McCrory Signs Second Bill Weakening Dem Successor's Role

Outgoing Republican Gov. Pat McCrory has signed the second of two bills that strip his Democratic successor of significant powers. His statement on the action also reignited the controversy surrounding a rumored move by lawmakers that could have shifted the balance of the state Supreme Court.

McCrory says he signed HB17 despite misgivings about a provision requiring lawmaker approval for incoming governor Roy Cooper's picks for agency positions. The bill also limits how many political appointees the governor can hire. Governor-elect Cooper has threatened to sue over several of the bill's provisions.

In McCrory's statement, he also took credit for heading off any measure to add members to the state Supreme Court, or what's known as court packing. GOP leaders have denied there ever was such a plan, saying it was a rumor fed to the press by Democrats.

Republican lawmaker Deborah Conrad of Forsyth County told the Winston-Salem Journal she had no clue what the Governor meant by the inclusion of that statement in his press release.