Speaker Joe Hackney Honored in Boston

I am still in Boston for the National Association of State Legislatures. This morning was pretty exciting. Speaker Joe Hackney was presented with the Association's highest award for honoring the integrity of state legislatures as intended by the Founding Fathers. In accepting the award, Hackney talked about the crisis that North Carolina aced as a state whose decades-old reputation for good government was in danger. He thanked many people, but especially Reps. Deborah Ross and Julia Howard, as well as Sens. Clodfelter and Rand, for their determination to come together to address the ethical concerns that have been raised and to change the culture of the legislature.