Civility: Legislators seem to want cooperation -- for now

Civility reigned in Raleigh this week as the Legislature returned to town for its members to be sworn in.

Lawmakers greeted each other warmly, had photos taken with family and friends and roundly talked of cooperation between Republicans and Democrats. Then they adjourned until Jan. 25.

We'll see how long the good will lasts.

With a number of issues dividing representatives of the two parties, we don't think it will be long before the divisiveness that has marked recent sessions will be back.

Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper is likely to be at the center of the battling, given his stance of a number of high-profile issues, especially HB2, the law that requires transgender people to use the public restroom of their gender anatomy rather that their gender identity.

Cooper won election by running a campaign that promised to turn back the conservative tide wrought by the Republican-dominated House and Senate. Whether he will be able to do so remains to be seen but there certainly will be plenty of struggles ahead between the governor and GOP legislative leaders.

So enjoy the back-slapping and the selfies as long as they last. It will be likely prove to be a contentious session in the long run.

Published in Editorials on January 13, 2017 9:53 AM