Theresa Opeka
Carolina Journal
Tuesday’s Council of State (COS) meeting in Raleigh marked not only the end of the year but, for some, the end of Council members’ terms and, possibly, their political careers.
At the top of the list is Gov. Roy Cooper, who started serving on the COS as attorney general for sixteen years and then as governor for the last eight years. He also served as the Majority Leader of the state Senate from 1997 to 2001, in the Senate from 1991 to 2001, and in the state House from 1987 to 1991.
Many members praised Cooper, including outgoing State Treasurer Dale Folwell, who was in attendance with his wife, Synthia.
“Governor, I just want to congratulate you,” he said. “It’s not easy getting elected governor, and it’s not easy governing, and you know those are two different things. I want to congratulate you because, in my lifetime, I don’t know that any governor of North Carolina has been dutifully considered as one of the finalists to be the vice president of the United States, and that’s not nothing.”
Folwell, who lost his bid for the Republican nomination for governor to Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson in March, introduced incoming treasurer Brad Briner at the meeting and noted that it was the biggest turnover in the Council of State in recent history.
He said he wanted to remind everyone of all the members’ wisdom and courage, that there is a lot to learn from everyone, and that no one has a monopoly on all the good ideas.
Folwell also pushed for everyone to continue to advocate for the invisible.
“I’ve described the invisible as those who don’t have enough money to have political influence,” he said. “They make a little too much money to get help from time to time. They work one or two jobs to pay their taxes and probably pray for a better outcome.”
Folwell commented that he believes the Council of State should operate with transparency and openness. He did this by being the only member to livestream the meetings to the public on the state treasurer’s Facebook page.
“We should not be doing anything other than what we require our cities and counties to do when it comes to buying and disposing of property,” he said.
Folwell has served as state treasurer since 2017. Before that, he was the assistant secretary of Employment Security at the state’s Department of Commerce, overseeing the department’s Division of Employment Security from 2013 to 2015. He also spent four terms in the North Carolina House of Representatives, including a term as speaker pro tempore from 2011 to 2013.g
“This has been my community for 20 years, and I’ve never wanted to come to Raleigh and do my job halfway,” he told the members. “As a legislator, as assistant secretary of commerce, or keeper of the public purse, because if I did, what would that say about the person sitting behind me, my wife, Synthia? So, I just wanted to thank her for coming, thank her for supporting me in these endeavors over the last 20 years.”
Interim Labor Commissioner Kevin O’Barr said the labor department’s staff is working with incoming commissioner Luke Farley for a professional transition in January.
O’Barr was appointed by Cooper last month after former labor commissioner Josh Dobson unexpectedly resigned the day after the General Election to become president and CEO of the North Carolina Healthcare Association.
Dobson announced in December 2022 that he would not be seeking re-election. He also said he would not be a candidate for any other office.
Outgoing State Auditor Jessica Holmes, who was appointed by Cooper in December 2023, noted that it was one of the greatest honors of her life to sit at the table with Cooper and Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, who she called one of her heroes and one of the “firsts” at the table.
She also said that she looks forward to a smooth transition between her and state auditor-elect Dave Boliek, to whom she is offering her unequivocal support.
“You (Boliek) have inherited a wonderful staff and I’m very hopeful that you continue the mission to put people first and to focus on issues that matter most to people,” Holmes said. “At the end of the day, the job is simply to follow the money.”
She also stressed that while it is important to talk about helping out those who were devastated by Hurricane Helene in the western part of the state, not to forget those still waiting for a home almost ten years after Hurricanes Matthew and Florence ravaged the eastern part of the state, where Holmes grew up..
“As we talk about Hurricane Helene, it’s very important as someone from rural eastern North Carolina that I state on the record that we need to do better,” she said. “That said, in places like where I grew up in Maple Hill, North Carolina in Pender County, who were impacted by Hurricanes Matthew and Florence and yet they are still living in trailers or they are living in homes that have mold. So, as we focus on hurricane relief, let us make sure that we remember all of North Carolina and that we also address the people that have yet to be served, who have been waiting for a very, very long time for help.”
Holmes said in terms of unfinished business, that is a priority for her.
“And in terms of the auditor’s office, following the money, I think it’s absolutely important and critical to continue making sure that dollars slated for hurricane relief go to the people and places that need it most much more quickly than it has,” she said.
Outgoing Lt. Gov. Robinson said he ran for office to serve the people of North Carolina, which has been the honor of his lifetime.
“I never would have believed in a million years when I was working on the factory floor back in 2018 that in just a couple of years that I would be the first black Lieutenant governor of North Carolina, and I consider that to be an honor and that honor was brought to me by the people of North Carolina and I want to say thank you to them and I want to say it’s been my honor again to serve them as their lieutenant governor,” said Robinson.
He acknowledged Cooper and Marshall for their years of service. He also noted that politics is a rough business and that he doesn’t hold animosities against anyone for anything. He also congratulated Attorney General Josh Stein, who won over Robinson in the General Election to be the state’s next governor.
“I don’t know you personally, and I disagree with you vehemently politically, but my disagreement with you politically does not override my love for this state, and as such, I pray that you do a great job for the people of this state and I certainly hope that you do,” he told Stein.
Robinson quoted Shakespeare Monday as he presided over the state Senate for the last time.
“We don’t know what will happen tomorrow,” Robinson said. “Maybe we’ll meet, maybe we won’t, but if we see each other again, then maybe we’ll smile, but if not then we know that this parting was well made, and I leave that greeting with all of you. Farewell to all of you.”
Outgoing Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt wasn’t in attendance as she was attending a State Board of Education meeting.
Cooper ended the meeting by saying it has been his honor and privilege to serve on the Council of State for the past twenty-four years.
“I’m deeply grateful to each and every one of you who are willing to step up and serve in the public arena,” he said. “So, I would like for us to adjourn today in honor of all of the people of North Carolina, the greatest state in the greatest country in the world.”
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