Governor Cooper Loses Another One

Raleigh, N.C. — Senator Harry Brown (R-Onslow) issued the following statement in response to a court’s unanimous, bipartisan ruling in favor of the legislature and against Governor Roy Cooper in Cooper v. Berger:

“Governor Cooper keeps trying to violate the Constitution to dole out taxpayer money to whomever he wants, and he keeps losing. Today’s unanimous court ruling is another setback for the power hungry Governor.

“Instead of trying for unconstitutional power grabs, Governor Cooper should focus on actually governing. His administration is a complete mess: DOT needed a bailout; his Department of Military and Veterans Affairs has been withholding scholarship money for veterans’ kids; and he just scuttled a Medicaid overhaul years in the making despite warnings from his own Secretary of Health and Human Services.”

Background on the case

In 2017, Governor Cooper sued the legislature, claiming he alone had the Constitutional authority to disburse funds provided to the state by the federal government. The Governor lost at the trial level. He just lost again on appeal.

Governor Cooper has a lengthy track record of violating the Constitution to obtain taxpayer funds under his exclusive control. Most recently, independent investigators concluded that “criminal violations may have occurred” and that Governor Cooper “improperly used his authority” in extracting funds from Duke Energy during the permitting process for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline.