Politics & Government

Congressman Howard Coble says he’s ready to get back to work after spending the last two weeks in the hospital.

Congressman Coble is planning to report to work in Washington by mid-January.  But that’s all he’s sure of right now.   The 80-year-old Republican is still contemplating re-election.

Leoneda Inge:  "Are you still planning to run for re-election?"

Howard Coble:  "Well, I’m leaning that way now.  I want to see how the final re-drawn map looks, that’s in litigation right now. And I want to see how I recover from the hospital, so far, so good."

Engineers from the state DOT meet with federal wildlife officials this afternoon to consider options for repairing Highway 12 on the Outer Banks. Storm surge from Hurricane Irene breached the highway in several spots on Hatteras Island. The options include beach re-nourishment, creating bridges above the existing road, or bridges that re-route the highway. But at issue in today's meeting is how the options might affect the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge. Beth Smyre  is the DOT planning engineer who oversees the project.

Governor Bev Perdue has vetoed a bill that would have repealed the Racial Justice Act.

Residents have a chance to weigh in on the state's emergency response to Hurricane Irene. Emergency management officials and forecasters are hosting public meetings this week in eastern North Carolina to review their communication tactics during the storm. Rich Bandy is the lead meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Newport.