bookie
and placing their bets.
And these are people that this not
impacting their families one way or the
other. They've got great families
and great work ethic, great jobs,
they're fine.
But they were placing their bets and I
couldn't figure out how they were doing
it. And as they walked me through it,
that's really the culmination
of how this bill started.
And so we ran it through
last year. Got it.
Almost passed a lot of obstacles, a lot
of folks who just didn't understand it.
Fast forward a year later,
it passed with a margin of over
20 votes on the house floor.
Went to the Senate, passed
there overwhelmingly,
and we got the bill passed and got to
sign the bill with the governor. Well,
he signed it, but at the Hornets arena.
And so we were downtown at Spectrum
and really it was me and some of
my colleagues. And because we were still
in session, when you're the minority,
it's easier to get away from session.
So a couple of my Democrat friends who
had helped with that bill were there for
the bill signing. So the
governor and I don't talk much,
but on this issue we agreed
and got that bill signed.
So I think it'll be a big
windfall for, quite frankly,
for sports enthusiasts.
It means more opportunities for our
teams to stay in the state, the hornets,
the hurricanes,
the panthers all were very involved and
engaged and wanted to see this happen as
well as what it will mean for
being a more competitive market.
As we look to the future,
I think Charlotte's,
I can't remember what the most
recent media market ranking is,
but we're somewhere in the like 2021.
So to keep a team is very important
for us. And if you're a fan,
you really want that to happen.
My son is a huge basketball fan.
Hopefully with the
trades and the signings we just had,
maybe the hornets can be competitive
again, we'd love to see that.
But this will help them get there because
the things that go along with it are
the bigger exposure for the teams
and more revenue for the team.
So it just means that they
can pay for better players.
But all of that kind of came
together this year, got that done.
And now we're working on budget
usually, or should be done by July 1st.
That's the start of the fiscal year.
We're not the first legislature
to ever make that date.
I think it was the seventies when the
last time they actually made the date on
time.
But we're pretty close to getting that
finished and all it really means nothing
stops in North Carolina because we
don't, don't get a budget passed.
What happens, we have a
default continuing resolution.
So whatever was passed before continues
up until the time we pass a new budget.
So unlike Washington DC,
we're not going to have these government
shutdowns and things of that nature.
We'll just get to it and
get it done and work on it.
What it does mean for departments and
other elements of government
is the money doesn't go out.
And I believe we have a call in,
I think we got Jason Moyer on line if
I'm reading that right from Lincolnton.
Jason?
Yes. Representative
saying, how are you doing?
I'm good man. How are you?
I'm doing all right. I
just had a quick question.
I know you guys are short on time,
but I want to get your quick opinion.
What is the most pressing issue
for the upcoming state budget?
Well, quite frankly, we solved the
biggest one, which was Medicaid expansion,
which I voted against,
but majority of my colleagues in
the house and Senate voted for.
So that was the big one.
Now what's what we're really dealing
with is how much we're going to spend on
what parts of government. I'm a
huge fan of the highway patrol.
I know it's hard for people to say that
cause they're usually associate that
with getting us speeding ticket,
but I know these guys are guys and
women are out there all the time putting
their lives on line on our behalf and
getting them a pay bump, a pay raise,
because they're competing with municipal
departments and with county sheriffs
and so forth on pay.
That is the biggest problem
that we're looking at right now.
I think just figuring out what
employee pays going to be.
But we saw the big nut and
we got through that and
we'll get to the next one to crack.
But really appreciate you calling
in Jason and asking that question.
There's a myriad of other issues we'll
work through, but we'll get there.
All. Well, I appreciate your
service. Thank you for taking the.
Call. Well, hey, really appreciate
you calling in today. Take care.
And really that thanks. Really,
that is one of the bigger issues
that we look at as state government.
Cause we've got to pay our employees
and we don't want to grow the government
too much, but we was with inflation and
everything else that's pressuring us.
We want to do the best that we can and
make sure that we're giving the right
services to the people of
the state of North Carolina.
I always say we can have nice things.
We want to keep in mind of how much they
cost and making sure that we've got the
revenue that comes in.
I've been the appropriations chair and
the finance chairman, or I'm sorry, yeah,
appropriations chair now and
the finance chairman. So I've,
I've been in charge of raising
the revenue but also spending it.
But we try to keep it within bound,
which is why our state is doing so well.
It has been a wonderful hour with
you. Really appreciate the call in.
Appreciate representative McNeely.
Look forward to doing this every week.
Thanks for listening, and we'll
be back next week. Thank you.