First Drip (6/26/14): Bank of America to lay off 540; McCrory, Tillis introduce spending bill, more

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If you've got friends who work at Bank of America, now's a good time to check in on them. BofA issued layoff notices yesterday to 540 employees who work at the mortgage unit in Gateway Village.

The U.S. plays Germany today in the World Cup. Reading this at work? Guess you missed U.S. head coach Juergen Klinsmann's handwritten get-out-of-work note. "I understand that this absence may reduce the productivity of your workplace, but I can assure you that it is for an important cause," he wrote.

Gov. Pat McCrory and House Speaker Thom Tillis have teamed up to save the day. Or, at least, they think they have. Yesterday they introduced a separate budget bill - separate from the ones the House and Senate have introduced, respectfully - to cover big issues like teacher pay raises and more money for Medicaid. "McCrory and Tillis sought to downplay the divisions even as they acknowledged a difference in opinion on how to tweak the budget. Both pivoted to appeal directly to the public in this election year, a move designed to pressure the Senate to support the new education-focused spending bill."

Two top Veterans Affairs officials have resigned; the changes are a part of an effort to "rebuild the trust of American veterans' trust" after it came to light that thousands were receiving poor medical care and experienced long waits for appointments. "Just this week, the Office of Special Counsel - an independent investigative agency - found 'a troubling pattern of deficient patient care' that it said VA officials were aware of but downplayed. That included canceled appointments with no follow up, contaminated drinking water and improper handling of surgical equipment."