"Incredibly, Senate Bill 382 prohibits the Governor or anyone else from removing the legislatively appointed Commander for any reason—even if he were to commit serious criminal misconduct.”

North Carolina's Democratic governor and governor-elect filed a lawsuit Thursday challenging as unconstitutional a new law that the Republican-led state legislature passed Wednesday over a gubernatorial veto.

This law threatens public safety, fractures the chain of command during a crisis, and thwarts the will of voters,” Gov.-elect Josh Stein said in a statement.