Cupcake Shoppe Bakery | newsobserver.com projects

Budget to get final vote today

Submitted by bniolet on August 5, 2009 - 7:31am.

* The House and Senate approved the budget along strict party lines Tuesday.

The $19 billion spending plan is set to get its final votes in both chambers today. The compromise reached by Democrats requires local school districts to take the hatchet to education spending.

Local school districts have waited all summer for a state budget, but now, just three weeks before most schools open, they have to make $225 million in cuts themselves.

The budget prohibits the state from changing class size limits in kindergarten through third grades but tells districts to make the cuts and do the best they can in higher grades. That's probably going to mean bigger classes for the older students.

"They're passing the buck," said Anne Medenblik, Orange County school board chairwoman. She called the budget process mismanaged, with schools starting in a few weeks and no spending decision in place. By the time the district finds out how much money it will lose, she said, schools will face laying off teachers who have reported for work. (N&O)

* The Senate will approve another $2 billion for the popular "cash for clunkers" program, probably by the end of the week, Democrats predicted.

Some GOP lawmakers threatened on Monday to let the program expire. But many of the opponents were hit with a political reality: many consumers and auto dealers love the program. (McClatchy)

* Sara Coleman, owner of the Cupcake Shoppe in Glenwood South, is still enjoying buzz from her presidential endorsement. Coleman, who introduced President Barack Obama in his visit to Raleigh last week, had planned to send Obama some cupcakes, but she learned that the food items have to go through an awful lot of security including a taster. (.biz)

Dome Memo: Health care and sci fi

Submitted by bniolet on July 31, 2009 - 7:50am.

HAIL TO THE CUPCAKES: President Barack Obama held a town hall at a Raleigh high school to build support and rally swing votes on health care reform among the state's Congressional delegation. While in Raleigh, the leader of the free world gave a huge plug to a Raleigh cupcake shop and forgot the name of the House speaker.

THE DEAL'S A LOCK: Last week's budget meltdown left House and Senate Democrats bitterly divided. And that's how they stayed until Wednesday when the budget negotiators unveiled a plan that looked remarkably like the one that died the week before. By week's end they had a handshake agreement to raise sales taxes and income taxes on higher wage earners. A handful of Democrats, enough to scuttle the deal, were grumbling about the "sin" taxes and the word was Gov. Beverly Perdue still wasn't thrilled with the tax plan. What could go wrong?

BEAM HIM UP: Rep. Earl Jones, a Democrat from Ceti Alpha 5, er, Greensboro, was in the news this week. First he breathlessly announced in a news conference that his bill to legalize video poker has supporters. Then his bill to create a high-tech center called the "Star Fleet Academy" on N.C. A&T State University's campus was the subject of a parody video that included a picture of Perdue after a Borg assimilation. Jones is running on impulse power and his shields are at 25 percent. Scotty, you've got to give him more power!

IN OTHER NEWS: Former house member Michael Decker got his prison sentence reduced. U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre won't run for Senate. U.S. Sen. Richard Burr won't vote for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor.

Cupcake shop owner introduces Obama

Submitted by bniolet on July 29, 2009 - 11:14am.

Tags: Barack Obama | Cupcake Shoppe Bakery | health care | Sara Coleman | Under the Dome

Raleigh businesswoman Sara Coleman introduced President Barack Obama Wednesday.

Coleman left Johnson & Johnson to start the Cupcake Shoppe Bakery on Glenwood Avenue, not far from Broughton High School, where the town hall meeting was taking place.

The business has 10 employees and cannot provide health care insurance to them because she can't afford it. She said it's difficult to compete for employees against businesses that do offer health insurance.

Obama thanked Coleman for the introduction and told the audience that she gave him a T-shirt from her shop, but no cupcakes.

"I know I've been talking about health care a lot, but I think cupcakes are good for your health," Obama said to laughter.