* U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge will speak at the Campbell University commencement. He is an alumnus of the college.

* Liberal blogger Rob Schofield notes a mixed message from the North Carolina chamber about whether workers should have sick days.

* Legislators send a bill to limit local governments that want to provide Internet access to residents to committee to be studied.

* U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx sends a letter to the mother of Matthew Shepard apologizing for her comments about his death, hate crimes bill passes. 

* Former top lobbyist Don Beason has been spotted at Senate Finance Committee hearings, though he does not sign in to the guest sheet.

* U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry, a Cherryville Republican, is playing a key role on GOP efforts to shape the 2010 Census policies.

* Spurred by N.C. Democratic Party, some 300 people call Sen. Richard Burr's office to complain about Rep. Virginia Foxx's remarks.

* Phones at Foxx's offices not being answered, calls "diverted to a general voice mail box, which was full and unable to record messages."

* Greensboro News-Record columnist Doug Clark (sort of) defends Rep. Virginia Foxx, citing 2004 report from ABC News.

* N&O music critic David Menconi notes that a New York singer has already written a song about Foxx, available for $1 donation.

* A spokesman for Foxx tells a local TV news station that she's received hate mail and death threats over the remarks in the last 24 hours. 

* In statement, U.S. Sen. Richard Burr says he is "disappointed" by Foxx's remarks, found them "to be inaccurate and insensitive."

* Sen. Fletcher Hartsell, a Cabarrus County Republican, lets out his inner Erin Brockovich in argument over Alcoa project on Yadkin River.

* NAACP praises Gov. Beverly Perdue for choosing first black district attorney in Eastern North Carolina; second currently serving in state.

* Liberal talk show host Keith Olbermann labels U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx "Worst Person in the World" for Matthew Shepard remarks.

* More signs of Senate '10: Americans United for Change criticizes Sen. Richard Burr in press release for voting against Obama's budget.

Gay rights groups pounced on a U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx Wednesday after she called the case behind a hate crimes bill "a hoax."

Foxx's comments came on the House floor during debate over the so-called Matthew Shepard bill, named for a 21-year-old gay man murdered in Wyoming in 1998. Supporters say he was the victim of a hate crime, Jim Morrill reports.

The bill would expand a federal hate crimes law to include acts motivated by sexual orientation.

"The Matthew Shepard bill is named after a very unfortunate incident that happened where a young man was killed," said the Banner Elk Republican. "But we know that that young man was killed in the commitment of a robbery. It wasn't because he was gay. The bill was named for him … but it's really a hoax that that continues to be used as an excuse for passing these bills."

In a statement, Foxx later called her comments "a poor choice of words."

More after the jump.

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* U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx says murder of Matthew Shephard was not a hate crime, but just a robbery, in floor speech today.

* Gov. Beverly Perdue's office has referred to the "swine flu" in press releases, but they've not had any internal discussion on the best name.

* National Rifle Association also opposes state Sen. Don Davis' "puppy mill" bill; earlier opposed similar House bill.

* Charlotte Observer columnist Jack Betts thinks it's "a bit of quirky irony" that former lobbyist Don Beason is being investigated.

The Matthew Shephard Act is back, minus the name.

Rep. Pricey Harrison has again filed a bill that would add age, gender, sexual orientation or disability to the state's hate crimes law.

Currently, North Carolina only outlaws hate crimes based on ethnicity, although attacks motivated by prejudice can still be prosecuted as regular crimes.

After the killing of University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard in 1998, some North Carolina legislators tried to add sexual orientation to the hate crimes law unsuccessfully.

The new bill is simply titled the "Safer Communities Act" and makes no mention of Shepard, but the Greensboro Democrat said that she was particularly concerned about the high rate of hate crimes against gays and lesbians.

She said she understood the argument that there shouldn't be a special law against hate crimes, but as long as there is it should be complete.

"It's our feeling that if we have a hate crimes law, we ought to be covering all of the hate crimes," she said.

Previous versions of the bill have not made it out of committee, but Harrison said she was optimistic since Congress may take similar action this year.