Attorney General Roy Cooper said March 29 that he will not defend the new state law that prohibits local governments from approving LGBT protections, reports The Associated Press. Lambda Legal and the North Carolina ACLU have filed suit against the state.
Cooper, a Democrat, called the law, signed last week by Republican Gov. Pat McCrory, a “national embarrassment.” Cooper is challenging McCrory in the state’s race for governor in November.
According to The New York Times:
The federal lawsuit lists Cooper among the defendants because of his official position as the state's top lawyer, but he has said he wants it repealed.
"Not only is this new law a national embarrassment, it will set North Carolina's economy back if we don't' repeal it," Cooper said. "We know that businesses here and all over the country have taken a strong stance in opposition to this law."
McCrory is also a defendant in the lawsuit and has doubled down on justifying his decision to sign the law, even as many corporations have criticized it publicly. Cooper said the law will cost the state jobs and millions of dollars.
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