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Doug Clark games the next steps for Mary Easley.

The Greensboro News-Record columnist says it "takes a lot of nerve" for the former First Lady to publicly refuse requests to resign.

So, what to do? She simply can't stay in defiance of university leaders. State will have to eliminate her position, maybe her entire program, in a "budget move." It may require some settlement of her contract. "Private" funds will be used to spare the taxpayers. Question: Is there anyone in North Carolina willing to donate money to the Easleys anymore? 

Update: Senate Republican Leader Phil Berger, of Eden, said the legislature may have to take away the funding for her position.

"The ongoing embarrassment to the state, the university system, and N.C. State University regarding the circumstances of Mary Easley’s hiring and continued employment needs to come to an end," Berger said. "If Gov. [Beverly] Perdue cannot prevail upon her fellow Democrats to do the honorable thing, it will become necessary to eliminate state funding for Mary Easley’s position."

* By percent, how much N.C. likes recent presidents in a poll: Reagan (44), Obama (29), Clinton (18), W. Bush (6), H.W. Bush (3).

* Liberal commentator Chris Fitzsimon, among others, takes issue with N&O/Char-O story about a "liberal shift" in the state legislature.

* Greensboro News-Record columnist Doug Clark argues that George Holding should be allowed to stay on the Easley, Edwards cases.

* U.S. Sen. Richard Burr finds "being the minority is liberating" because the majority sets the agenda and he can "delve into policy."

"A nonlawyer sitting on the highest court in the land? Is that even allowed?" — Greensboro News-Record columnist Doug Clark

Yes, for the U.S. Supreme Court; no, for the North Carolina one.

Article IV of the North Carolina constitution states that "only persons duly authorized to practice law" in state courts may be eligible to be elected or appointed state judges.

The N.C. Board of Law Examiners determines who can practice law. It requires that students graduate from a law school approved the N.C. State Bar, provide proof of "good moral character" and pass the bar exam, or have practiced law in another state.

"The main requirement is that you have to graduate from an ABA-approved law school," said Tammy Jackson, a spokeswoman for the State Bar.

Article III of the U.S. Constitution, however, states only that judges shall "hold their offices during good behavior."

It does not list any formal educational requirements, although every person nominated to the Court to date has been a lawyer and nearly two-thirds have been judges.

UNC-Chapel Hill law professor Bill Marshall said that Supreme Court justices handle a lot of technical legal issues.

"You don't have to be a lawyer to be a Supreme Court justice, but I think you probably need to be a this point," he said.

Have a question? E-mail dome@newsobserver.com or post a comment below.

* SEANC executive director Dana Cope is selling his home to keep his kids at Lacy Elementary, recruiting people to run for school board.

* Proposal to change state's sex education curriculum changed slightly to allow parents to choose to enroll their child in no classes.

* The Senate's budget bill faced a slew of amendments, some of which passed easily and some of which went nowhere fast.

* Greensboro News-Record columnist Doug Clark sides with schools Superintendent June Atkinson in her lawsuit against Gov. Beverly Perdue. 

* Greensboro News-Record columnist Doug Clark says that despite cuts this year, Gov. Beverly Perdue's 2010-11 budget would be the biggest ever.

* Jordan Schrader lists the professions whose licensing fees would go from $50 to $200. It includes massage therapists, CPAs, embalmers and "the art of healing."

* Asheville blogger Ashvegas gives Perdue a shoutout for posting the entire line-item budget online. "I love this kind of detail." 

* Conservative advocate Francis De Luca argues that Perdue's plan "proposes no long term fixes for the problem of chronic overspending." 

* Charlotte Observer columnist Jack Betts says North Carolina "has long been under-represented" in the Fourth Circuit because of partisan differences.

* Biofuels Center of North Carolina names W. Steven Burke as president, longtime political insider Norris Tolson as chairman of the board.

* N.C. Policy Watch's Adam Linker can't find a copy of State Health Plan head Jack Walker's doctoral thesis in ProQuest/UMI database.

* Democratic pollster Tom Jensen and Greensboro columnist Doug Clark agree that Rep. Heath Shuler's decision not to run for Senate is a good thing.

* Former state Sen. Fred Smith, who once pondered a run for the job himself, has endorsed Woody White for chair of the N.C. Republican Party.

* Republican National Committee member Ada Fisher of North Carolina calls for Michael Steele to step down, criticizes his language.

* Former Cumberland County Schools Superintendent Bill Harrison sworn in to new seat, elected chairman of the State Board of Education. 

* Greensboro News-Record columnist Doug Clark says Gov. Beverly Perdue has a "special obligation" to see that lottery money doesn't go into the general fund. 

* Democratic number-cruncher Nate Silver ranks first-term Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr's seat eighth most likely to change parties in 2010.

* Greensboro News-Record columnist Doug Clark says that he's not sympathetic to a bill for four-year terms for legislators, given their gerrymandered districts.

* N&O columnist Ruth Sheehan makes schools Superintendent June Atkinson cry, learns she didn't know about power grab until it was a fait accompli.

* U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler dings Democratic leaders on Capitol Hill for not getting bipartisan agreement on stimulus package; praises President Obama for listening.

* BlueNC regular Crowbar317 says the bill appears to be designed to remove protection from libel cases for anonymous bloggers and commenters.

* Greensboro News-Record columnist Doug Clark says it would be hard for bloggers to enforce its provisions on anonymous commenters on their own sites.

* WUNC radio reporter Laura Leslie wonders if Sen. Steve Goss is "carrying water" for other legislators, such as Sens. Julia Boseman or R.C. Soles, who have been targeted by blogs.

* Conservative Watauga Watch blog (sarcastically) takes aim at Goss for tackling "paramount public policy concern" of blogging during rough economic time.

* Conservative blogger Jeff Taylor argues that the bill is so broadly written that it could "criminalize virtually all text message traffic;" says N.C. blogs are tame.

* N&O editor John Drescher remembers another side of former Gov. Bob Scott — the politician who refused to answer a difficult question from a reporter.

* Greensboro News-Record columnist Doug Clark wonders why the public campaign finance system should spend $200,000 to elect a powerless schools superintendent.

* WUNC radio reporter Laura Leslie mourns the end of NBC-17's "At Issue" weekly political news show, praises hard work of anchor Kim Genardo.

* Blogger Dr. Frank argues that the legislature's balanced budget requirement may be too restrictive during a recession since suggested cuts aren't even close.